# Fighting a Civil War battle at night **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 29, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033 "2015-10-29T01:38:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/1 "2015-10-29T01:38:10Z")
According to [Wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Wauhatchie), The Battle of Wauhatchie was one of the few night battles of the Civil War. I believe that since fighting at night would have been fraught with danger, not the least of which would be shooting your compatriots by mistake. I assume that both the Union and Confederate armies had oil filled lamps or lanterns, and that they made campfires, but did they have other sources of light they could use during a battle? Did they have torches they could carry with them to light their way? Wouldn’t torches, lanterns and campfires tip off your enemy to your precise location? I guess what I’m asking is why would you ever want to fight a night battle during the Civil War, unless there was a full moon or you happen to be invading a town that was well lit. So many things could go terribly wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Robert163](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/4af34b/32.png) [@Robert163](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robert163)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/2 "2015-10-29T02:08:06Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > According to [Wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Wauhatchie), The Battle of Wauhatchie was one of the few night battles of the Civil War. I believe that since fighting at night would have been fraught with danger, not the least of which would be shooting your compatriots by mistake. > > I assume that both the Union and Confederate armies had oil filled lamps or lanterns, and that they made campfires, but did they have other sources of light they could use during a battle? Did they have torches they could carry with them to light their way? Wouldn’t torches, lanterns and campfires tip off your enemy to your precise location? > > I guess what I’m asking is why would you ever want to fight a night battle during the Civil War, unless there was a full moon or you happen to be invading a town that was well lit. So many things could go terribly wrong. This sounds like it would make a good episode of ancient aliens 😉 ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/3 "2015-10-29T02:13:13Z")
Did your source mention the phase of the moon on that night? I can’t imagine starting a fire AND staying near it - you could use fires with some kind of directional screening (to make it invisible from the east, for instance) and set them to burn a long time. Then use them to establish direction and orientation - while a good distance from them. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/4 "2015-10-29T02:33:13Z")
There’s no way it could work. Once you fired the first shot, of worse, the first volley; you would have simultaneously blinded yourself and given away your exact position. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/5 "2015-10-29T02:38:40Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > So many things could go terribly wrong. No Kidding. From the Wiki link. > [@](#): > > Hearing the sounds of battle, the XI Corps quickly fell into ranks near Brown’s Ferry. Hooker bypassed Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard in the chain of command and ordered Maj. Gen. Carl Schurz to march to Wauhatchie Station as reinforcements. In the confusion, Brig. Gen. Adolph von Steinwehr got his division on the road first. Col. Orland Smith’s brigade of Steinwehr’s division was fired on by Law’s Confederates, who were positioned on a 200-foot high hill that dominated the road from Brown’s Ferry. Smith veered to the east and began climbing the hill. Meanwhile, Hooker mistakenly deployed units from both XI Corps divisions against Law and Benning, leaving no one to go to Geary’s aid. Though Law’s 2,000 men were greatly outnumbered by Hooker’s force, the hilltop position was naturally strong. In the darkness, the only unit in direct contact with Law was Smith’s 700-man brigade. Several vigorous assaults by Smith were repulsed. Then, after Law received some erroneous reports, he decided to pull back. Just as his men left their entrenchments, Smith’s men spilled over them, capturing some stragglers and scattering a regiment that failed to get the order to retreat. Meanwhile, Hooker agreed to let Howard proceed to Wauhatchie with some cavalry.[11] Maybe that’s why they didn’t do it very often. Why did they do it this time? For the element of surprise, which worked well. But if you don’t win immediately, things could go terribly wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/6 "2015-10-29T02:40:24Z")
> [@](#): > > So many things could go terribly wrong. In war, you _want_ things to go terribly wrong… for your enemy. If you think that fighting by night will hurt your enemy more than it’ll hurt you, it just might be a reasonable tactic. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/7 "2015-10-29T05:06:52Z")
Illumination rockets had been used for decades by that point.Don’t know if they were actually used in this battle, but the tech was there. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2015, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fighting-a-civil-war-battle-at-night/736033/8 "2015-10-29T05:17:10Z")
The Union was rapidly establishing a viable logistics line into a place the Confederates did NOT want them. They attacked the supply convoy as soon as they could muster enough troops - time was exceedingly critical - that convoy could NOT be allowed to pass. They planned to attack at 10:00 P.M. - but screwed up and didn’t get started until midnight - by which time the USA troops had figured out that an attack was likely, and had established pickets to sound the alarm.