US ResearchConflictsCivil WarBattle of Corydon
Civil War

Battle of Corydon

Indiana
Era
Civil War
Location
Indiana
Status
Verified engagement
The Combatants

Who Fought

Forces
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Union (Indiana Legion): four companies of the 6th and 8th Regiments, totaling about one hundred men, later joined by the main body of the 6th Regiment under Col. Lewis Jordan
VS
Victor
Confederate
Forces
Confederate: approximately 2,500 cavalry
Outcome
The Confederate force overcame the Union defenders through superior artillery fire. The Union units retreated northward and constructed defensive breastworks south of Corydon.
The Battle

History & Significance

The Battle of Corydon was a minor engagement that took place July 9, 1863, just south of Corydon, which had been the original capital of Indiana until 1825, and was the county seat of Harrison County. The attack occurred during Morgan's Raid in the American Civil War as a force of 2,500 cavalry invaded the North in support of the Tullahoma Campaign. It was the only pitched battle of the Civil War that occurred in Indiana, and no battle has occurred within Indiana since.

Duration
Date not documented
Historical context

The American Civil War (1861–1865) was the deadliest conflict in American history, killing an estimated 620,000 to 750,000 soldiers and an unknown number of civilians. The Confederate States of America, formed by eleven seceding Southern states, faced the Union in four years of warfare across 23 states and territories. Major engagements included First and Second Bull Run, Antietam (the bloodiest single day in American history, September 17, 1862), Chancellorsville, Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863), Vicksburg (surrendered July 4, 1863), and Sherman's March through Georgia and the Carolinas (1864–1865). President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, transforming the war's stated purpose to include the abolition of slavery and enabling the enlistment of approximately 180,000 Black men in the United States Colored Troops. Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. The war resolved the question of secession and ended American slavery, though Reconstruction would face sustained resistance in its attempt to secure civil rights for formerly enslaved people.

Casualties & Losses

Union: 4 killed, ~8 wounded, ~355 captured; Confederate: ~8 killed, ~33 wounded

Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

Where was Battle of Corydon fought?
Battle of Corydon was fought in Indiana, United States.
What was the outcome of Battle of Corydon?
The Confederate force overcame the Union defenders through superior artillery fire. The Union units retreated northward and constructed defensive breastworks south of Corydon.
What was the significance of Battle of Corydon?
The Battle of Corydon was a minor engagement that took place July 9, 1863, just south of Corydon, which had been the original capital of Indiana until 1825, and was the county seat of Harrison County. The attack occurred during Morgan's Raid in the American Civil War as a force of 2,500 cavalry inva
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Source

Content adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Wikipedia source.

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