Battle of Bull Run

Today is the anniversary of The Battle of Bull Run.
In the 1860s. The United States fought a war between itself called the Civil War.  It is by far the deadliest war in history for Americans.  Hundreds of thousands of lives were lost.  Cities were burned to the ground.  The culural impact of this war and why it was fought is still felt today.
It was supposed to be over quick. On Jul. 21, 1861. The people of the union side were wondering why the war had not been won.  The darn thing been declared for a few months by then. so they demanded the south be marched upon and conqured.  This seemed like a fine idea.  The union gathered 30 something thousand of the finest untrained soldiers they had and attacked.   A crowd of onlookers actually gathered to watch. (Back then war was still a popular spectator sport.)  The south was out numbered by a few thousand, but they had training.  This combined with new advances in weapon technology for the time resulted in a very bloody battle.  Several thousand lost their lives.  A strong omen for what was to come.