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00000174-b11b-ddc3-a1fc-bfdbb1a20000The Schreiner University Department of History is honoring the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War with a series of short vignettes focusing on events from 1861 through 1865. The Civil War was the most destructive conflict in American history, but it was also one of our most defining moments as a people and as a nation. Let us know what you think about "This Week in the Civil War." E-mail your comments to Dr. John Huddleston at jhuddles@schreiner.edu.Airs: Weekdays at 5:19 a.m., 8:19 a.m., 4:19 p.m. on KTXI and 4:49 a.m., 9:29 p.m. on KSTX.

This Week in the Civil War - 706

Union General Nathaniel Banks’ strategy in late 1863 involved invading South Texas and then slowly moving northward along the Texas coastline, seizing Confederate ports and installations. 

Once Banks’ forces captured Brazos de Santiago at the mouth of the Rio Grande River in early November his troops moved quickly to the north, capturing Corpus Christi on November 16 and overwhelming a Confederate battery protecting Aransas Pass the following day.  By Sunday, November 22, 1863 Banks’ forces began an assault against Fort Esperanza, the main Confederate fortification on Matagorda Island. 

By the end of the month Banks would control the fort, the island, and nearby area.  Except for Galveston and the Sabine Pass area, the entirety of the Texas coast would be controlled by Union forces, if Banks’ troops could not be expelled.