Often called Lee's greatest tactical victory. Outnumbered nearly 2:1, Lee boldly split his forces and sent Stonewall Jackson on a flank march that crushed the Union right. However, Jackson was accidentally shot by his own men and died eight days later.
Lee's masterpiece — but the death of Stonewall Jackson was an irreplaceable loss for the Confederacy. Lee called it losing his right arm.
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In the predawn hours of May 1, 1898, Commodore George Dewey led the Asiatic Squadron of six warships into Manila Bay in the Philippines and proceeded to systematically destroy the Spanish Pacific Fleet. Dewey's modern steel warships faced an outmatched Spanish fleet of wooden and obsolete vessels under Rear Admiral Patricio Montojo. Dewey famously told his flagship captain, 'You may fire when you are ready, Gridley,' and within hours the entire Spanish fleet of ten ships was sunk, beached, or burning. The Americans suffered only nine wounded — not a single man killed in combat.
Manila Bay was one of the most lopsided naval victories in history and instantly transformed the strategic situation in the Pacific. It gave the United States control of the Philippines and positioned America as a Pacific power. The victory made Dewey a national hero overnight and opened profound questions about what the United States intended to do with its new Asian possessions.
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The first significant land battle of the war saw General Kuroki Tamemoto's Japanese First Army cross the Yalu River under fire and defeat Russian forces defending the Korean-Manchurian border. Kuroki used the island of Kiuriendao as a staging point, constructed bridges under darkness, and launched coordinated assaults that overwhelmed Russian defensive positions at Chiu-lien-ch'eng. The Russian Eastern Detachment, outnumbered and outmaneuvered, suffered a stinging defeat and was forced to withdraw northward into Manchuria.
The Battle of the Yalu was the first land defeat of a European power by an Asian nation in the modern era. It shattered the myth of European military invincibility and emboldened nationalist movements across Asia. It also opened the road into Manchuria for Japanese armies.
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