Battles of December 20 including descriptions of the battles, geographic locations, associated artwork, and museums where a person can find associated artifacts and artwork.
1. Battle of Dranesville
Date: December 20, 1861
War: American Civil War
Cause: Following the Union disaster at Ball’s Bluff, tensions were high in Northern Virginia. Both Union and Confederate forces sent out foraging parties on the same day to gather hay and supplies from farms between their lines. The escorts for these wagons collided near the village of Dranesville.
Result: Union Victory. Union Brigadier General E.O.C. Ord’s forces arrived first and established a strong position. When Confederate J.E.B. Stuart attacked, he was repulsed by superior Union artillery and infantry fire. The victory provided a much-needed morale boost for the North during a winter of stagnation.
Paintings & Art
Painting: Battle at Dranesville, Va. Decr. 20th, 1861 (Map/Watercolor)
- Artist: Robert Knox Sneden
- Year: c. 1861–1865
Painting: The Battle of Dranesville (Engraving)
- Artist: Harper’s Weekly Staff (Sketch by an officer on the field)
- Year: 1862
Museums & Artifacts
Virginia Museum of the Civil War (New Market, Virginia, USA): While focused on the later Battle of New Market, this museum serves as a central hub for Civil War history in Virginia, holding varied artifacts from the campaigns in the region.
Virginia Historical Society / Virginia Museum of History & Culture (Richmond, Virginia, USA): Holds the “Sneden Scrapbook,” a massive collection of Civil War watercolors and maps by soldier-artist Robert Knox Sneden, including his depiction of Dranesville.
Location
General: Dranesville, Virginia, USA (Modern-day intersection of Route 7 and Route 193). Coordinates: 39.0044° N, 77.3377° W
Recommended Book Dranesville: A Northern Virginia Town in the Crossfire of a Forgotten Battle, December 20, 1861 by Ryan T. Quint.
2. Battle of Holly Springs (Van Dorn’s Raid)
Date: December 20, 1862
War: American Civil War
Cause: Union General Ulysses S. Grant was advancing toward Vicksburg, Mississippi, using Holly Springs as his primary supply depot. Recognizing the vulnerability of Grant’s long supply line, Confederate General Earl Van Dorn launched a daring cavalry raid behind Union lines to destroy these supplies.
Result: Confederate Victory. Van Dorn’s troopers caught the Union garrison by surprise, capturing the town and burning millions of dollars worth of food, forage, and munitions. The destruction forced Grant to abandon his overland advance on Vicksburg and retreat to Memphis, delaying the fall of Vicksburg by months.
Paintings & Art
Painting: The Raid on Holly Springs (Engraving)
- Artist: Alexander Simplot (attrib. for Harper’s Weekly)
- Year: 1863
Painting: Earl Van Dorn (Carte de visite / Photograph)
- Artist: Vannerson & Jones (Photographers)
- Year: c. 1861–1863
Museums & Artifacts
Marshall County Historical Museum (Holly Springs, Mississippi, USA): Located in the historic town itself, this museum houses an extensive collection of Civil War artifacts related to the raid, including weaponry, uniforms, and local accounts of the destruction.
Mississippi Civil Rights Museum & Museum of Mississippi History (Jackson, Mississippi, USA): Provides broader context on the Civil War in Mississippi and the impact of military campaigns on both soldier and civilian populations in the state.
Location
General: Holly Springs, Mississippi, USA.
Coordinates: 34.7675° N, 89.4486° W
Recommended Book Holly Springs: Van Dorn, the CSS Arkansas and the Raid That Saved Vicksburg by Brandon H. Beck.
3. First Battle of Champagne (Start of Offensive)
Date: December 20, 1914
War: World War I
Cause: Following the “Race to the Sea” which established the trench lines of the Western Front, the French army launched its first major offensive in the Champagne region. The goal was to break the German line, seize the railway junction at Attigny, and force a German retreat.
Result: Inconclusive / Strategic Failure. The offensive, which began on December 20, resulted in minor tactical gains but failed to break the German lines. It devolved into a war of attrition with heavy casualties on both sides, setting the grim tone for trench warfare in the years to follow.
Paintings & Art
Painting: Fighting in Champagne (Sketch/Painting)
- Artist: Leon Broquet
- Year: c. 1914–1918
Painting: Verdun (Associated War Artist for the region)
- Artist: Félix Vallotton
- Year: 1917
Museums & Artifacts
Musée de l’Armée (Paris, France): Located at Les Invalides, this is one of the world’s premier military museums, holding vast collections of WWI uniforms, weapons, and artwork, including works by artists commissioned to paint the Champagne front.
La Contemporaine (Nanterre, France): A library and museum specializing in 20th-century history, holding a significant collection of sketches, paintings, and posters from the First World War.
Location
General: Perthes-lès-Hurlus (near Souain-Perthes-lès-Hurlus), Grand Est, France.
Coordinates: 49.1833° N, 4.5500° E
Recommended Book The French Army in the First World War by Elizabeth Greenhalgh.
4. Invasion of Panama (Operation Just Cause)
Date: December 20, 1989
War: United States Invasion of Panama
Cause: Tensions between the U.S. and Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega reached a breaking point due to drug trafficking indictments, harassment of U.S. personnel, and the killing of a U.S. Marine. President George H.W. Bush ordered the invasion to protect American lives, restore democracy, and seize Noriega.
Result: United States Victory. U.S. forces quickly overwhelmed the Panamanian Defense Forces (PDF). Key targets, including the Comandancia (PDF Headquarters) in the El Chorrillo neighborhood, were seized. Noriega eventually surrendered, and the PDF was dissolved.
Paintings & Art
Painting: El Chorrillo, December 20, 1989 (Mural/Acrylic on Canvas)
- Artist: Aristides Ureña Ramos
- Year: 2021
Painting: ManiObras (Series created during the crisis leading to the invasion)
- Artist: Isabel De Obaldía
- Year: 1989
Museums & Artifacts
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (Panama City, Panama): Houses significant Panamanian art from the late 20th century, including works that reflect on the political crisis and the 1989 invasion.
The Panama Canal Museum Collection (Gainesville, Florida, USA): Housed at the University of Florida, this collection preserves documents, photographs, and oral histories related to the American era in Panama, including the 1989 invasion.
Location
General: El Chorrillo Neighborhood, Panama City, Panama.
Coordinates: 8.9503° N, 79.5333° W
Recommended Book Operation Just Cause: The Storming of Panama by Thomas Donnelly.
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