The army also hoped to capture the mines of Colorado and California, to secure gold and silver supplies to finance the Confederate war effort.

The army was formed by Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley during the summer of 1861, recruiting from the eastern counties of Texas.

As a result, the weapons used by the troops varied widely, including rifle muskets, squirrel guns, and double barreled shotguns.

[6] After initial training in San Antonio, the regiments were sent by detachments to Fort Bliss near El Paso in October, where Sibley formally took command of the military units in the Confederate Arizona Territory.

At this time, Sibley was either suffering from kidney disease or was drunk; early in the battle he was forced to turn command over to Colonel Thomas Green of the 5th Texas.

This forced the Confederates to live off the land, but were only able to find a fraction of the supplies they needed; in addition, the foraging alienated the local population.

[6] After establishing his headquarters at Albuquerque, Sibley sent an advance force under the command Major Charles Pyron to Apache Canyon to watch for Union movements from the north along the Santa Fe Trail.

After learning of the Union victory, Canby advanced northward in order to unite with the northern force and surround Sibley.

Following the arrival of the force from Fort Union, Sibley decided to continue the retreat due to a shortage of rations, ammunition, and forage.

[16] A small rear was left to guard at Fort Thorn in New Mexico, but this also had to retreat in early July, due to advancing Union forces from California.