Lieutenant Colonel Walter H. Jenifer commanded the 300-man cavalry force in Colonel Nathan “Shanks” Evan’s Confederate brigade. About 70 troopers were with him at Ball’s Bluff, including portions of the Chesterfield Light Dragoons, the Loudoun Cavalry, and the Wise Dragoons. After breaking the Union line near the Jackson house, part of the cavalry dismounted because of the rough, wooded terrain. An estimated one-third of these men joined several companies of Mississippi infantry and fought on foot during the engagement. The rest remained mounted, scouting on the periphery some distance north of the main battlefield, and were not actively engaged in the fighting but were watching the enemy’s flanks during the day.