The War in Virginia and The West, 1862-1863 By Hussam Amer
McClellan v McClellan won the battle of Antietam, upon his victory McClellan stopped Attacking the enemy. v McClellan was not attacking general lee s Army after he has been ordered to by the president. Ø McClellan had argued that his men could not march twenty miles a day and fight without full stomachs and new shoes. v This mad Lincoln mad but instead of removing McClellan he gave him new orders of attack hoping McClellan will bring victory. Ø Lincoln thought if McClellan crossed the Potomac river quickly and get between the enemy and Richmond he could force lee into the open for a fight to the finish. v McClellan army finally began crossing the river on October 26, but the army moved really slowly. Ø Because the army of the Potomac moved so slowly lee was able to interpose Longstreet s crops between Richmond and the bluecoats while Jackson remained in the Shenandoah Valley on McClellan's flank.
McClellan v McClellan army finally began crossing the river on October 26, but the army moved really slowly. v Because the army of the Potomac moved so slowly lee was able to interpose Longstreet s crops between Richmond and the bluecoats while Jackson remained in the Shenandoah Valley on McClellan's flank. v After the battle for Lincoln this was the last straw. v On November 7, Lincoln replaced McClellan with Burnside. v McClellan farewell to the army was emotional.
Burnside Burnside started well, however. Instead of continuing straight south using the vulnerable railroad through Manassas as his supply line, he moved the ponderous army of 110,000 men with unwonted speed to Falmouth, across the Rappahannock from Fredericksburg. v By this move he hoped to secure his supply line by naval control of the river flowing into the Chesapeake Bay. v Burnside hoped to cross the river and drive toward Richmond. v The draw back to his strategy was the number of rivers his army had to cross the Rappahannock from Fredericksburg.
Preparing for Fredericksburg v By moving quickly, Burnside was able to make it to Falmouth by November 17. v Burnside needed to bridge the river did not show up for more than a week. v The engineers did not show up due to Burnside unclear instructions. Ø As a result Lee had most of his 75,000 men dug in along the hills south of the Rappahannock by the time pontoons arrived. v This caused a problem because lee was willing to sit there all winter, but Burnside could not afford to do so. v Burnside concluded that Lee would expect him to cross above or below the river.
Preparing for Fredericksburg v But burn side decided to cross immediately in the front, to surprise Lee. Ø Lee was surprised only by the folly of this move. v Lee had Longstreet s crops posted along four miles of high ground overlooking Fredericksburg. Ø with a sweeping field of fire over the half-mile of open fields that attacking troops would have to cross.
The Battle of Fredericksburg v The Battle of Fredericksburg began on December 11 th and ended on the 15 th. v In the morning of December 11 th three blue regiments were sent on boat to the other side because the confederate snipers were killing all the engineers that were setting up the bridge. v When the regiments drove the snipers away the rest of the army was able to cross. v After the rest of the army crossed under fire, urban combat in the city resulted on December 11 12. December 11-12
The Battle of Fredericksburg December 13 v The Union Army's futile frontal attacks against entrenched Confederate defenders. v A division of Pennsylvanians commanded by George Gordon found a seam in Jackson s line but could not take advantage due to lack of force and confederate reinforcements. v Wave after wave of blue solders poured out of the town toward Marye s heights.
The Battle of Fredericksburg v This waves were broken 50 yards short of the fence at the base of the hill, each leaving hundreds dying or dead. Ø Behind the fence stood four ranks of Georgians and North Carolinians loading and shooting so fast the their firing achieved the effect of machine guns.
The Battle of Fredericksburg v At the end of the day the Union army had suffered nearly 13,000 casualties and the confederates only took about 5,000 casualties. v Distraught by the disaster, Burnside wanted personally to lead a desperation charge the next day, but he came to his senses and withdrew the army unmolested across the river on the stormy night of December 15. v Fredericksburg brought home the horrors of war to northern more vividly, perhaps, then any previous battle. v The north because of this defeat wanted to stop fighting and surrender.
Battle of Stones River v The Battle of Stones River was fought from December 31,1862 to January 2, 1863 in Middle of Tennessee. v On December 31, 1862, advancing forces under Union general William Rosecrans fought a pitched battle with Braxton Bragg s Army of Tennessee on the outskirts of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. v On December 30, each of the commanders planned to attack his opponents right flank.
Battle of Stones River v Both generals formed plans of attack, but Bragg struck first, pulverizing the Union right flank with two veteran divisions. v False reports indicating a Union retreat kept Bragg in place on January 1, but January 2 dawned with Rosecrans stubbornly holding his ground. v Bragg ordered John Breckinridge and his division to charge the Union left late in the afternoon. v Breckinridge s men crossed an open field and nearly achieved a victory, but massed artillery broke up the assault. v Although the battle to that point had been a tactical draw, the arrival of Union reinforcements made Bragg s position untenable. v He retreated on January 3, granting the North a valuable strategic victory.
Chancellorsville v The Battle of Chancellorsville, fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, is widely considered to be Confederate Robert E. Lee s greatest victory during the American Civil War. v Facing an enemy force nearly twice the size of his own, Lee daringly split his troops in two, confronting and surprising Union Joseph Hooker. v This victory would come at a cost homas Stonewall Jackson, one of Lee s most trusted generals, was mortally wounded by friendly fire during the battle and later dead.
Vicksburg Campaign v It is one of the more remarkable campaigns of the American Civil War. v Grant and his Union soldiers had been trying to wrest away the strategic Confederate river fortress of Vicksburg, Mississippi. v Previous, direct attempts to take this important town high above the Mississippi River were blocked by confederates. v After crossing the Mississippi River on April 30, 1863, General Ulysses S. Grant's Union Army of the Tennessee waged a fighting campaign of maneuver to isolate the city of Vicksburg and the Confederates defending it.
Under Siege v On May 19 and 22, Grant launched a series of frontal assaults against Pemberton's fortifications, suffering heavy losses. v Because he failed to take the city Grant lay siege to the city. v Ordering his men to dig a series of trenches, also called "approaches" to the Confederate works. v For 47 days, the Union bombarded the city while the Confederate soldiers and civilians alike suffered the hardships of siege warfare. v On July 4, Pemberton surrendered his army to Grant, ending the siege. v Confederacy army now has been cut in half.
Document Analysis Mr. President: You have been fully informed that [the] rebel army is in [our] front, with the purpose of overwhelming us by attacking our positions or reducing us by blocking our river communications. I cannot but regard our condition as critical, and I earnestly desire, in view of possible contingencies, to lay before your excellency, for your private consideration, my general views concerning the existing state of the rebellion, although they do not strictly relate to the situation of this army or strictly come within the scope of my official duties. These views amount to convictions, and are deeply impressed upon my mind and heart. Our cause must never be abandoned; it is the cause of free institutions and self-government. The Constitution and the Union must be preserved, whatever may be the cost in time, treasure, and blood. If secession is successful other dissolutions are clearly to be seen in the future. Let neither military disaster, political faction, nor foreign war shake your settled purpose to enforce the equal operation of the laws of the United States upon the people of every state. Origin: Primary source document. Authentic from George B. McClellan Peninsula Campaign letter (1862) Purpose: to inform the president that the rebels are advancing. Value: it is a letter and it shows what movements the rebels are making Limitation: it is bias because they are trying to tell the president what to do to stop them.
Work Cited http://www.nps.gov/stri/index.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/battle_of_stones_river http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/stones-river.html http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/vicksburg-campaign/ http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com/search/display/298782? terms=civil+war++mcclellan http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/vicksburg/maps/vicksburgmap.html