MG Hancock’s Division at the Battle of Fredericksburg
Introduction of the battle of Fredericksburg
Fredericksburg was the meeting place of the Armies of the Potomac and of Northern Virginia because of political pressure for the Union to achieve a decisive military victory. Winfield Scott’s Anaconda plan, which would have strangled the Confederacy into surrender through economic warfare, was overshadowed by impatience in Washington D.C., and by the aspirations of officers who were students of the grand Napoleonic victories that occurred less than a century prior.
President Abraham Lincoln demanded a decisive victory. He was tired of his military leadership’s inability to decisively engage and defeat Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Allowing the war to drag on was to the Confederacies advantage. Lincoln was so frustrated that he relieved General George B. McClellan for failing to defeat Lee at Antietam, and replaced him with General Ambrose Burnside, who proved to be very conservative in battle against General Lee. Knowing that General Lee was a student of Napoleonic warfare, Burnside feared that Lee always had a large Corps in reserve waiting to flank should he be decisively engaged from the front.
A Brief Background of Hancock and his Chain of Command
Major General Winfield Scott Hancock was a member of the West Point Class of 1844. He was commissioned into the infantry and served in the Mexican War. Prior to the battle of Fredericksburg, Hancock had earned a great reputation as a combat leader for his actions in the peninsular campaign.
General Hancock’s first line supervisor was Major General Darius N. Couch, who was the commander of the Second Corps. Major General Couch’s Second Corps fell under General Edwin V. Sumne...
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...he 150 he lost on the initial invasion of Fredericksburg. On 14 and 15 December Second Corps moved back into Fredericksburg. By 0100 on the 16 December they had all re crossed the Rappahannock.
Works Cited
Caldwell, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p233
Couch, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.221
French, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.286
Howard, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.262
Hancock, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.226
Longstreet, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.578
Meager, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.240
Ransom, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.517
William Marvel. “The Making of a Myth: Ambrose E. Burnside and the Union High Command at Fredericksburg,” in The Fredericksburg Campaign: Decision on the Rappahannock, ed. Gary W. Gallagher (Chapel Hill, 1995).
Zook, “Report,” OR, ser.1, vol.21, pt.1, p.253
From July 1st to July 3rd, 1863, the most famous and most important Civil War Battle took place in the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Confederates under Robert E. Lee advanced on the Union in hopes of taking the major city of Philadelphia, Baltimore, or even Washington D.C. Union commander General George Meade was sent to make sure none of this would happen. General Robert E. Lee was determined to invade the North and win a victory important for southern morale, leads his army toward Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he hopes to destroy railroad bridges linking east with west. He is unaware that a large union force headed by General Meade is headed in the same direction.
Sears’ thesis is the Union could have won the war faster. McClellan was an incompetent commander and to take the initiative to attack an defeat the Confederate army. The Army of Northern Virginia, under...
Walker, Adam. A Journal of Two Campaigns of the Fourth Regiment US. Infantv in the Indiana and Michigan Territories. Keene, NH: Sentinel Press, 18 16.
Lee had supreme confidence in his army, and believed that it could accomplish whatever he asked of it. This confidence sometimes led him to ask too much, such as in the case of Picket’s charge during the battle of Gettysburg. In Lee’s mind he was first and foremost a Christian, and a gentleman. These facts, although not bad, certainly caused Lee to be less aggressive, and to fight the war in a very old-fashioned manner. This was not so with Grant, who seemed to believe in a more modern type of total warfare. Perhaps because this war, as many contend, was the first modern war, it was impossible for the South, and it’s leaders to adapt to the situation.
The famous Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1 to July 3 of 1863 in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle proved to show the most casualties of the entire war and resulted in a crushing defeat of the Confederates. The Battle of Gettysburg is generally considered to be the turning point of the American Civil War. This paper will demonstrate the various reasons as to why the Confederates, led by General Robert E. Lee, were unsuccessful in the Battle of Gettysburg during their invasion of the north. General Lee’s over-confidence, the confederate army’s disorganization and failed coordination, and the shift of intelligence all contributed to the crushing defeat of the confederates at Gettysburg. Following his “flawless” battle at Chancellorsville, General Lee was instilled with absolute confidence in his men and failed to see any deficiencies in his army’s offensive capabilities. Lee was not only over-confident, but also knew less than his opponent during the most crucial stages of the battle. The final contributing factor as to why the confederates were defeated was Alexander’s failure to provide effective artillery bombardment and his failure to advise General Pickett not to make the charge after the ineffective bombardment.
In addition to the road to battle, it is important to know that historical accounts of what led to the battle and what transpired are in dispute. These are not disputes over minor items, such as the exact order of battle or a clear sequence of events in what was a confusing night and dawn battle. Accounts of what transpired are often fundamentally different, and it is clear that various actors suppressed or championed differing accounts for political or personal reasons. By some accounts, the battle began by accident as an Indian patrol sent to keep watch on the Americans drew fire from nervous American sentries, leading the Indians only a mile away at Prophetstown to attack. By other accounts, the Indians planned a deliberate attack in order to strike the American force before the Americans could strike the Indians. Harrison touted the battle as a decisive victory that broke up the Indian confederacy and many historians agreed. However, modern accounts argue that the battle actuall...
The Battle of Antietam could have been a devastating and fatal blow to the Confederate Army if Gen. McClellan acted decisively, took calculated risks, and veered away from his cautious approach to war. There are many instances leading up to the battle and during the battle in which he lacks the necessary offensive initiative to effectively cripple and ultimately win the war. This paper is intended to articulate the failure of Mission Command by GEN McClellan by pointing out how he failed to understand, visualize, describe and direct the battlefield to his benefit.
Harrison, Lowell H. The Civil War in Kentucky. Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 1975.
Confederate Lt. General Richard Ewell’s corps charged the Union line in their right flank. General Robert E. Lee seeing this as a attack ordered an attack along the entire line. The Union troops were quickly overwhelmed and fled. In response Union General Howard ordered a retreat to higher ground on Cemetery Ridge. Lee quickly realized that the Union retreat to Cemetery Ridge and where in an excellent defensive position and suggested that Ewell to take control of it. However, despite the urging of his subordinates Ewell decided against it. Meanwhile on the Union side, General Hancock had arrived, calmed down the troops, and decided they were in an advantageous defensive position. It was this knowledge that led to the Union to decide to stay put. And with this decision day one of the battle of Gettysburg came to a close.
During the War Between the States there were two large-scale, decisive battles fought near the town of Manassas, Virginia. This will be a guided look at the second of those two occurring at the end of August in 1862. There were several great leaders from both sides of the war involved in the 2nd of Manassas, however I am going to focus on the attitudes, maneuvers, and decisions of the four primary generals; General Robert E. Lee, Major General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, Major General John Pope, and Major General George B. McClellan, as it was these men who, ultimately, shaped the actions and outcome of the battle. Following the Seven Days Battle, Maj. Gen. McClellan’s armies were camped on the banks of the James River, 20 miles from Richmond1 (Debelius 1998) and Gen Lee had just taken control of the Army of Northern Virginia on June 12 (Hennessy 2005). Maj. Gen. “Stonewall” Jackson was a subordinate commander in the Army of Northern Virginia and Maj. Gen. Pope was inbound to “assist” Maj. Gen. McClellan in securing the area of Northern Virginia for the Union high command. This study will focus on the mind-sets, maneuvers, and decisions these men made throughout the course of the battle that led to the defeat of the Union forces under Maj. Gen. Pope’s leadership.
At the onset of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln met with his generals to devise a strategy by which the rebellious states of the Confederacy could be brought back into the Union. General Winfield Scott, commanding general of the Union army, proposed a plan of battle that became known as the Anaconda Plan.
The Civil War is one of the defining wars in the history of this great nation. The Battle of Gettysburg was the bloodiest battle in American history, and a turning point in the four year war. At the time, Gettysburg was a small, quiet town generally unaffected by the war. General Robert E. Lee of the Confederate States of America and General George Meade of the Union converged in Gettysburg, and a conflict quickly arose. After three long days of battle the Union pulled away with a victory, though not an easy one. This essay will outline the six themes of history; in essence the who, what, when, where, why, and who cares of this infamous battle.
September 16-18, 1862, outside of the town of Sharpsburg, Maryland, between the Potomac River and Antietam Creek, was the location of the bloodiest battle in American history. Confederate Colonel Stephen D. Lee described it as “Artillery Hell” because of the frightful toll on his gunners and horses from Federal counter battery and infantry fire. (AotW, 2014) The battle of Antietam, or the Battle of Sharpsburg, would collect an estimated 23,100 total casualties (Luvaas and Nelson, 1987). The body count far exceeded any of the other three battles waged in the Maryland Campaign (Harpers Ferry, South Mountain, and Shepherdstown). This battle was a contributing factor in the outcome of our country and the rest of the world. The Union Army desperately needed a victory at Antietam; however, a victory for the Confederate rebels may have very well gained them international recognition as a sovereign country in the eyes of the rest of the world. The Federal Army, which belonged to the Union States, consisted of an all-volunteer army and was a larger army than the Confederate States. Even though the Battle of Antietam was inconclusive, President Lincoln went on to read the Emancipation Proclamation to the country, effectively ending slavery, and ensuring that no foreign nation would intervene on the Confederates behave.
retreat south. Sherman tried a direct assault on Johnston’s forces and was repulsed. Johnston had retreated
After the Confederate victory at Chancellorsville in May of 1863, General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia embarked on their 2nd invasion of the north. General Lee’s first campaign into the north resulted in the Confederate defeat at Antietam. The failure of Lee’s first northern campaign raises the question of his motives. The Confederate Army was...