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Battle of chancellorsville essay
Chancellorsville battle analysis
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Just two months before the tide-turning 1863 Battle of Gettysburg of the American Civil War, the southern Confederacy was riding high. After a string of previous victories, including the Battle of Fredericksburg, Confederate General Robert E. Lee had decisively beaten the Union Army of the Potomac at Chancellorsville. The Northern forces, therefore, needed some assessment and introspection to turn the tide in their favor. Almost immediately, the demoralized army turned its introspection toward its leader, Major General Joseph Hooker and his command during the Battle of Chancellorsville. Accordingly, this paper intends to demonstrate that the mission command carried out by MG Hooker failed in several respects, including his assessment of the situation during the battle, direction of his forces, and his visualization of his area of operations. As this paper will analyze further, the Battle of Chancellorsville was a tactical defeat for the Army of the Potomac, and Union forces. The battle began with the refreshed Union soldiers of about 134,000 attempting a double envelopment of Lee's forces (of about 60,000) in the vicinity of Fredericksburg, Virginia. After a successful crossing of the Rappahannock and Rapidan Rivers between 27 and 30 April, 1863, Hooker's army essentially divided into three elements. A corps of Union troops, led by a Major General Sedgwick, was staged as a diversion to the east of Lee's army. The remainder of Hooker's army, except the cavalry corps, executed a wide flanking maneuver about ten miles west of Fredericksburg, near Chancellorsville. Meanwhile, the cavalry proceeded west in a wider flanking movement, and then southeast toward the Confederates' lines of communication south of Fredericksburg. When ... ... middle of paper ... ...d Fredericksburg and Salem Church, by Chris Mackowski and Kristopher D White, x. Savas Beatie, 2013 In Chancellorsville, by Stephen W. Sears, 62-75. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1998. “Union General Burnside relieved of command,” The History Channel website, http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/burnside-relieved-of-command (accessed November 7, 2013). United States Army. Army Doctrinal Publication 3-0. 2011. United States Army. Army Doctrinal Publication 5-0. 2012. United States Army. Army Doctrinal Publication 6-0. 2012. United States Army. "Command and Control at Chancellorsville." In Field Manual 6-0, 1-21. 2003. University of Military Intelligence. Grenville M. Dodge and George H. Sharpe: Grant's Intelligence Chiefs in West and East. January 2013. http://www.civilwarsignals.org/pages/spy/pages/grantintel.html (accessed November 4, 2013).
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...
COL Prescott’s role in the Battle of Bunker Hill, or more correctly know as the Battle of Breed’s Hill, is a great example of how to properly execute mission command. An overview from The Cowpens Staff Ride and Battlefield Tour (Moncure) reveals a number of operation and strategic objectives that the American militia had to consider. In this instance, COL Prescott takes charge of 1200 men with instructions to defend against incoming British forces that were seeking to occupy the surrounding hills during the Siege of Boston campaign. COL Prescott utilized a variety of steps in the operations process that contributed to his expert utilization of mission command over his forces. Through various sources from published works by experts on the subject, COL Prescott’s mission command demonstrates its effectiveness in his understanding of the situation against the British, his visualization to create an end state for t...
General Robert E. Lee executed poor mission command during the Battle of Gettysburg by not providing a clear commander’s intent, and not creating teams of mutual trust1. General Lee commanded the Confederate Army during the Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in July 1861. The Confederate Army sought supplies before they decisively engaged the Union Army. General Lee’s lack of mission command lost the Battle of Gettysburg3.
The 7th Cavalry Regiment's destruction at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in June 1876 is the subject of over a century of debate. LTC George A. Custer failed to exercise four key responsibilities that were expected of him as the regiment’s commander. He failed to understand the problem and environment, visualize a feasible solution, clearly describe it to his subordinates, and effectively direct his forces. These four aspects of mission command are integral to the operations process and help Soldiers understand and execute their commander's intent. Custer's failure to properly fulfill his role in the operations process resulted in his death and a strategic defeat for the nation.
Therefore, neither of the generals exceeded the other when it comes to military strategies, which rather debunks Shaara’s depiction of Longstreet’s advanced knowledge of modern warfare. Despite of the importance of the Battle of Gettysburg, often marked as the turning point of the war, General Longstreet should not obey an order that results in a significant loss of men that would be extremely difficult to replace at this time. Already limited by the amount of men still able to fight, pushing additional forces in an open battle would just nearly deplete the confederate soldiers completely. Since this battle was one that went on until a majority of ones sided were depleted, the south should have played it safe against the Unions nearly surplus supply of
Brigade General Scales, Robert H. JR. Certain Victory. The U.S. Army in the Gulf War.
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.
The first two days of the battle were heavy on casualties for the Union Forces. “Union soldiers sustained an estimated 12,660 wounded compared to 5,588 for the Confederates.” (Franklin, 1998) An analysis of the total number of soldiers killed, wounded or captured during the 5-day battle revealed that for each Confederate casualty there were two Union casualties. “The battle of Fredericksburg was both lost and won by the application of tactical intelligence practices and techniques.” (Massamore, 1976)On December 15, 1862 during a meeting with (name) to discuss the following days attack order Burnsides General’s would convince him to abandon the campaign altogether. That night the Federal Army would return back across the river facing no resistance from the Confederate Forces, as they had been busy preparing for what they had believed to be a forthcoming renewed assault. General Lee’s forces would learn of their
It is far easier for us in the present than it was for those at Gettysburg, to look back and determine the path that the leaders should have taken. As students, studying battles such as this, we have the advantage of hindsight, knowing the outcome. Nonetheless, we can still learn valuable lessons from it. To do so, this analysis will explore some of the decisions of the leaders at Gettysburg, and how they were affected by the operational variables. This essay will scrutinize some of the leaders at Gettysburg, and the impact of their actions. The outcome of this analysis will show that what was true in 1863 is still true today. While many variables are vital to a successful army on the battlefield, none should be neglected. Each variable discussed in this examination will prove to be important, but the information battle will be paramount in the battle of Gettysburg.
It was summertime when one of the bloodiest battles in United States history was fought. The year was 1863. The battle took place in Gettysburg, PA. July 1, 1863 was cloudy, a foreshadowing of what was to come. The northern Yankees and Southern Confederates were swiftly battling. The opposing sides were bitterly fighting over slavery. The conflict came to a climax on the fields of Gettysburg. Impressive Generals were at command for both sides. The North had Ulysses S. Grant, and the South had Robert E. Lee. One of Lee’s most trusted general’s was a 37 year old man named Ambrose Powell Hill. Perhaps Lee’s trust was misplaced in Hill. Ambrose Hill aspired to greatness, and hoped his performance at the Battle of Gettysburg would enhance his reputation as a general; however, Hill struggled to perform well.
Our General, General Buford scouted the land in order that we tend to might undergo. Our leader discovered that there's a brigade of Confederate foot within the city while not associate calvary. Buford sent a message back to General Reynolds telling him that he's in Gettysburg which there'll be a bigger confederate force consecutive morning. General Buford determined to travel survey the realm and discovers a "high ground". Burford told the lads that we've to travel to the Hill and be able to fight on foot. He additionally explained to U.S. that we've to stop the Confederates from taking the
The outcome of the battle reflected the leadership of the Union Army. A series of miscommunications and poor leadership between Union generals led to its demise. When Colonel Devens found out that the intelligence was innacurate, the inexperienced Colonel lingered on the bluff instead of withdrawing his troops and avoiding a dangerous situation. In addition, Union Generals were not organized enough to send a message to Devens to inform him that the Confederates were going to launch an attack on his men. Union leaders made crucial mistakes when reinforcing Charles Devens after the Confederates attacked. US Senator Edward Baker sent troops to reinforce a strong Confederate attack without a commander. He only had a few boats so reinforcements slowly arrived allowing the Confederates to slaughter Union soldiers (“Battle of Balls Bluff”). Baker led his troops into a slaughter without a proper plan to escape or fight
In late June 1863 after a decisive major victory over the Union Soldiers at Chancellorsville, a Confederate General by the name of Robert E. Lee advanced his Army of Northern Virginia directly into Pennsylvania on his way to take Washington. What he didn’t know, during this same time President Abraham Lincoln appointed Major General George Gordon Meade to assume command of Army of the Potomac. This Army has some of the fieriest fighters and respected leaders in all of the Union forces, they will defend themselves and their way of life until the very last man has fallen in battle. One of those fearless leaders is a brilliant 39 year old battlefield tested man that goes by the name of Major General Winfield Scott Hancock, who now commands
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.
The United States (1988). Army Field Manual 100-1, Washington, DC: Headquarters. Dept.