On December 13, 1862, Burnside, spurred on by the impatience of the cabinet at Washington, crossed the river and made a frontal attack on Lee's position. He was repulsed with terrible slaughter. Lee was unable to deliver a counterstroke, as the Federal retreat was secured by six bridges and the batteries massed on Stafford Heights. Throughout the 14th and 15th, the two armies lay facing each other. On the night of the 15th during a severe storm, Burnside withdrew his army to the north bank. Burnside On January 26, 1863, Burnside was removed and Hooker appointed to succeed him. Hooker had gained the reputation of a hard fighter. He had been strongly Hooker opposed to Burnside and had intrigued against succeeds him. He seemed to be the most competent man in the Army of the Potomac and President Lincoln did not wish to try another man from the West after his experience with Pope. After reorganizing his army, Hooker decided to turn Lee's left by crossing the Rappahannock River by several fords higher up and concentrating his right wing of four corps at Chancellorsville. Meanwhile, Sedgwick was to cross the river below Fredericksburg with two corps and hold the Confederate army in its intrenched position. Another corps was to remain at Falmouth in reserve. On April 27 the movement began. On May 1 Hooker advanced from Chancellorsville against the Confederate lines, but Jackson had united with Lee and the Confederates were so much stronger than Hooker expected that when his advance was sharply checked, he fell back to his line at Chancellorsville. The Confederate position was a dangerous one. The Federal center and left were impregnable, but Stuart reported that the Federal right could be turned. Lee and Jackson now undertook a bold move. About 4 A.M. On May 2 Jackson's corps set out on a fourteen-mile detour for the purpose of turning Hooker's right. Jack Battle of ville son took with him 26,000 men, while Lee with 17,000 undertook to keep Hooker employed. Hooker had 70,000 men with him and 40,000 with Sedgwick, only Chancellors- eleven miles distant. The Confederate plan was reckless in the extreme, but some desperate move was necessary. At 6 P.M. Jackson fell on Howard's corps, taking them completely by surprise. It was supper time, the men were smoking, playing cards, and preparing the evening meal. In ten minutes the first Federal brigade was in full flight, and a quarter of an hour later the whole division was in flight. About 7 P.M. the Confederate advance became slower, owing to the character of the country, and Jackson rode forward to make a reconnoissance. As he and his staff returned, a company of North Carolina infantry mistook them for Federal cavalry and fired several shots, wounding Jackson. Death of On the morning of the 3d the Confederate army was still divided and in a dangerous condition. Either on that day or the next Hooker could have assumed the offensive with good chances of an overwhelming victory, but he delayed and hesitated and lost his nerve. With a force double the size of Lee's, Hooker allowed himself to be defeated in detail and finally driven back across the Rappahannock. Considering the numbers engaged it was the worst defeat suffered by any Union army during the war. The death of Jackson on May 10 made Chancellorsville in a way the turning point of the war. The great flank marches at Second Manassas and at Chancellorsville are lasting monuments of the united daring and genius of Lee and Jackson. Lee decides For a month the two armies faced each other on opposite banks of the Rappahannock. President Davis still advocated a defensive policy and still hoped that the "Copperheads" at the North or foreign intervention would put an end to the war. Lee on an invasion of Pennsylvania was convinced that the only hope of dislodging the enemy and defending Richmond lay in an invasion of the North. Davis finally consented to a forward movement and on June 3 Lee started in the direction of Culpeper. In a great cavalry fight at Brandy Station Stuart defeated Pleasanton. Lee then advanced over into the Valley by way of Front Royal, and Hooker withdrew from Falmouth toward Washington. Lee now determined to invade Pennsylvania with his entire army by way of the Cumberland Valley. Ewell's corps led the way. On the 23d two divisions reached Chambersburg and Early was sent to York. The corps of Longstreet and Hill crossed the Potomac on the 24th, and the following day Hooker crossed with his army and occupied Frederick City. His plan was to move along the eastern base of the South Mountain Range and at the first opportunity to attack Lee's line of communications. The government had, however, lost confidence in Hooker and on the refusal of Halleck to approve of some of his plans he tendered his resignation. It was promptly accepted and on June 28 General George Gordon Meade was appointed to command. Meade abandoned Hooker's idea of threatening Lee's communications and decided to intervene between him and Philadelphia in case he marched north, or between him and Baltimore and Washington in case he turned south. The two armies rapidly converged on Gettsyburg, much more rapidly than either commander anticipated. The absence of Stuart's cavalry kept General Lee in the dark as to the movements of the Federal army. Stuart had swept around the rear of that army and crossed the Potomac between it and Washington. The rapid advance of the Federals had forced him to make a long detour to the northeast and he did not reach Gettysburg until the afternoon of the second day's fight. As a result of Stuart's absence Hooker had The two armies con verge on Gettysburg been over the Potomac three days before General Lee knew it, and now the latter was not accurately informed as to Meade's movements. While the various Confederate divisions were being drawn in from the north and west toward Gettysburg, Meade was rapidly concentrating his army southeast of that town. On the 30th a division of Federal cavalry occupied Gettysburg and on the morning of July 1 Reynolds arrived with the First Corps and led one of his divisions about a mile west of the town on the Chambersburg road to support the cavalry outposts. Here they encountered Heth's division of Hill's corps advancing from the west, and a battle ensued on the banks of Willoughby Run in which the gallant Reynolds was killed and the Federal forces were driven back through Gettysburg. Results of the first day's fight Hancock, who arrived at an opportune moment early in the afternoon, brought order out of confusion and rapidly concentrated the scattered Union forces along the brow of Cemetery Hill. When General Lee reached Seminary Ridge he ordered Ewell's corps forward to capture Cemetery Hill, warning him, however, not to bring on a general engagement until the arrival of Longstreet's corps. A false report that a Federal force was threatening Ewell's left caused him to postpone the attack until it was too late to do anything that night. Thus ended the first day's fight at Gettysburg. So far, the Confederates had the better of the fighting. That night the Federal position was reënforced and strengthened. General Lee decided, however, to renew the The second attack. His plan was for Longstreet to attack day the Federal left and Hill to make a demonstration against the center, while Ewell's corps carried Culp's Hill, occupied by the Federal right. Longstreet delayed his attack, which was to have been made early in the day, until He had opposed Lee's plan, as he considered the 4 P.M. |