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During March, 1862, McClellan landed at the Virginia Peninsula with more than 100,000 fresh, newly trained men. He occupied Yorktown and marched along the York River which ran into Richmond. Late in May, McClellan had reached a spot ten kilometres away from Richmond. Johnston, the Confederate commander of Richmond's defence, led an attack against McClellan but was forced back into the city. Johnston was badly wounded, and Jefferson Davis chose Robert E. Lee to replace him. Jackson Valley Campaign: The Confederate high command were worried that McClellan would receive reinforcements from the soldiers that had stayed back to protect Washington from a raid. Hoping to stop this, Stonewall Jackson began his famous Valley Campaign across the Shenandoah Valley. He planned to trick the Union into thinking that he was going to attack Washington. In a series of magnificent maneuvers between May 4 and June 9, Jackson advanced up the Shenandoah Valley. His 17,000 men received the nickname 'foot cavalry' because they marched so fast. They defeated many Union forces and smashed their way to the Potomac River. Jackson soon had to retreat, but he did prevent the reinforcements from reaching McClellan. Seven Days: Lee brilliantly thought up a daring plan of attack to destroy McClellan's army, which lay resting near the Chickahominy River. With his army reinforced with the remains of Jackson's men, Lee bombarded McClellan in a series of attacks known as the Battles of the Seven Days. They included Machanicsville, or Beaver Creek Dam (June 26), Gaines' Hill (June 27), Savage Station (June 29), White Oak Swamp and Freyser's Farm (June 30) and Malvern Hill (July 1). The tide of battle ebbed and flowed until McClellan falsely believed that his forces were hopelessly outnumbered, and he withdrew to the James River. The Northern high command ordered McClellan and his troops to join forces with General John Pope in Northern Virginia. The Second Bull Run: Lee quickly moved northward to engage Pope. He was camped at Manassas, and Lee intended to attack before McClellan could join him. Lee sent Jackson behind Pope's army to force a battle. On August 29, Pope unsuccessfully attacked Jackson, who was by then reinforced by Lee and General James Longstreet. On August 30, Pope recklessly attacked Lee's army, but a Confederate counter-attack obliterated the Union. The beaten Union army trudged hopelessly back to Washington in heavy rain. |
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THE VIRGINIA PENINSULA CAMPAIGN |
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The South hoped to boost moral even further by winning a battle in Union territory. On September 1862, Lee and about fifty thousand troops invaded Maryland. Lee divided his army in two. He ordered Jackson and twenty-five thousand men to capture Harpers Ferry. McClellan moved to meet Lee with over ninety thousand soldiers. On September 13, at an abandoned Confederate campsite, a Union scout found a copy of Lee's orders to his commanders wrapped around three cigars. Lee learned of this and prepared defences at Sharpsburg on Antietam Creek. But McClellan, for some unknown reason, delayed his attack until September 17, giving Jackson time to return after his success at Harpers Ferry. Several powerful attacks were launched by the Union and almost breached the Confederate lines. But, at a crucial moment, the remainder of Lee's troops under General Andrew Hill appeared and the enemy was beaten back. Lee suffered tremendous losses and was forced to retreat to Virginia. The Battle of Antietam was one of the bloodiest of the war. About twelve and a half thousand Northerners and almost eleven thousand Southerners were killed or wounded. |