The Battle of Fredericksburg Essay - 1485 Words

The Battle of Fredericksburg falls in a long list of failures of the Army of the Potomac during the first year of the American Civil War. Following the Battle of Antietam the Northern Army had the opportunity to defeat Lee’s army. However, Northerners, were shocked by Lee’s escape following this battle on 17 September 1862, and were further upset by Major General George B. McClellan’s procrastination in pursuing Lee and allowing General J.E.B. Stuarts daring cavalry raid into Pennsylvania around Gettysburg (10-12 October 1862). McClellan’s failure to pursue Lee’s Army is mainly due to his own lack of confidence, believing that he doesn’t have enough men or material in order to defeat the Army of Virginia. President Lincoln had finally†¦show more content†¦Lincoln felt that the destruction of Lee’s army should be the primary goal, not the capture of a Southern city, however, he approved Burnside’s plan. This was ma inly due to the fact that Burnside was actually moving the army in pursuit of Lee. Burnside’s first act as commander was to divide his army into three grand divisions, the right commanded by Major General Sumner, the center commanded by Major General Hooker, and the left commanded by Major General Franklin. Once this was completed he set forth for Virginia with a compliment of 100,000 men. General Lee had at his disposal two army Corps, the First Corps was commanded by Lieutenant General James Longstreet and the Second Corps was commanded by Lieutenant General Thomas Jackson. Both of these corps comprised of 35,000 men for a total of 70,000 men. After leaving Maryland, Lee decided to divide his army by sending the Second Corps to the Shenandoah Valley towards Winchester Virginia and the other towards Culpeper station Virginia in order to see what the North was going to do. The Confederate cavalry were a little slow in detecting the move of Sumter’s grand division, and it was three days before Lee knew about it and could order Longstreet to intercept the Federals. This allowed the first elements of Northern forces to arrive at Falmouth two days after theShow MoreRelatedAlternative Outcome Analysis Of The Battle Of Fredericksburg2647 Words   |  11 PagesAlternative Outcome Analysis of the Battle of Fredericksburg SSG Ian J. Watterson U.S. Army Abstract This paper will examine the Battle of Fredericksburg through the research of analytical papers, historical articles and technical reports by conducting the four steps of battle analysis. It will analyze the effects of the use and dismissal of intelligence assets and disciplines when applied to the planning of a territorial battle campaign. Using terrain analysis it will discuss how the choice ofRead MoreThe Battle Of Fredericksburg During The Civil War1309 Words   |  6 PagesThe Battle of Fredericksburg was fought towards the beginning of the American Civil War that spanned over the course of four years, April 1861- April 1865 and consisted of 50 major battles and thousands of minor battles. The Battle of Fredericksburg lasted exactly five days, December 11-15, 1862. Its location was centered on Fredericksburg, VA and surrounding areas along the Rappahannock River including Falmouth, Marye’s Heights, Stafford Heights, Prospect Hill, and Hamilton’s Crossing (YandohR ead MoreThe Civil War As A Propagandist War1291 Words   |  6 PagesHurst wrote about Civil War battles he was in and mentions the propaganda he witnessed over a four-year span. He remarked how outlandish the Southern newspapers were. 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Lee1072 Words   |  4 Pagesenrolled into the Army in the Mexican American War. Once the Civil War came across America, Lee took the position as a general for the Confederacy. He proved to be a worthy general by winning the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, the Seven Days Battle, and was almost victorious in the battle of Gettysburg (Emery 94-100). Because of Robert E. Lee’s military accomplishments in the Civil War, he became one of America’s most outstanding generals. Robert E. Lee was born in StratfordRead MoreThe Battle Of Chancellorsville Campaign1640 Words   |  7 Pageswith conflict, struggle, and copious amounts of spilled blood. Furthermore, countless battles were fought to decide the fate of slavery and the Union as a whole. However, one of these battles in particular, the Chancellorsville Campaign, should definitely be one of interest. 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The Union army was veryRead MoreThe Battle of Fredricksburg Essay1177 Words   |  5 PagesThe Battle of Fredricksburg In the next pages I will explain why Fredericksburg was such a tragedy. Why it was a big morale booster for the South, but a disappointment for the North? It all started in the year 1862. General George McCellen currently controls the army of the Potomac. When it was determined that McCellen was a bad general, in December of 1862 he was replaced with General Ambrose Burnside. Within a week, Burnside decided on a campaign to the Southern capitol, Richmond. He told