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Tidball, John C. The Artillery Service in the War of the Rebellion, 18611865. [63], Later in the day, the commander of the other reserve unit near the center, the V Corps, Maj. Gen. Fitz John Porter, heard recommendations from Maj. Gen. George Sykes, commanding his 2nd Division, that another attack be made in the center, an idea that intrigued McClellan. Union assaults against the Sunken Road eventually pierced the Confederate center, but the Federal advantage was not followed up. There is a great deal of bloody fighting until the position is finally taken by Federal forces at 1300, and then there is little subsequent activity at the Confederate centre. Brief Jaunt through Maryland History - U.S. National Park Service After darkness fell, artillery fire continued as McClellan positioned his troops for the next day's fighting. There was a lot at stake for the Battle of Antietam. Burnside's men spent the rest of the day guarding the bridge they had suffered so much to capture.[80]. The Lincoln administration declared slavery illegal in the territories on 19 June 1862. They used the ford near Shepherdstown, VA (now WV) known as Blackfords, Pack Horse, or Botelers/Butlers Ford. No fewer than six times did the Cornfield change hands as each side attacked, fell back and rallied, only to attack again. 36672. McClellan was able to provide just one battery. The Maryland Campaign was Lee's first attempt to take the war North and it was McClellan who was tasked by President Abraham Lincoln with stopping him. McClellan had around 50,000 in position on September 17, with many more on the way. Lee, indeed, escaped destruction. A History and Guide to Civil War Shepherdstown: Victory and Defeat in West Virginias Oldest Town. Moreover, McClellan's headquarters were more than a mile in the rear (at the Philip Pry house, east of the creek). Battle of Antietam, also called Battle of Sharpsburg, (September 17, 1862), in the American Civil War (186165), a decisive engagement that halted the Confederate invasion of Maryland, an advance that was regarded as one of the greatest Confederate threats to Washington, D.C. The original murals were shown in a church for many years. [68][66][69], Crook's assault on the bridge was led by skirmishers from the 11th Connecticut, who were ordered to clear the bridge for the Ohioans to cross and assault the bluff. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), Getty Images / HUM Images / Universal Images Group, The Significance of the Battle of Antietam, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/battle-of-antietam. Gen. Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson would lead one of three columns that were tasked with the capture of Harpers Ferry, while the remainder of Lees forces would advance to Boonsboro, Maryland, behind South Mountain, a ridge that ran parallel to Antietam Creek. Bushong, Millard Kessler. Site identified by Frassanito, pp. Part of the Maryland Campaign, it was the first field armylevel engagement in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War to take place on Union soil. Jacksons divisions suffered even more severely, losing nearly all their generals and colonels. The Battle of Antietam (/ntitm/ an-TEE-tm), or Battle of Sharpsburg particularly in the Southern United States, was a battle of the American Civil War fought on September 17, 1862, between Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek. The stone bridge is finally taken by elements of Sturgiss division of Federal IX Corps at 1300. Franklin appealed to McClellan, who left his headquarters in the rear to hear both arguments but backed Sumner's decision, ordering Franklin and Hancock to hold their positions. Climbing the bluffs near the cement mill (Potomac Mills) and using the Trough Road, the Union infantry deployed in the field west of the road. Fewer than 500 Georgia sharpshooters covered nearly a mile of ground from the bridge south to Snavelys Ford, the only other practicable crossing of the Antietam in the area. In practice, McClellans piecemeal commitment of forces negated his own overwhelming numerical superiority. Reluctantly, Richardson ordered his division to fall back to north of the ridge facing the sunken road. On September 14, at the base of South Mountain near Sharpsburg, Confederate Generals D.H. Hills and James Longstreets units encountered Union resistance and sustained heavy casualties. Federal burial party, by Alexander Gardner, "A Lonely Grave"Federal grave at Antietam, by Alexander Gardner, Antietam Battlefield photograph, by Alexander Gardner, "Artillery Hell", by James Hope (Dunker Church at the far left), "A Fateful Turn"Late morning looking east toward the Roulette Farm", by James Hope, "The Aftermath at Bloody Lane", by James Hope. After two hours and 2,500 casualties, they were back where they started. After losing a quarter of its forces at Antietam, however, Lee's retreating army trudged back across the river on September 18, 1862, as the band struck up "Carry Me Back to Ole Virginny." 2.. Confederate troops streamed toward Sharpsburg, their line lost. 16870. Although an immediate Union attack on the morning of September 16 would have had an overwhelming advantage in numbers, McClellan's trademark caution and his belief that Lee had as many as 100,000 men at Sharpsburg caused him to delay his attack for a day. Implicitly refusing to give up his higher authority, Burnside treated first Maj. Gen. Jesse L. Reno (killed at South Mountain) and then Brig. McClellan had saved Washington and driven the invading rebels back south. Gen. John C. Caldwell into battle around noon (after being told that Caldwell was in the rear, behind a haystack), and finally the tide turned. Use this animated map to learn about the Battle of Gettysburg. That is one issue. A map of Antietam National Cemetery from 1867 includes in the bottom right a teardrop shaped piece of ground dominated by a sizeable boulder. The Union I Corps, commanded by Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, and later the XII Corps, commanded by Maj. Gen. Joseph Mansfield, ran head long into Confederate troops led by Gen. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson. It was only the arrival of Brig. Just as the Federals reached the end of Lee's line, Confederate infantry, led by Gen. A.P. Articles with the HISTORY.com Editors byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan, Matt Mullen and Christian Zapata. A. P. Hills division was employed again at Botelers Ford near Shepherdstown on the morning of 20 September to secure the retreat of Lees reserve artillery. Despite having the advantage, he allowed Lee to retreat without resistance. The morning phase ended with casualties on both sides of almost 13,000, including two Union corps commanders. Whatever Happened to the statue of Gen. Lee at Antietam The Battle of Antietam and Federal progress in halting the Confederate invasion of Kentucky that culminated at Perryville contributed in a dramatic fashion to altering the fundamental nature of the American Civil War. Thousands of soldiers in blue marched into position throughout the 15th and 16th as McClellan prepared to drive Lee from Maryland. McClellan created a textbook tactical plan for the Antietam engagement. However, with word of Jackson's capture of Harpers Ferry on September 15th, Lee decided to make a stand at Sharpsburg. Abraham Lincoln used the occasion of the Antietam victory to issue his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation (September 22, 1862), announcing that unless the Confederates laid down their arms by January 1, 1863, he would free all slaves not residing in Union-controlled territory. Jones had only about 3,000 men and 12 guns available to meet Burnside. He thought McClellan missed a great opportunity to kick the Army of Northern Virginia while they were down and potentially end the war. Lees left wing, commanded by Jackson, formed the upper half of the string and his right, commanded by Longstreet, the lower. Updates? The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 instigated the American Civil War. Leaving Maj. Gen. A.P. George McClellan has been severely criticized by his contemporaries and by historians for the slowness of his strategic movements and for his customary battlefield caution. During the afternoon, he announced to his lieutenants his intention of withdrawing that night across the Potomac. A.P. When asked by a fellow officer where his division was, Hood replied, "Dead on the field."[42]. [citation needed], In an effort to turn the Confederate left flank and relieve the pressure on Mansfield's men, Sumner's II Corps was ordered at 7:20a.m. to send two divisions into battle. The Battle of Antietam, also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, occurred on September 17, 1862, at Antietam Creek near Sharpsburg, Maryland. The fighting was so gory Sunken Road earned a new name: Bloody Lane. Meade's division cautiously attacked Hood's troops near the East Woods. Confederate dead at Bloody Lane, looking northeast from the south bank. In attempting to wheel around to meet this threat, a command from Rodes was misunderstood by Lt. Col. James N. Lightfoot, who had succeeded the unconscious John Gordon. They became separated from William H. French's division, and at 9a.m. Sumner, who was accompanying the division, launched the attack with an unusual battle formationthe three brigades in three long lines, men side-by-side, with only 50 to 70 yards (60m) separating the lines. "We would scarce choose to be in the gallery, when one of the women bending over them should recognize a husband, a son, or a brother in the still, lifeless lines of bodies, that lie ready for the gaping trenches. [citation needed], Burnside had four divisions (12,500 troops) and 50 guns east of Antietam Creek. However, it was still very much, as Wellington remarked regarding Waterloo, a very near run thing, and final disaster was only averted by the fortuitous arrival of A. P. Hills division from Harpers Ferry. Jamieson, p. 94. Omissions? Robert E. Lees decision to fight a battle at Antietam after the South Mountain operation is questionable. Cowie, Steven. Facing him was a force that had been greatly depleted by Lee's movement of units to bolster the Confederate left flank. Around 7:15, General Lee moved George T. Anderson's Georgia brigade from the right flank of the army to aid Jackson. [citation needed], The American Battlefield Trust and its partners have acquired and preserved 468 acres of the Antietam Battlefield as of mid-2023. [11][12] Although the Union army suffered heavier casualties than the Confederates, the battle was a major turning point in the Union's favor. All Rights Reserved. As they advanced with emerald green flags snapping in the breeze, a regimental chaplain, Father William Corby, rode back and forth across the front of the formation shouting words of conditional absolution prescribed by the Roman Catholic Church for those who were about to die. A.A. Biggs, the man responsible for the design of the cemetery, deliberately diverted the path so as to enclose the rock, indicative of his recognition that there was tangible interest . Gen. Abram Durye's brigade marched directly into volleys from Col. Marcellus Douglass's Georgia brigade. Her research is on mental trauma and coping among Union soldiers and she is currently working on her first book, tentatively titled War on the Mind. The Union name for the battle is derived from Antietam Creek, which flows south from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to the Potomac River near Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. R.E. Lee planned to retreat to Virginia, but changed his mind after hearing Confederate General Thomas Jonathan Jacksonbetter known as Stonewall Jacksonhad captured Harpers Ferry. Hoping to take advantage of the Unions low morale and seeming ineptitude, Lee chose to push his army north across the Potomac and into Maryland where they soon occupied the town of Frederick. [citation needed], Richardson's men were in hot pursuit when massed artillery hastily assembled by Gen. Longstreet drove them back. Between 1545 and 1600, the Confederate division commanded by Major General Ambrose Powell Hill begins arriving on the field, after completing a seventeen mile march from the Harpers Ferry area. From his point of view, hed accomplished his mission of forcing Lees troops from Maryland and preventing a Confederate win on Union soil. Articles with the HISTORY.com Editors byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan, Matt Mullen and Christian Zapata. A more audacious Federal commander, with more attention to timing and command control than McClellan demonstrated, would have accomplished just that. The road leading to it ran parallel to the creek and was exposed to enemy fire. Hooker attempted to gather the scattered remnants of his I Corps to continue the assault, but a Confederate sharpshooter spotted the general's conspicuous white horse and shot Hooker through the foot. And yet, a great opportunity presented itself. A chance to destroy the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia was lost, and the war lasted another two and a half years. McClellan had estimated that total Confederate strength in the area amounted to not less than 120,000 menan estimate that more than doubled Lees actual strengthand he spent September 16 engaging in reconnaissance of the Confederate positions. Few visual intrusions mar the landscape, letting visitors experience the site nearly as it was in 1862. Virginia Scenic Drives: Lee's Retreat | MapQuest Travel With 624 casualties363 Union and 261 Confederatethe Battle of Shepherdstown is one of the largest engagements fought in the modern state of West Virginia (it was still Virginia at the time of the battle in 1862). An attempt against the Federal guns would be suicidal. Ford near Shepherdstown, on the Potomac. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. The remnants of Mansfields corps would be pulled back in the retreat that followed. Secretary of State William Seward and others advised him to wait for Northern battlefield victories. Both countries had already abolished slavery, and the public would not have tolerated the government militarily supporting a sovereignty upholding the ideals of slavery. McClellan, on the other hand, welcomed thousands of additional troops on September 18. The course of the conflict would not only retain the Republic, but it would also ultimately destroy slavery. By this point, Lee was highly vulnerable. It was largely inconsequential in the course of the Antietam Campaign because it essentially harassed, but did not stop, Lees retreat. Most importantly, Union victory at Antietam provided President Abraham Lincoln the opportunity he had wanted to announce the Emancipation Proclamation, making the Battle of Antietam one of the key turning points of the American Civil War. Benjamin F. Cook of the 12th Massachusetts Infantry, on the attack by the Louisiana Tigers at the Cornfield[38]. Attacked in front and flank, his troops were driven back in great confusion with nearly half their number killed and wounded. The struggle seemed to have lost its innocence, for the staggering casualty lists and the savagery of a single days fighting graphically illustrated that the war as an undertaking was a massive and serious concern. Casualties were especially high among general officers, with six generalsthree Union, three Confederatebeing killed and a dozen more being wounded. I have no infantry." His first task was to cross Antietam Creek, spanned by the bridge that would later bear his name. At approximately 3:30 p.m., Burnside started his attack on the south end of Lee's line. [36] The Tigers were beaten back eventually when the Federals brought up a battery of 3-inch ordnance rifles and rolled them directly into the Cornfield, point-blank fire that slaughtered the Tigers, who lost 323 of their 500 men.[37]. Eicher, p. 363, cites 75,500 Union troops. He had a force of Lees reserve artillery (10 batteries) and about 600 infantry on the Virginia side to protect Lees retreat. Go and look at [Burnside's Bridge], and tell me if you don't think Burnside and his corps might have executed a hop, skip, and jump and landed on the other side. National Park Service.The Maryland Campaign of 1862. 29496; Cannan, p. 201. After the war-weary general repeatedly refused Lincolns orders to pursue Lees retreating troops, Lincoln removed McClellan from command on November 5, 1862. The mostly Irish immigrants lost 540 men to heavy volleys before they were ordered to withdraw.[57]. Learn how the Battle of Antietam became the deadliest one-day battle during the American Civil War. Union return fire was from nine batteries on the ridge behind the North Woods and twenty 20-pounder Parrott rifles, 2 miles (3km) east of Antietam Creek. The battle began at dawn with a furious assault on the extreme Confederate left by Hookers corps. Lee, believing he was under heavy pursuit, sent A.P. McClellan successfully turned Lee's invasion back, making the battle a Union victory, but President Abraham Lincoln, unhappy with McClellan's general pattern of overcaution and his failure to pursue the retreating Lee, relieved McClellan of command in November. The former was significant because a large portion of Lee's army was absent from the start of the battle of Antietam, attending to the surrender of the Union garrison; the latter because stout Confederate defenses at two passes through the mountains delayed McClellan's advance enough for Lee to concentrate the remainder of his army at Sharpsburg. The Union soldiers looking on were likely members of the. Then Gen. Joseph Mansfield's soldiers attacked, followed by Gen. Edwin Sumner's men as McClellan's plan broke down into a series of uncoordinated Union advances. The conflagration caused heavy casualties on both sides and was described by Col. Lee as "artillery Hell. Longstreets and Hills units formed the Confederate right and center flanks to the west of Antietam Creek, while Jacksons and Brigadier General John G. Walkers units formed the Confederate left flank. Neither flank of the Confederate army collapsed far enough for McClellan to advance his center attack, leaving a sizable Union force held in reserve. A Savage Continual Thunder. This allowed them to get enfilade fire into the Confederate line, turning it into a deadly trap. Sears, p. 173, cites 75,000 Union troops, with an effective strength of 71,500, with 300 guns; on p. 296, he states that the 12,401 Union casualties were 25% of those who went into action and that McClellan committed "barely 50,000 infantry and artillerymen to the contest"; p. 389, he cites Confederate effective strength of "just over 38,000," including, Union: 12,410 total (2,108 killed; 9,549 wounded; 753 captured/missing); Confederate: 10,316 total (1,546 killed; 7,752 wounded; 1,018 captured/missing) according to Sears, pp. )[29], On the evening of September 16, McClellan ordered Hooker's I Corps to cross Antietam Creek and probe the enemy positions. All of Lees troops were worn-out and hungry, and many were sick. Ironically, Lincolns proclamation didnt free slaves in Marylandone of a handful of slave states that had remained in the Unionsince it only applied to slaves in rebel states. "[44] Hooker called for support from the 7,200 men of Mansfield's XII Corps. He captured 167 prisoners from rear elements of Lees retreat, placed artillery (3 batteries of the 2nd U.S. Robert E. Lee was personally against secession and slavery . Lee was forced to admit the campaign was lost. Battle of Antietam, also called Battle of Sharpsburg, (September 17, 1862), in the American Civil War (1861-65), a decisive engagement that halted the Confederate invasion of Maryland, an advance that was regarded as one of the greatest Confederate threats to Washington, D.C. He ordered a withdrawal. He was replaced on November 9 by General Burnside.[89]. The mud, Napoleon remarked, is the same for everyone. The opportunity was still available on 16 September to destroy elements of the Army of Northern Virginia, but McClellan failed to take advantage of it. "Legs, arms, and other parts of human bodies were flying in the air like straw in a whirlwind. The Army of the Potomac fought extremely well between regimental and brigade level, but higher command control was lacking. READ MORE: How Photos from Antietam Revealed the Civil War's Horrors. Monument to Gen. Robert E. Lee - Antietam National Battlefield (U.S Joseph K. Mansfield and Israel B. Richardson and Brig. Concerned that his men would bolt under fire, he marched them in a formation that was known as "column of companies, closed in mass," a bunched-up formation in which a regiment was arrayed ten ranks deep instead of the normal two. Thunder in the Hills: Military Operations in Jefferson County, West Virginia, During the American Civil War. We were shooting them like sheep in a pen. On September 14 McClellans army struck the passes at South Mountain. Savage, incomparable combat raged across the Cornfield, East Woods, West Woods and the Sunken Road as Lee shifted his men to withstand each of the Union thrusts. As the superior Union numbers began to tell, the Louisiana "Tiger" Brigade under Harry Hays entered the fray and forced the Union men back to the East Woods. [52], By midday, the action had shifted to the center of the Confederate line. [66] It would become known to history as Burnside's Bridge because of the notoriety of the coming battle. His army now safe, Lee escaped to Virginia, battered but not beaten. Burnside, on the southern end of the Union lines, had received his orders late and acted on them later still. Viewers examined details using a magnifying glass. But why do we elevate that outcome to triumph? Shortly after moving into the woods, a Confederate attack struck the flank of the Union soldiers and in twenty minutes, 2,200 out of 5,300 men had fallen killed or wounded. The 2nd Division of the XII Corps, under George Sears Greene, however, broke through McRae's men, who fled under the mistaken belief that they were about to be trapped by a flanking attack. The Lutheran Church just east of Sharpsburg marks the extent of the Union offensive during the Battle of Antietam, 1862. A. P. Hill placed his troops southeast of Shepherdstown, near the road to Molers Cross Roads, and sent the brigades of William Pender, Maxcy Gregg, and Edward Thomas to the front. Gen. Edward Ferrero. Command of his corps passed to Brig. Other key leaders were lost as well, including George B. Anderson (no relation; Anderson's successor, Col. Charles C. Tew of the 2nd North Carolina, was killed minutes after assuming command)[58] and Col. John B. Gordon of the 6th Alabama. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The lower bridge (which would soon be named Burnside Bridge) was dominated by Confederate positions on the bluffs overlooking it. Hill, arrived on the field. His Georgians had cost the Federals more than 500 casualties, giving up fewer than 160 themselves. Hearing this news, General Thomas Stonewall Jackson ordered A. P. Hill to turn back and take his force to Shepherdstown to protect the crossing. They were enveloped and driven down the hills toward Antietam Creek. By 1p.m., Confederate ammunition was running low, and word reached Toombs that Rodman's men were crossing Snavely's Ford on their flank. This lack of coordination and concentration of McClellan's forces almost completely nullified the two-to-one advantage the Union enjoyed. Theyd remained on the sidelines so far, but as they endured cotton shortages and the south seemed to gain the upper hand, they considered legitimizing the Confederacy, a move with potentially drastic implications. The counter argument may be that Lee knew his opponent, and that is certainly one of the marks of a great commander. Hooker himself was shot in the foot and was carried from the field. When emancipation was linked to the progress of the war, neither government had the political will to oppose the United States, since it linked support of the Confederacy to support for slavery.