SECTION XIX.

FORCING OF THE CONFEDERATE ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA INTO THE FORTIFICATIONS OF RICHMOND BY THE ARMY OF THE EAST.

CHAPTER LXXXII.

THE CAMPAIGN IN VIRGINIA FROM THE RAPIDAN TO THE JAMES RIVER.

General Grant, assuming command as lieutenant general, made changes in the Army of the Potomac, but continued General Meade in its immediate command. He then commenced operations for the destruction of the Army of Northern Virginia, under General Lee, moving against that army in the beginning of May, 1864, simultaneously with the movement of General Sherman in Georgia. Successively, in THE WILDERNESS, at SPOTTSYLVANIA, at the NORTH ANNA, and at COLD HARBOR, very severe battles were fought, with heavy losses on both sides. After the battle of Cold Harbor, since operations for turning the Confederate right could be no longer continued on the north of the James, General Grant, with the Army of the Potomac, crossed that river.

Meanwhile, co-operative movements, under Generals Butler, Sigel, Hunter, had been in progress, including several minor cavalry expeditions. Among these, more particularly, were attempts to capture Petersburg; being conducted feebly, they failed.

At the close of this period the campaign assumed the form of a siege of Petersburg and Richmond.

GRANT'S campaign in Virginia, which resulted in the The stages of Grant's total overthrow of the Confederacy, may be Virginia campaign. conveniently divided into four stages:

I. The campaign from the Rapidan to the James.

II. The investment of Petersburg, and repulse of the Confederate sortie under Early.

Digression. The capture of Fort Fisher, and the reduc tion of Mobile.

III. The fall of Richmond.

IV. The surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. In this order I shall therefore treat of it.

But, as these events occupy a period of almost a year, I

shall group them in two sections, separating those which occurred in 1864 from those of the following year, and taking the opportunity of the pause which occurred in military operations during the intervening winter for giv ing the history of the current civil transactions. Under this arrangement, the first and second of the above-mentioned stages will fall in the present section.

Steps in the cam

In this chapter, then, I have to relate the events of the campaign from the Rapidan to the James. It paign from the Rap- presents five steps: (1), the battles in the Wilidan to the James. derness; (2), the attacks at Spottsylvania; (3), the operations on the North Anna; (4), the assault at Cold Harbor; (5), the passage of the James River.

the campaign.

The primary conception of the campaign was the adGeneral plan of vance of a great central army, that of the Potomac, with two co-operating and converging forces, the army on the Shenandoah and that of the James. Before entering on the history of these grand operations, it is necessary to relate briefly some minor incidents of interest which preceded them in

Preliminary cavalry movements.

point of time.

Public feeling throughout the North had been greatly excited by the deplorable condition of the prisoners of war held at Richmond. Early in the year, before the opening of the great campaign, some expeditions had been undertaken both from the Army of the Potomac and from Fortress Monroe with the intention of relieving them. On February 27th, Custer, with 1500 horse, had crossed the Rapidan on a feint to the west of the Confederate army, while Kilpatrick, starting on the following day, moved down on its opposite flank, by Spottsylvania Court-house, to within 3 miles of Richmond, passing its first and sec ond lines of defenses, but being obliged to fall back from its third. Pursued by a force of the enemy, he was com pelled to cross the White House Railroad and move down the peninsula.

A detachment of Kilpatrick's force, 400 strong, under The death of Ulric Colonel Ulric Dahlgren, leaving the main Dahlgren. body at Spottsylvania, had gone to the right through Louisa and Goochland Counties, intending to cross the James River and enter Richmond from the south, while Kilpatrick attacked it on the north. But the river was found to be too deep to be forded. Dahlgren passed down the north bank to the fortifications of Richmond, forcing his way through the outer works, but being repulsed from the inner. Finding that Kilpatrick's attempt had miscar ried, he moved toward King and Queen Court-house; but, after crossing the Mattapony at Dabney's Ferry, he fell into an ambuscade, his command being scattered, and himself killed. Under a false pretense that papers were found upon him showing an intention to set fire to Richmond, and take the lives of Davis and his cabinet, his corpse was insulted, and the place of its interment concealed. At the time of his death he was but 21 years of age, yet he had rendered important services to his country during the war. Though he had been wounded in the foot, and suffered se verely from its amputation, he did not permit this loss to keep him from joining Kilpatrick's expedition-a shining example of patriotism to the young men of the land. Kilpatrick's expedition thus failed of its object, as also had an attempt, having the same end in view of these prelimi- -the release of the prisoners-made by But ler from Fortress Monroe (February 6th). To carry Richmond by surprise, he marched his infantry 80 miles in 56 hours; his cavalry 156 miles in 50 hours. But a deserter gave the alarm to the Confederates, and they rendered the roads beyond Bottom's Bridge impassable.

Object and failure

nary movements.

The Army of the Potomac lay on the north of the Rapidan during the winter of 1863-4, confronting the Army of Northern Virginia, which, under Lee, lay on the south of that river.

Position and

strength of the Army of the Potomac.

Grant, having selected Meade as second in command, intrusted to him the supervision and execution of the proposed movements—a discreet concession to an army to which the Lieutenant General was a comparative stran ger.

The Army of the Potomac was consolidated into three corps, the former 1st and 3d Corps being distributed. Hancock commanded the 2d; Warren the 5th; Sedgwick the 6th. In addition to these, the 9th, commanded by Burnside, acted for a time independently of Meade, on account of Burnside's older commission. Sheridan commanded the cavalry, consolidated into a corps.

The entire national force available and present for duty for the campaigns of 1864 was, on the 1st of May, 662,345. The Army of the Potomac numbered 140,000, including the 9th Corps.

Position and strength of the

Army of North

ern Virginia.

The strength of the Confederate army of Northern Virginia had been for the time much reduced by furloughs. In May it had reached 60,000. It consisted of three corps, under the command of Ewell, Hill, and Longstreet respectively. They lay en echelon. Ewell was upon the river, a stream with steep banks and difficult fords; Hill at Orange Courthouse; Longstreet at Gordonsville.

At this period the military strength of the Confederacy centred in two armies that in Virginia, under Lee; and that in Georgia, under Johnston. The course of events during the preceding year had constrained both these ar mies to act now on the defensive.

action against the

erate armies.

pre

The essential feature of Grant's plan for the ensuing Grant's method of campaign was, by taking advantage of his two great Confed ponderating numbers, to assail both these ar mies simultaneously, thereby depriving them of the possibility, by the use of their interior lines, of giving assistance to each other. Thus far in the course of the war there had been no unity in the military move.

ments. One of the chief objects in creating Grant Lieu. tenant General had been to remedy that disadvantage. Meade was informed that Lee's army would be his objective point. It was decided to cross Instructions for the the Rapidan below Lee, and operate on his

Lee.

right.

Butler, who was at Fort Monroe, was instructed (April 2d) to collect all the forces of his command that could be spared from garrison duty, estimated at not less than 20,000, and operate on the south side of James River, Richmond being his objective. To his force 10,000 men from South Carolina, under Gillmore, were to be added. He was or dered to take City Point as soon as notification of movement was given, and fortify it. By this common advance from the Rapidan and Fortress Monroe the two armies would be brought into co-operation.

Shortly afterward these instructions were reiterated, and Butler was directed to move from Fort Monroe on the same day that Meade moved from Culpepper; of the exact time he was to be notified by telegraph. He was informed that Grant intended to give battle to Lee between Culpepper and Richmond, if he would stand; should he fall back, Grant would follow him, and make a junction with But ler's army on James River; that, should Butler be able to invest Richmond on the south side, and have his left resting on James River above the city, Grant would form the junction there. He was directed to use every to secure a footing as far up the south side of the river as he could.

exertion

In co-operation with these movements, Sigel was directed to organize his available force in West Virginia in two col umns, one to operate on the Kanawha, the other on the Shenandoah.

Orders were given for a general movement on the 4th of May.

On the 4th of May the Army of the Potomac left Cul