Description Peninsula, 17 March-3 August 1862. The Army of the Potomac began sailing from Alexandria to Fort Monroe on 17 March 1862. This marked the beginning of the Peninsula Campaign in which perhaps as many aPeninsula, 17 March-3 August 1862. The Army of the Potomac began sailing from Alexandria to Fort Monroe on 17 March 1862. This marked the beginning of the Peninsula Campaign in which perhaps as many as 155,000 Federals and 95,500 Confederates eventually became involved, although not that many were present at any one time.
McClellan began advancing from Fort Monroe early in April, but stopped for a month to besiege a much inferior Confederate force under Maj. Gen. John B. Magruder at Yorktown. During the siege Johnston had time to join Magruder with his entire force. McClellan planned a major assault on 5 May, but on 3 May Johnston began withdrawing up the peninsula. McClellan pursued, and the Confederate rear guard under Maj. Gen. James Longstreet fought a successful delaying action at Williamsburg on 5 May which developed into a major engagement, resulting in 1,866 Federal and 1,570 Confederate casualties. McClellan continued his pursuit in leisurely fashion, established his main base at White House, and toward the end of the month pushed two corps southwest across the Chickahominy River toward Richmond. His remaining three corps stayed north of the river. McClellan expected help from the force under McDowell which had metafile moved to Fredericksburg, but Jackson's valley campaign drained away half of McDowell's troops, and McClellan received only two divisions of reinforcements from this source during the campaign.
A heavy rain on 30 May flooded the Chickahominy, washing out bridges and rendering the stream unfordable. Recognizing this as an opportunity to defeat the Union force in detail, Johnston attacked the isolated Federals south of the stream near Fair Oaks on 31 May 1862. The Federals, after suffering initial reverses, were finally able to repel the attack. Each side committed some 41,000 men during the two-day engagement, the Federals losing 790 killed and 4,384 wounded, the Confederates 980 killed and 5,729 wounded.
Johnston was wounded at Fair Oaks and was replaced by Gen. Robert E. Lee. Jackson now moved quickly and with complete secrecy to Richmond, while Lee pulled back closer to Richmond and built fortifications. Late in June Lee struck hard on McClellan's right (north) flank and succeeded in cutting the Federal line of communications to the main base at White House. McClellan therefore shifted his base to Harrison's Landing on the south side of the peninsula, fighting all the way, and on 1 July was finally able to mass his forces, establish a strong defensive position, and repel Lee's attacks. It was a hard fought, complex operation known as the Seven Days' Battles and included major engagements in Mechanicsville. (26 June), Gaines' Mill or First Cold Harbor (27 June), Savage Station (29 June), Frayser's Farm or Glendale (30 June), and Malvern Hill (1 July). On 3 July Lee broke contact and returned his troops to the lines at Richmond. There was no more fighting. Casualties had been heavy on the peninsula. Federal losses in killed, wounded, and missing totaled 15,849; Confederate losses were 20,614.
In June 1862, during the Peninsula Campaign, Lincoln consolidated the Union forces in the Shenandoah Valley and other parts of western Virginia-some 45,000 men-as the Army of Virginia, assigning the commend to Pope. After Jackson moved to Richmond, Pope was given the mission of marching down the Shenandoah Valley and then east against Richmond to relieve McClellan. On 11 July 1862, Lincoln appointed Halleck as General in Chief. By that time Pope's army was in western Virginia, and McClellan's Army of the Potomac, 100,000 strong, was at Harrison's Landing, with Lee in between. Neither Halleck nor Lincoln liked the disposition of the forces, and on 3 August McClellan was ordered to Join Pope by way of Aquia Creek on the Potomac, a move that got under way about two seeks later.... More
Description Other Names:Sharpsburg; Principal Cdrs: MG McClellan [US]; Gen Lee [CS]; Forces Engaged: Armies; Estimated Casualties: US 12,401, or 25%; CS 10,316, or 31%; bloodiest single-day battle in American hisOther Names:Sharpsburg; Principal Cdrs: MG McClellan [US]; Gen Lee [CS]; Forces Engaged: Armies; Estimated Casualties: US 12,401, or 25%; CS 10,316, or 31%; bloodiest single-day battle in American history.Result(s): Inconclusive (Union strategic vict... More
Description
Other Names: Marye's Heights; Principal Cdrs: MG Burnside [US]; Gen Lee [CS]; Forces Engaged: US 100,007; CS 72,497; Estimated Casualties: US 13,353; CS 4,576; Result(s): Confederate victory