Few details of the deal have Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/battle-of-richmond-104505. Peninsula campaign - Wikipedia 100 Charlottesville, VA 22903 (434) 924-3296. An underwater obstruction of sunken steamers, pilings, debris, and other vessels connected by chains was placed just below the bluff, making it difficult for vessels to maneuver in the narrow river. However, Smith had been halted by Sumner more than a mile away from Hooker's position. In the early morning hours, Cleburne marched north, won against Union skirmishers, and approached the Union line near Zion Church. Elizabeth Van Lew and her mother were staunch Unionists. WebThe Ottawa Moving Again Towards the Setting Sun--Coming to Manitoulin, or Ottawa Island--The Names of Their Leaders--The Wenebago Warriors Coming to Ottawa Island in a Hostile The city is on fire in two places. [86], If executed correctly, Johnston would engage two thirds of his army (22 of its 29 infantry brigades, about 51,000 men) against the 33,000 men in the III and IV Corps. The evil brought by the military leadership of the country must be stopped, Prigozhin declared. MUTINY. [27], Forces in the Shenandoah Valley played an indirect role in the campaign. Despite these precautions, Davis still believed Lee could stave off disaster. Tompkins was not the only white woman who actively worked for the Confederate cause in Richmond. Putin Says Civil War Was Avoided in Russia - Bloomberg Magruder, a fan of theatrics, set up a successful deception campaign. [94][95][96], Casey's line buckled with some men retreating, but fought fiercely for possession of their earthworks, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. Authorities estimated Gen. George W. Morell, the 3rd Brigade of Brig. The Malvern encountered sunken Confederate boats in the James River. McClellan protested that he was being forced to lead a major campaign without his promised resources, but he moved ahead anyway. The Confederate line broke under the weight of thousands of new troops and they retreated back through Peake's Crossing to Ashland. Gen. John Sedgwick over the sole remaining bridge. [42][43][44][45], McClellan was stunned by the news. "Overview of the US Civil War Battle of Richmond." Local officials added to the chaos when they broke open stockpiled barrels of whiskey. WebDates: August 29-30, 1862 Generals: Union: William "Bull" Nelson | Confederate: Edmund Kirby Smith Soldiers Engaged: Union: | Confederate: Outcome: Confederate Victory [97][98], Hill, now strengthened by reinforcements from Longstreet, hit the secondary Union line near Seven Pines around 4:40p.m. Hill organized a flanking maneuver to attack Keyes's right flank, which collapsed the Federal line back to the Williamsburg Road. Jan 1 Inflation in the Confederacy Hits 12% per Month . Robertson Hospital could care for only a hundred patients at a time but was also able to provide them with more personal attention than they might receive elsewhere. As the Confederate lines grew thinner and thinner during the nine-and-a-half-month siege, people in Richmond faced the real possibility of starvation. The Overland Campaign of 1864 was launched in the Wilderness and quickly became a slugfest in the woods. The This was remarkable considering that in 1860, the future states of the Confederacy had accounted for only 16 percent of the nations capital invested in manufacturing. Lincoln believed that the city of Norfolk was vulnerable and that control of the James was possible, but McClellan was too busy at the front to meet with the president. Overview of the US Civil War Battle of Richmond - ThoughtCo Now that they had joined, the government of Confederate president Jefferson Davis, in consultation with officials in Richmond, moved quickly to relocate the capital. Contrary to some reports, the Monitor, despite its squat turret, did not have difficulty bringing its guns to bear and fired steadily against the fort. [50], Hancock had been ordered repeatedly by Sumner to withdraw his command back to Cub Creek, but he used the Confederate attack as an excuse to hold his ground. Besides being the political home of the Confederacy, Richmond was a center of rail and industry, military hospitals, and prisoner-of-war camps and prisons, including Belle Isle and Libby Prison. The Confederates were pushed off the Lee's Mill Road and back into the woods and the abatis of their defensive positions. In the end, what proved too much for Virginians was Lincolns insistence on resupplying Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor and his subsequent call, on April 15, 1861, for 75,000 ninety-day volunteers. Established in 1837, Tredegar assumed regional and national prominence under the aegis of West Pointtrained Joseph R. Anderson. Celebrating their right to live, working women, many of whom were employed by the citys government bureaus and factories, marched to the Executive Mansion seeking a meeting with Virginia governor John L. Letcher. People debated secession at length and, like many across the Upper South, tended to adopt a cooperationist stance. Anderson had always augmented his labor force with slaves, but as demand increased and the needs for manpower stripped factories of work details, he was forced to rely even more heavily on slave labor to keep the works in operation. American History What Was the Biggest Turning Point of [47], Brig. He sent cavalry under Brig. Three regiments under Brig. Word of Virginias secession produced jubilation in Richmond. "[82] However, the reality of the outcome was that superior (Union) numbers won the day in a disorganized fight, characterized by misjudgments on both sides. Troops under the command of Maj. Gen. John E. Wool, the elderly commander of Fort Monroe, occupied Norfolk on May 10, encountering little resistance. To destroy the tobacco, Ewell had it moved to buildings that he believed could burn without setting the rest of the city on fire and asked the fire department to stand by to keep the fire from spreading. Nelson and some of his men were able to escape. He was convinced that an army whose strength he estimated as high as 120,000 would stay and fight. Overview of the US Civil War Battle of Richmond. Gen. John Bell Hood's Texas Brigade advanced, with Hampton to his right. Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell, Richmond's military commander, was also under orders to destroy the city's tobacco, cotton, and foodstuffs before the Yankees got to them. However, the defense of Williamsburg was seen by the South as a means of delaying the Federals, which allowed the bulk of the Confederate army to continue its withdrawal toward Richmond. On Friday the 13th, an explosion at the Confederate States ordnance laboratory on Brown's Island kills more than sixty young women and children and briefly halts production. In a city that had been suffering from scarcity, where high officials held "Starvation Balls," no one believed there could be much food left to destroy. The fires succeeded in burning down portions of the business district, but the residential neighborhoods were spared. However, by the end of the day, 4,000 Union soldiers were captured. [59], After the Confederate garrison at Norfolk was evacuated, Commodore Josiah Tattnall III knew that CSS Virginia had no home port and he could not navigate her deep draft through the shallow stretches of the James River toward Richmond, so she was scuttled on May 11 off Craney Island to prevent her capture. And McDowell's Corps did not need its roads kept clear because it never arrivedthe defeat of Union forces at the First Battle of Winchester by Stonewall Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley caused the Lincoln administration to recall McDowell to Fredericksburg. Hooker had expected Baldy Smith's division of the IV Corps, marching north on the Yorktown Road, to hear the sound of battle and come in on Hooker's right in support. Plunder and mob violence roiled the city for two hours until the threat of artillery dispersed the mob. It was also a target for the Union army. Gen. Silas Casey, 6,000 men who were the least experienced in Keyes's corps. Five hours later the wind finally shifted, and they began to bring it under control. It also served as the capital of Virginia, although when the city was about to fall to Union armies in April 1865, the state government, including the governor and General Assembly, moved to Lynchburg for five days. In 1860, Richmond had almost 38,000 residents, including 11,739 slaves. Not long after, two officers of the 13th New York Artillery took down the little triangular flags and ran up the great United States flag. WebVideo: In4 Minutes. Nevertheless, locals, visitors, and news correspondents commented repeatedly on how many women had entered the work force. But then the tug encountered another Confederate obstruction. The first heavy fighting of the campaign occurred during the Battle of Williamsburg in which the Union troops managed some tactical victories, but the Confederates continued their withdrawal. Confederate Brigadier General John B. Magruder's defensive position on the Warwick Line caught McClellan by surprise. Johnston knew that the impending bombardment would be difficult to withstand, so began sending his supply wagons in the direction of Richmond on May 3. On August 20, 1861, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan formed the Army of the Potomac, with himself as its first commander. Tidball, John C. The Artillery Service in the War of the Rebellion, 18611865. By the end of May, the army had built bridges across the Chickahominy and was facing Richmond, straddling the river, with one third of the Army south of the river, two thirds north. The head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group has vowed to "go all the way" to topple Russia's military leadership, hours after the Kremlin accused him of "armed rebellion". WebThe Battle of Richmond, Kentucky, fought August 2930, 1862, was a stunning Confederate victory by Maj. Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith against Union Maj. Gen. William "Bull" Nelson's Federal Identification Number (EIN): 54-1426643. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! Despite every effort made on the part of the few remaining Confederate soldiers and the city's officials, chaos ruled Richmond that night. The president expressed his concern about the "vast labor" involved in the dual role of army commander and general in chief, but McClellan responded, "I can do it all. More than 500 did not make it home alive from such This situation created a social powder keg that finally exploded on April 2, 1863, with the Richmond Bread Riot. Russia-Ukraine war live updates for Wednesday, June 28, 2023 Martin Kelly, M.A., is a history teacher and curriculum developer. Then men under Miss Sallys kind care look so clean and comfortable. Huger's orders had not specified a time that the attack was scheduled to start and he was not awakened until he heard a division marching nearby. Lee inflicted horrific casualties, but Grant relentlessly continued his attack. In a conflict marked by irony, perhaps none is as profound as an agrarian region becoming capable of fighting a total war for four years. McClellan reacted to Keyes's report, as well as to reports of enemy strength near the town of Yorktown, but he also received word that the I Corps, under Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell, would be withheld for the defense of Washington, instead of joining him on the Peninsula as McClellan had planned. Other women filled key positions in the Treasury Department, the. The battle, although inconclusive, received worldwide publicity. Battle of Richmond | Military Wiki | Fandom Like most Southern cities, Richmond opposed secession on economic grounds. The business district caught fire. Such interests encouraged moderation in politics. [70][71][72], The Army of the Potomac pushed slowly up the Pamunkey, establishing supply bases at Eltham's Landing, Cumberland Landing, and White House Landing. Pressing his advantage, Union Brigadier General Mahlon D. Manson sent a brigade to march towards Rogersville and the Confederates. Lawley reported: "The scene that followed baffles description. Sedgwick's men provided the key to resisting Whiting's attack. 2020 Virginia Humanities, All Rights Reserved , The war had a significant impact on Richmonds, Michael D. Gormans website, Civil War Richmond, Virginia Historical Society exhibit, Becoming Confederates. On Longstreet's part, he either misunderstood his orders or chose to modify them without informing Johnston, changing his route of march to collide with Hill's, which not only delayed the advance, but limited the attack to a narrow front with only a fraction of its total force. On the evening of May 3, the Confederates launched a brief bombardment of their own and then fell silent. The First Battle of Manassas is fought near Manassas Junction in northern Virginia, where the Orange and Alexandria Railroad met the Manassas Gap Railroad. G.W. [56], President Lincoln witnessed part of the campaign, having arrived at Fort Monroe on May 6 in the company of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton and Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase on the Treasury Department's revenue cutter Miami. [48], Longstreet's men did leave their fortifications, but they attacked Hooker, not Smith or Sumner. The plan had an excellent potential for initial success because the division of the IV Corps farthest forward, manning the earthworks a mile west of Seven Pines, was that of Brig. The siege is characterized by 30 miles of trenches stretching Confederate defenses thin, and occasional pitched battles, including the Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864, and the more-decisive Battle of Five Forks on April 1, 1865. Richmond during the Civil War - Encyclopedia Virginia But abandoning it, he knew he could move more freely. During the antebellum period, the citys enslaved men and women often had enjoyed freedoms common to urban slaves, including the freedom to live independently and hire their own time, or choose their own employers, make their own work arrangements, and pay their masters a set annual fee in exchange for these privileges. Russia on Tuesday closed a criminal investigation into mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and his Wagner group for armed They rode to Camp Lee where the U.S. Sept. 22 Lincoln Issues the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation . An English observer remarked that it was the "stride of a giant. Avoided 'civil war' Earlier on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin paid tribute to his army, which he said had prevented a "civil war" during last weekend's Wagner Ordnance Department, the Quartermaster Department, and the Confederate commissary. [78][79], Branch also made a poor assumptionthat Porter's force was significantly smaller than it turned out to beand attacked. [39], On April 16, Union forces probed a point in the Confederate line at Dam No. But McClellan had high hopes for his turning movement, planning to send other divisions (those of Brig. McClellan ordered the construction of siege fortifications and brought his heavy siege guns to the front. The landing was close to a key intersection on the road to New Kent Court House that was being used by Johnston's army on the afternoon of May 6. Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the U.S. Confederate States presidential election of 1861, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Peninsula_campaign&oldid=1158059756, Military operations of the American Civil War in Virginia, Campaigns of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from June 2017, All articles needing additional references, Articles with dead external links from March 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0. This page was last edited on 1 June 2023, at 18:37. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. [99][100][101], At dusk, Johnston was wounded and evacuated to Richmond. But following on the heels of that battle came twin Confederate debacles at Vicksburg, Mississippi, and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The hospitals success prompted Jefferson Davis to commission Tompkins a captain in the Confederate cavalry, which allowed her to escape the Medical Departments purview. He redeployed all of his army except for the V Corps south of the river, and although he continued to plan for a siege and the capture of Richmond, he lost the strategic initiative and never regained it. [108], The second phase of the Peninsula campaign took a negative turn for the Union when Lee launched fierce counterattacks just east of Richmond in the Seven Days Battles (June 25 July 1, 1862). On to Richmond became the rallying cry for the first three years of the war, as the Army of the Potomac attacked the capital from the north, the east, and the south. He kept hoping that somehow Lee would send news of a reversal of fortunes and that the government would not have to abandon the city. WebUSS Rodolph. The Union Army of the Potomac lays siege to Petersburg. He called off the assault after it had begun, but Hancock ordered a counterattack. Magruder realized the weakness of his position and ordered it strengthened. When the Confederate government moved from Montgomery, Alabama to Richmond, Virginia, the quiet, prosperous Virginia state capital was transformed into a noisy, crowded metropolis that, as Furgurson notes, was capital, military headquarters, transportation hub, industrial heart, prison, and hospital center of the Confederacy. They tried to grab Lincoln's hand and kiss his boots. Even before secession, the idea had been suggested by Confederate vice president Alexander Stephens of Georgia as a way of luring hesitating Virginians into the Confederacy. [83][82][81][84], A greater impact than the actual casualties, according to Stephen W. Sears, was the effect on McClellan's preparedness for the next major battle, at Seven Pines and Fair Oaks four days later. By moving one company in circles through a glen, he gained the appearance of an endless line of reinforcements marching to relieve him. Early the next morning, Heintzelman ascended in one of Lowe's observation balloons and found that the Confederate earthworks were empty. Kelly, Martin. In the city small fires of document still burned. Although the action was tactically inconclusive, Franklin missed an opportunity to intercept the Confederate retreat from Williamsburg, allowing it to pass unmolested. [104], Both sides claimed victory with roughly equal casualtiesUnion casualties were 5,031 (790 killed, 3,594 wounded, 647 captured or missing), Confederate 6,134 (980 killed, 4,749 wounded, 405 captured or missing). Over the course of the day, reinforcements arrived for both sides. He personally led the 24th Virginia Infantry on a futile assault and was wounded by a bullet through the shoulder. The election of Abraham Lincoln as U.S. president in November 1860 was not provocation enough, especially since Republicans failed to gain either house of the U.S. Congress. Whether they worked in industrial or household settings, many of Richmonds slaves had gained this autonomy before the war began, and often lived and socialized with free blacks as well as other slaves. The trip, however, was not as smooth as the admiral would have liked. The advance team was led by Brigadier General Patrick R. Cleburne who had his cavalry led by Colonel John S. Scott out front. [73][76], Porter departed on his mission at 4 a.m. on May 27 with his 1st Division, under Brig. Still, problems plagued Tredegar. Stuart's cavalry, Johnston's rearguard. Smith, plagued with ill health, was indecisive about the next steps for the battle and made a bad impression on President Davis and General Lee, Davis's military adviser. [9] He created defenses for Washington that were almost impregnable, consisting of 48 forts and strong points, with 480 guns manned by 7,200 artillerists. McClellan landed his army at Fort Monroe and moved northwest, up the Virginia Peninsula. The stench attracted crowds. The Peninsula campaign (also known as the Peninsular campaign) of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March to July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The army was organized into three corps and other units, as follows:[24], On the Confederate side, Johnston's Army of Northern Virginia (newly named as of March 14)[25] was organized into three wings, each composed of several brigades, as follows:[26], However, at the time the Army of the Potomac arrived, only Magruder's 11,000 men faced them on the Peninsula. Finally, he came to believe that he could best serve the Confederate cause by abandoning its capital. Around 11 a.m. the Union ships withdrew to City Point. Johnston and his second-in-command, Smith, unaware of Longstreet's location or Huger's delay, waited at their headquarters for word of the start of the battle. If the war brought some work opportunities to Richmonds slaves, it also brought increased competition for available jobs, especially among household servants. On 27 June 2022, world leaders condemned Russias deadly strike on the shopping centre in Kremenchuk as abominable and a war crime. There was something oppressive in those thousands of watchers without a sound, either of welcome or hatred. Join us online July 24-26! This opened the James River at Hampton Roads to Federal gunboats. For the second straight day, a group of Richmonders gathers to protest food shortages, but is discouraged from rioting. 1862 Union offensive in southeast Virginia during the American Civil War, This article is about the American Civil War military campaign. Eventually the mass of Confederates broke through, seized a Union redoubt, and Casey's men retreated to the second line of defensive works at Seven Pines. Richmond, Virginia, was the capital of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War (18611865). During the long afternoon and throughout the feverish night, on horseback, in every description of cart, carriage, and vehicle, in every hurried train that left the city, on canal barges, skiffs, and boats, the exodus of officials and prominent citizens was unintermitted. This maneuver failed as the 6th Vermont came under heavy Confederate fire and were forced to withdraw. Second, McClellan anticipated the arrival of McDowell's I Corps, scheduled to march south from Fredericksburg to reinforce his army, and thus needed to protect their avenue of approach. However, McClellan came under extreme criticism from the press and the Congress when it was found that Johnston's forces had not only slipped away unnoticed, but had for months fooled the Union Army through the use of Quaker Guns.