The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes more simply referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania (or the 19th-century spelling Spottsylvania), was the second major battle in
Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
and
Maj. Gen.
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
George G. Meade
George Gordon Meade (December 31, 1815 – November 6, 1872) was a United States Army officer and civil engineer best known for decisively defeating Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War. H ...
's 1864
Overland Campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union ...
of the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
. Following the bloody but inconclusive
Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness was fought on May 5–7, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the first battle of Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Arm ...
, Grant's army disengaged from
Confederate
Confederacy or confederate may refer to:
States or communities
* Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities
* Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
General
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
Robert E. Lee's army and moved to the southeast, attempting to lure Lee into battle under more favorable conditions. Elements of Lee's army beat the
Union army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
to the critical crossroads of the Spotsylvania Court House in
Spotsylvania County, Virginia
Spotsylvania County is a county in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the July 2021 estimate, the population was 143,676. Its county seat is Spotsylvania Courthouse.
History
At the time of European encounter, the inhabitants of the area that bec ...
, and began entrenching. Fighting occurred on and off from May 8 through May 21, 1864, as Grant tried various schemes to break the Confederate line. In the end, the battle was tactically inconclusive, but both sides declared victory. The Confederacy declared victory because they were able to hold their defenses. The United States declared victory because the
Federal offensive continued and Lee's army suffered losses that could not be replaced. With almost 32,000 casualties on both sides, Spotsylvania was the costliest battle of the campaign.
On May 8, Union
Maj. Gens. Gouverneur K. Warren
Gouverneur Kemble Warren (January 8, 1830 – August 8, 1882) was an American civil engineer and Union Army general during the American Civil War. He is best remembered for arranging the last-minute defense of Little Round Top during the Battle ...
and
John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick (September 13, 1813 – May 9, 1864) was a military officer and Union Army general during the American Civil War.
He was wounded three times at the Battle of Antietam while leading his division in an unsuccessful assault against C ...
unsuccessfully attempted to dislodge the Confederates under Maj. Gen.
Richard H. Anderson Richard Anderson (1926–2017) was an American actor.
Richard, Rich, Richie, or Dick Anderson may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Richard Dean Anderson (born 1950), American actor
* Richard L. Anderson (sound effects editor) (1977–2013) ...
from Laurel Hill, a position that was blocking them from Spotsylvania Court House. On May 10, Grant ordered attacks across the Confederate line of earthworks, which by now extended over , including a prominent
salient known as the Mule Shoe. Although the Union troops failed again at Laurel Hill, an innovative assault attempt by Col.
Emory Upton
Emory Upton (August 27, 1839 – March 15, 1881) was a United States Army General and military strategist, prominent for his role in leading infantry to attack entrenched positions successfully at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House during the ...
against the Mule Shoe showed promise.
Grant used Upton's assault technique on a much larger scale on May 12 when he ordered the 15,000 men of Maj. Gen.
Winfield Scott Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
's corps to assault the Mule Shoe. Hancock was initially successful, but the Confederate leadership rallied and repulsed his incursion. Attacks by Maj. Gen.
Horatio Wright
Horatio Gouverneur Wright (March 6, 1820 – July 2, 1899) was an engineer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He took command of the VI Corps in May 1864 following the death of General John Sedgwick. In this capacity, he ...
on the western edge of the Mule Shoe, which became known as the "Bloody Angle", involved almost 24 hours of desperate hand-to-hand fighting, some of the most intense of the Civil War. Supporting attacks by Warren and by Maj. Gen.
Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Everett Burnside (May 23, 1824 – September 13, 1881) was an American army officer and politician who became a senior Union general in the Civil War and three times Governor of Rhode Island, as well as being a successful inventor ...
were unsuccessful.
Grant repositioned his lines in another attempt to engage Lee under more favorable conditions and launched a final attack by Hancock on May 18, which made no progress. A reconnaissance in force by Confederate
Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell
Richard Stoddert Ewell (February 8, 1817 – January 25, 1872) was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. L ...
at Harris farm on May 19 was a costly and pointless failure. On May 21, Grant disengaged from the Confederate Army and started southeast on another maneuver to
turn Lee's right flank, as the Overland Campaign continued and led to the
Battle of North Anna
The Battle of North Anna was fought May 23–26, 1864, as part of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. It consisted of a series of small actions near the North ...
.
Background
Military situation
![SpotsylvaniaCourthouse1864p53crop](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/SpotsylvaniaCourthouse1864p53crop.jpg)
In March 1864, Grant was summoned from the
Western Theater, promoted to lieutenant general, and given command of all Union armies. He chose to make his headquarters with the
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...
, although Maj. Gen.
George G. Meade
George Gordon Meade (December 31, 1815 – November 6, 1872) was a United States Army officer and civil engineer best known for decisively defeating Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War. H ...
remained the actual commander of that army. He left Maj. Gen.
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...
in command of most of the western armies. Grant and
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
devised a coordinated strategy that would strike at the heart of the Confederacy from multiple directions, including attacks against Lee near
Richmond, Virginia
(Thus do we reach the stars)
, image_map =
, mapsize = 250 px
, map_caption = Location within Virginia
, pushpin_map = Virginia#USA
, pushpin_label = Richmond
, pushpin_m ...
, and in the
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge- ...
,
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
,
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
, and
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...
. This was the first time the Union armies would have a coordinated offensive strategy across a number of theaters.
Grant's campaign objective was not the Confederate capital of Richmond, but the destruction of Lee's army. Lincoln had long advocated this strategy for his generals, recognizing that the city would certainly fall after the loss of its principal defensive army. Grant ordered Meade, "Wherever Lee goes, there you will go also." Although he hoped for a quick, decisive battle, Grant was prepared to fight a
war of attrition
The War of Attrition ( ar, حرب الاستنزاف, Ḥarb al-Istinzāf; he, מלחמת ההתשה, Milhemet haHatashah) involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from ...
. Both Union and Confederate casualties could be high, but the Union had far greater resources to replace lost soldiers and equipment.
On May 5, after Grant's army crossed the Rapidan and entered the Wilderness of Spotsylvania, it was attacked by Confederate Gen.
Robert E. Lee's
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...
. Although Lee was outnumbered, about 60,000 to 100,000, his men fought fiercely and the dense foliage provided a terrain advantage. After two days of fighting and almost 29,000 casualties, the results were inconclusive and neither army was able to obtain an advantage.
[Salmon, p. 253; Kennedy, pp. 280–82.]
Lee had stopped Grant, but had not turned him back, and Grant had not destroyed Lee's army. Under similar circumstances, previous Union commanders had chosen to withdraw behind the Rappahannock, but Grant instead ordered Meade to move around Lee's right flank and seize the important crossroads at Spotsylvania Court House to the southeast, hoping that by interposing his army between Lee and Richmond, he could lure the Confederates into another battle on a more favorable field.
Opposing forces
Union
As of May 7, Grant's Union forces totaled approximately 100,000 men.
[ They consisted of the ]Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...
, under Maj. Gen. George G. Meade
George Gordon Meade (December 31, 1815 – November 6, 1872) was a United States Army officer and civil engineer best known for decisively defeating Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War. H ...
, and the IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to:
France
* 9th Army Corps (France)
* IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
Germany
* IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial Germ ...
(until May 24 formally part of the Army of the Ohio
The Army of the Ohio was the name of two Union armies in the American Civil War. The first army became the Army of the Cumberland and the second army was created in 1863.
History
1st Army of the Ohio
General Orders No. 97 appointed Maj. Gen. Do ...
, reporting directly to Grant, not Meade). The five corps were:
* II Corps, under Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
, including the divisions of Maj. Gen. David B. Birney
David Bell Birney (May 29, 1825 – October 18, 1864) was a businessman, lawyer, and a Union general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Birney was born in Huntsville, Alabama, the son of an abolitionist from Kentucky, James G. Birney. The Bi ...
and Brig. Gens. Francis C. Barlow
Francis Channing Barlow (October 19, 1834 – January 11, 1896) was a lawyer, politician, and Union General during the American Civil War.
Early life and career
Barlow was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a Unitarian minister, but was r ...
, John Gibbon
John Gibbon (April 20, 1827 – February 6, 1896) was a career United States Army officer who fought in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.
Early life
Gibbon was born in the Holmesburg section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the fourt ...
, and Gershom Mott
Gershom Mott (April 7, 1822 – November 29, 1884) was a United States Army officer and a General in the Union Army, a commander in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.
Early life
General Mott was born in Lamberton, New Jersey, a to ...
. (Mott's 4th Division was discontinued on May 13 and its brigades were distributed to other divisions in the corps. On May 18, a new 4th Division was constituted with reinforcements of heavy artillery regiments from Washington, D.C., under the command of Brig. Gen. Robert O. Tyler, known informally as Tyler's Division of Heavy Artillery.)
* V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to:
France
* 5th Army Corps (France)
* V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
* V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Ar ...
, under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren
Gouverneur Kemble Warren (January 8, 1830 – August 8, 1882) was an American civil engineer and Union Army general during the American Civil War. He is best remembered for arranging the last-minute defense of Little Round Top during the Battle ...
, including the divisions of Brig. Gens. Charles Griffin
Charles Griffin (December 18, 1825 – September 15, 1867) was a career officer in the United States Army and a Union general in the American Civil War. He rose to command a corps in the Army of the Potomac and fought in many of the key campaigns ...
, John C. Robinson
John Cleveland Robinson (April 10, 1817 – February 18, 1897) had a long and distinguished career in the United States Army, fighting in numerous wars and culminating his career as a Union Army brigadier general of volunteers and brevet major ...
, Samuel W. Crawford
Samuel Wylie Crawford (November 8, 1829 – November 3, 1892) was a United States Army surgeon and a Union general in the American Civil War.
He served as a surgeon at Fort Sumter, South Carolina during the confederate bombardment in 1861. ...
, and Lysander Cutler
Lysander Cutler (February 16, 1807July 30, 1866) was an American businessman, educator, politician, and Union Army General during the American Civil War.
Early years
Cutler was born in Royalston, Massachusetts, the son of a farmer. Despite object ...
. (Following the wounding of Robinson on May 8, his 2nd Division was temporarily disbanded and the brigades distributed to other divisions in the corps.)
* VI Corps 6 Corps, 6th Corps, Sixth Corps, or VI Corps may refer to:
France
* VI Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry formation of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars
* VI Corps (Grande Armée), a formation of the Imperial French army du ...
, under Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick (September 13, 1813 – May 9, 1864) was a military officer and Union Army general during the American Civil War.
He was wounded three times at the Battle of Antietam while leading his division in an unsuccessful assault against C ...
, including the divisions of Brig. Gens. Horatio G. Wright
Horatio Gouverneur Wright (March 6, 1820 – July 2, 1899) was an engineer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He took command of the VI Corps in May 1864 following the death of General John Sedgwick. In this capacity, he ...
, Thomas H. Neill
Thomas Hewson Neill (1826–1885) was a native of Pennsylvania, became a general in the American Civil War, serving in the Army of the Potomac in some of its most important campaigns.
Birth and early years
Neill was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylva ...
, and James B. Ricketts
James Brewerton Ricketts (June 21, 1817 – September 22, 1887) was a career officer in the United States Army, serving as a Union Army general during the Civil War.
At First Bull Run, he was wounded and captured, but later exchanged. He fought a ...
. (Sedgwick was killed on May 9 and replaced by Wright. Wright's 1st Division was then commanded by Brig. Gen. David A. Russell.)
* IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to:
France
* 9th Army Corps (France)
* IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
Germany
* IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial Germ ...
, under Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Everett Burnside (May 23, 1824 – September 13, 1881) was an American army officer and politician who became a senior Union general in the Civil War and three times Governor of Rhode Island, as well as being a successful inventor ...
, including the divisions of Brig. Gens. Thomas G. Stevenson
Thomas Greely Stevenson (February 3, 1836 – May 10, 1864) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action during the battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse.
Biography
Stevenson was born in Boston, Massachusett ...
, Robert B. Potter
Robert Brown Potter (July 16, 1829 – February 19, 1887) was a United States lawyer and a Union Army general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Potter was born in Schenectady, New York on July 16, 1829. He was the third son of Alonzo Pot ...
, Orlando B. Willcox
Orlando Bolivar Willcox (April 16, 1823 – May 11, 1907) was an American soldier who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Early life
Willcox was born in Detroit, Michigan. He entered the United States Military Ac ...
, and Edward Ferrero
Edward Ferrero (January 18, 1831 – December 11, 1899) was one of the leading dance instructors, choreographers, and ballroom operators in the United States. He also served as a Union Army general in the American Civil War, being most remembered f ...
. (Stevenson was killed on May 10 and was replaced in command of the 1st Division by Col. Daniel Leasure
Daniel Leasure (March 18, 1819 – October 10, 1886) was an American soldier and physician who served as a colonel and brigade commander in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Early life
Leasure was born in 1819 near Pittsburgh in W ...
then Maj. Gen. Thomas L. Crittenden
Thomas Leonidas Crittenden (May 15, 1819 – October 23, 1893) was a lawyer, politician, and Union general during the American Civil War.
Early life
Crittenden was born in Russellville, Kentucky, the son of U.S. Senator John J. Crittenden, who ...
)
* Cavalry Corps, under Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...
, including the divisions of Brig. Gens. Alfred T.A. Torbert, David McM. Gregg
David McMurtrie Gregg (April 10, 1833 – August 7, 1916) was an American farmer, diplomat, and a Union cavalry general in the American Civil War.
Early life and career
Gregg was born in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. He was the first cousin of fut ...
, and James H. Wilson
James Harrison Wilson (September 2, 1837 – February 23, 1925) was a United States Army topographic engineer and a Union Army Major General in the American Civil War. He served as an aide to Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan during the Maryland Cam ...
. (During the period of May 9–24, Sheridan's Cavalry Corps was absent on detached duty and took no further part in the operations around Spotsylvania Court House.)
Confederate
Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...
comprised about 52,000 men and was organized into four corps:
* First Corps, under Maj. Gen. Richard H. Anderson Richard Anderson (1926–2017) was an American actor.
Richard, Rich, Richie, or Dick Anderson may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Richard Dean Anderson (born 1950), American actor
* Richard L. Anderson (sound effects editor) (1977–2013) ...
, including the divisions of Maj. Gen. Charles W. Field
Charles William Field (April 6, 1828 – April 9, 1892) was a career military officer, serving in the United States Army and then, during the American Civil War, in the Confederate States Army. His division was considered one of the finest in ...
and Brig. Gen. Joseph B. Kershaw
Joseph Brevard Kershaw (January 5, 1822 – April 13, 1894) was a prominent South Carolina planter and slaveholder. He was also a lawyer, judge, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Kershaw was born on January 5, 182 ...
.
* Second Corps, under Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell
Richard Stoddert Ewell (February 8, 1817 – January 25, 1872) was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. L ...
, including the divisions of Maj. Gens. Jubal A. Early, Edward "Allegheny" Johnson, and Robert E. Rodes
Robert Emmett (or Emmet) Rodes (March 29, 1829 – September 19, 1864) was a Confederate general in the American Civil War, and the first of Robert E. Lee's divisional commanders not trained at West Point. His division led Stonewall Jackso ...
. (On May 8, Jubal Early assumed temporary command of the Third Corps; his replacement in command of Early's Division was Brig. Gen. John B. Gordon.)
* Third Corps, under Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill
Ambrose Powell Hill Jr. (November 9, 1825April 2, 1865) was a Confederate general who was killed in the American Civil War. He is usually referred to as A. P. Hill to differentiate him from another, unrelated Confederate general, Daniel Harvey H ...
, including the divisions of Maj. Gens. Henry Heth
Henry Heth ( not ) (December 16, 1825 – September 27, 1899) was a career United States Army officer who became a Confederate general in the American Civil War.
He came to the notice of Robert E. Lee while serving briefly as his quartermast ...
and Cadmus M. Wilcox
Cadmus Marcellus Wilcox (May 20, 1824 – December 2, 1890) was a career United States Army officer who served in the Mexican–American War and also was a Confederate general during the American Civil War.
Early life and career
Wilcox was ...
and Brig. Gen. William Mahone
William Mahone (December 1, 1826October 8, 1895) was an American civil engineer, railroad executive, Confederate States Army general, and Virginia politician.
As a young man, Mahone was prominent in the building of Virginia's roads and railroa ...
. (On May 8, Hill became ill and was replaced temporarily in corps command by Jubal Early.)
* Cavalry Corps, under Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart (February 6, 1833May 12, 1864) was a United States Army officer from Virginia who became a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb,” from the initials of ...
, including the divisions of Maj. Gens. Wade Hampton Wade Hampton may refer to the following people:
People
*Wade Hampton I (1752–1835), American soldier in Revolutionary War and War of 1812 and U.S. congressman
*Wade Hampton II (1791–1858), American plantation owner and soldier in War of 1812
*W ...
, Fitzhugh Lee
Fitzhugh Lee (November 19, 1835 – April 28, 1905) was a Confederate cavalry general in the American Civil War, the 40th Governor of Virginia, diplomat, and United States Army general in the Spanish–American War. He was the son of Sydney S ...
, and W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee.
Initial movements
May 7: The race to Spotsylvania
Grant's orders to Meade were to march the night of May 7–8 over two routes, reaching Spotsylvania Court House, to the southeast, with at least one corps the morning of May 8. Warren's V Corps would take the Brock Road, followed by Hancock's II Corps. Sedgwick's VI Corps would head toward Chancellorsville on the Orange Plank Road, and then turn south, followed by Burnside's IX Corps.
Meade began by ordering Sheridan's Cavalry Corps to clear the Brock Road for the infantry, but the troopers soon bogged down. The brigade of Col. J. Irvin Gregg (David Gregg's division), was stopped at Corbin's Bridge on the Catharpin Road by cavalrymen under Wade Hampton and Rooney Lee. Gregg's men withdrew to a field west of Todd's Tavern, constructed rudimentary earthworks, and repulsed a series of Confederate attacks.[Rhea, ''Spotsylvania Court House'', pp. 30–42; Welcher, pp. 959–61; Salmon, p. 271.]
Wesley Merritt's Union division encountered Fitzhugh Lee's cavalry behind barricades on the Brock Road about a mile south of Todd's Tavern. Sharp fighting resulted in the late afternoon, and by nightfall, Sheridan decided against continuing in the dark and ordered his men to bivouac at Todd's Tavern. The first Union infantry began moving at 8 p.m. and their advance was plagued by traffic jams. When Meade reached Todd's Tavern after midnight he was infuriated to see Sheridan's sleeping cavalrymen and ordered them to resume their road clearing operation.
Lee was unsure of Grant's plan. Reconnaissance told him that the river crossing equipment had been removed from Germanna Ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
, so Grant would not be withdrawing as his predecessors had. The Union Army could either be heading east to Fredericksburg or moving south. In either event, the crossroads at Spotsylvania Court House would play an important role, so Lee ordered his artillery chief, Brig. Gen. William N. Pendleton
William Nelson Pendleton (December 26, 1809 – January 15, 1883) was an American teacher, Episcopal priest, and soldier. He served as a Confederate general during the American Civil War, noted for his position as Gen. Robert E. Lee's chief ...
, to begin constructing a road through the woods from the Confederate position at the Wilderness due south to the Catharpin Road. He also ordered Maj. Gen. Richard H. Anderson, who had replaced Lt. Gen. James Longstreet
James Longstreet (January 8, 1821January 2, 1904) was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse". He served under Lee as a corps ...
in command of the First Corps following that officer's wounding on May 6, to move out along that road. Lee did not indicate any need for haste, but Anderson and his men desired to leave the stench of burning forest and dead bodies in the Wilderness, so they began marching about 10 p.m.
Battle
May 8: Laurel Hill and cavalry troubles
At dawn on May 8, Wesley Merritt
Wesley Merritt (June 16, 1836December 3, 1910) was an American major general who served in the cavalry of the United States Army during the American Civil War, American Indian Wars, and Spanish–American War. Following the latter war, he became ...
's cavalrymen attacked Fitzhugh Lee
Fitzhugh Lee (November 19, 1835 – April 28, 1905) was a Confederate cavalry general in the American Civil War, the 40th Governor of Virginia, diplomat, and United States Army general in the Spanish–American War. He was the son of Sydney S ...
's barricades on the Brock Road again, but were repulsed. Meade ordered Warren's V Corps to break through with infantry and the division of Brig. Gen. John C. Robinson
John Cleveland Robinson (April 10, 1817 – February 18, 1897) had a long and distinguished career in the United States Army, fighting in numerous wars and culminating his career as a Union Army brigadier general of volunteers and brevet major ...
led the way in overwhelming the cavalry obstacle. Fitzhugh Lee's horse artillery made a gallant stand around the Alsop farm and delayed the Union advance while the cavalrymen staked out a defensive line on a low ridge just south of the Spindle farm clearing, which they dubbed "Laurel Hill." Lee sent for help to Anderson's infantry, which by now had reached the Block House Bridge on the Po River
The Po ( , ; la, Padus or ; Ligurian language (ancient), Ancient Ligurian: or ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is either or , if the Maira (river), Mair ...
and were eating breakfast. Anderson immediately dispatched two infantry brigades and an artillery battalion, which arrived at Laurel Hill just as Warren's men pulled up within 100 yards to the north.
Assuming that only cavalry blocked his path, Warren ordered an immediate attack against Laurel Hill. Multiple attacks by the divisions of the V Corps were repulsed with heavy casualties, and by noon the Union troops began building earthworks on the northern end of the Spindle clearing. Meanwhile, the Union cavalry division under James H. Wilson
James Harrison Wilson (September 2, 1837 – February 23, 1925) was a United States Army topographic engineer and a Union Army Major General in the American Civil War. He served as an aide to Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan during the Maryland Cam ...
had reached and occupied the town of Spotsylvania Court House at 8 a.m. Wilson sent a brigade under Col. John B. McIntosh
John Baillie McIntosh (June 6, 1829 – June 29, 1888), although born in Florida, served as a Union Army brigadier general in the American Civil War. His brother, James M. McIntosh, served as a Confederate general until he was killed in the Ba ...
up the Brock Road with the intention of striking the Confederate position at Laurel Hill from the rear. J.E.B. Stuart had only a single cavalry regiment available to send out against McIntosh, but Anderson's infantry division under Joseph B. Kershaw
Joseph Brevard Kershaw (January 5, 1822 – April 13, 1894) was a prominent South Carolina planter and slaveholder. He was also a lawyer, judge, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Kershaw was born on January 5, 182 ...
was marching in that direction. With orders from Sheridan to withdraw and with Confederate infantry in hot pursuit, Wilson withdrew up the Fredericksburg Road.
Generals Meade and Sheridan had quarreled about the cavalry's performance throughout the campaign and this incident with Wilson, compounding the frustration of the uncleared Brock Road, brought Meade's notorious temper to a boil. After a heated exchange laced with expletives on both sides, Sheridan told Meade that he could "whip Stuart" if Meade let him. Meade reported the conversation to Grant, who replied, "Well, he generally knows what he is talking about. Let him start right out and do it." Meade deferred to Grant's judgment and issued orders to Sheridan to "proceed against the enemy's cavalry." Sheridan's entire command of 10,000 cavalrymen departed the following day. They engaged with (and mortally wounded) Stuart at the Battle of Yellow Tavern
The Battle of Yellow Tavern was fought on May 11, 1864, as part of the Overland Campaign of the American Civil War. Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan was detached from Grant’s Army of the Potomac to conduct a raid on Richmond, ...
on May 11, threatened the outskirts of Richmond, refitted near the James River, and did not return to the army until May 24. Grant and Meade were left without cavalry resources during the critical days of the battle to come.
While Warren was unsuccessfully attacking Laurel Hill the morning of May 8, Hancock's II Corps had reached Todd's Tavern and erected defenses to the west on the Catharpin Road, protecting the rear of the army. Jubal Early
Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a Virginia lawyer and politician who became a Confederate general during the American Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early resigned his U.S. Army commissio ...
, who had just replaced A.P. Hill
Ambrose Powell Hill Jr. (November 9, 1825April 2, 1865) was a Confederate general who was killed in the American Civil War. He is usually referred to as A. P. Hill to differentiate him from another, unrelated Confederate general, Daniel Harvey H ...
as Third Corps commander because of his illness, decided to test the defenses and sent the division of William Mahone
William Mahone (December 1, 1826October 8, 1895) was an American civil engineer, railroad executive, Confederate States Army general, and Virginia politician.
As a young man, Mahone was prominent in the building of Virginia's roads and railroa ...
and some cavalry. After a short fight, Hancock's division under Francis C. Barlow
Francis Channing Barlow (October 19, 1834 – January 11, 1896) was a lawyer, politician, and Union General during the American Civil War.
Early life and career
Barlow was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a Unitarian minister, but was r ...
withdrew back to Todd's Tavern and Early decided not to pursue.
In the afternoon, Sedgwick's VI Corps arrived near Laurel Hill and extended Warren's line to the east. By 7 p.m., both corps began a coordinated assault, but were repulsed by heavy fire. They attempted to move around Anderson's right flank, but were surprised to find that divisions from Ewell's Second Corps had arrived in that sector to repulse them again. Meade had not had a good day. He lost the race to Spotsylvania, he was dissatisfied with his cavalry, he judged Sedgwick to be "constitutionally slow," and he was most disappointed that Warren had been unsuccessful at Laurel Hill, telling him that he had "lost his nerve."
May 9: Fortifications, Sedgwick, and Hancock
Over the night of May 8–9, the Confederates were busy erecting a series of earthworks, more than long, starting at the Po River, encompassing the Laurel Hill line, crossing the Brock Road, jutting out in a horseshoe shape and then extending south past the courthouse intersection. The earthworks were reinforced with timber and guarded by artillery placed to allow enfilade
Enfilade and defilade are concepts in military tactics used to describe a military formation's exposure to enemy fire. A formation or position is "in enfilade" if weapon fire can be directed along its longest axis. A unit or position is "in de ...
fire on any attacking force. There was only one potential weakness in Lee's line—the exposed salient known as the "Mule Shoe" extending more than a mile (1.6 km) in front of the main trench line. Although Lee's engineers were aware of this problem, they extended the line to incorporate some minor high ground to Anderson's right, knowing that they would be at a disadvantage if the Union occupied it.
The Union soldiers were also busy building their own entrenchments. At about 9 a.m., Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick (September 13, 1813 – May 9, 1864) was a military officer and Union Army general during the American Civil War.
He was wounded three times at the Battle of Antietam while leading his division in an unsuccessful assault against C ...
was inspecting his VI Corps line when he was shot through the head by a Confederate sharpshooter's bullet, dying instantly, having just made the celebrated remark "they couldn't hit an elephant at this distance". Sedgwick was one of the most beloved generals in the Union Army and his death was a hard blow to his men and colleagues. Meade ordered Maj. Gen. Horatio G. Wright
Horatio Gouverneur Wright (March 6, 1820 – July 2, 1899) was an engineer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He took command of the VI Corps in May 1864 following the death of General John Sedgwick. In this capacity, he ...
, the senior division commander, to replace Sedgwick.
On the Union left, Burnside's IX Corps approached on the Fredericksburg Road from Alrich, led by Brig. Gen. Orlando B. Willcox
Orlando Bolivar Willcox (April 16, 1823 – May 11, 1907) was an American soldier who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Early life
Willcox was born in Detroit, Michigan. He entered the United States Military Ac ...
's division, but they were delayed by Fitzhugh Lee's cavalrymen. When they reached close enough to observe that the Confederates were at Spotsylvania Court House, Burnside became concerned that he was too far in advance of Meade's force and ordered his men to begin entrenching. At this same time, Hancock was reporting from the right flank that Early's men had pulled back from his front. Grant absorbed these two observations and concluded that the Confederates were shifting their men from west to east, opening an opportunity for an attack. He ordered Hancock to cross the Po and attack the Confederates' left flank, driving them back toward Burnside's position near the Ni River, while the rest of his command, in the center, watched for an opening to attack there as well.
Hancock's II Corps advanced across the Po, but he became nervous that the Confederates had the Block House Bridge heavily defended and decided to delay his attack until the morning. This error was fatal to Grant's plan. That night, Lee moved two divisions of Jubal Early's corps from Spotsylvania Court House into position against Hancock. Mahone's division was placed directly in Hancock's path of advance while Henry Heth
Henry Heth ( not ) (December 16, 1825 – September 27, 1899) was a career United States Army officer who became a Confederate general in the American Civil War.
He came to the notice of Robert E. Lee while serving briefly as his quartermast ...
's division swung around to approach Hancock's right flank.
May 10: Grant attacks
As morning dawned, Grant realized his assumptions about Lee's dispositions were wrong and that Hancock was facing a significant threat on his front. However, this opened a new opportunity. He guessed (incorrectly) that the troops facing Hancock had been withdrawn from Laurel Hill. He ordered Hancock to withdraw north of the Po, leaving a single division in place to occupy the Confederates in that sector, while the rest of his army was to attack at 5 p.m. across the entire Confederate line, which would identify and exploit any potential weak spot. Hancock left Francis C. Barlow's division behind hasty earthworks along Shady Grove Church Road and withdrew the remainder of his men north of the Po.
At 2 p.m., Jubal Early decided to attack Barlow with Henry Heth's division. Barlow's men were soon in a difficult position as Confederate artillery lobbed in shells that set the surrounding woods on fire. They were able to retreat through a mile-long corridor and crossed the Po without being captured, destroying the bridges behind them. Grant's tactics were criticized for this so-called "Battle of the Po." Since he had ordered Hancock to move late in the day on May 9, he allowed Robert E. Lee time to react and nullify the movement on May 10.
Hancock was needed in the Po sector to help Barlow's withdrawal, which meant that Warren was left in charge of the Laurel Hill sector. Immediately upon Hancock's departure, Warren requested permission from Meade to attack Laurel Hill immediately, uncoordinated with the rest of Grant's attack, scheduled for 5 p.m. Warren was embarrassed by his performance the previous day and wanted to restore his reputation for aggressiveness. For reasons unexplained, Meade acceded to the request. At 4:00 PM, elements of the II and V Corps assaulted the Confederate trenches at Laurel Hill, which required them to move through a grove of gnarled, splintered dead pine trees. The attacks were beaten off with severe losses. Grant was thus forced to postpone his 5 p.m. coordinated assault until Warren could get his troops reformed.
At around 6 p.m., the VI Corps began its attack with an unusual formation. Col. Emory Upton
Emory Upton (August 27, 1839 – March 15, 1881) was a United States Army General and military strategist, prominent for his role in leading infantry to attack entrenched positions successfully at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House during the ...
led a group of 12 hand-picked regiments, about 5,000 men in four battle lines, against an identified weak point on the west side of the Mule Shoe called Doles's Salient (named after Brig. Gen. George P. Doles
George Pierce Doles (May 14, 1830 – June 2, 1864) was a Georgia businessman and Confederate general during the American Civil War. His men played a key role on the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg in driving back the Union XI Corps.
Ea ...
's Georgian troops who were manning that sector of the line). The plan was for Upton's men to rush across the open field without pausing to fire and reload, reaching the earthworks before the Confederates could fire more than a couple of shots.[Grimsley, pp. 76–80; Welcher, p. 966; Kennedy, p. 285; Salmon, pp. 274–75; Eicher, p. 676; Trudeau, p. 162; Atkinson, p. 265.]
Once an initial breakthrough was made by the leading element, the following lines would widen the breach and spread out on each side. Gershom Mott's division was designated to support the breakthrough as well. Mott's division (4th Division, II Corps) was the weakest in the army. Once Joe Hooker's command, it had been transferred from the defunct III Corps two months earlier. The morale of the enlisted men suffered from this, and several of its regiments' enlistment terms were about to expire in a few weeks, making the men extremely gun-shy. They had been badly shot up and routed in the Wilderness, and as they headed towards the Confederate entrenchments, a burst of artillery fire caused the men to panic and flee from the field, never getting closer than a quarter of a mile to the enemy position.
Three days later, Mott's division was dissolved and Mott himself demoted to command of a brigade comprising most of the remaining troops from the division. Upton's men encountered stiff Confederate resistance, but drove all the way to the parapets, where after some brief, fierce hand-to-hand action, their superior numbers carried the day and soon the Confederate defenders were driven from their trenches.
Generals Lee and Ewell were quick to organize a vigorous counterattack with brigades from all sectors of the Mule Shoe, and no Union supporting units arrived. Mott had already been repulsed, unbeknownst to Upton, and units from Warren's V Corps were too spent from their earlier attacks on Laurel Hill to help. Upton's men were driven out of the Confederate works and he reluctantly ordered them to retreat. British military historian Charles Francis Atkinson wrote in 1908 that Upton's charge was "one of the classic infantry attacks of military history." Grant promoted Upton to brigadier general for his performance.
Also at 6 p.m., on the Union left flank, Burnside advanced along the Fredericksburg Road. Both he and Grant were unaware that when Lee had moved units to the Po, he had left only Cadmus Wilcox
Cadmus Marcellus Wilcox (May 20, 1824 – December 2, 1890) was a career United States Army officer who served in the Mexican–American War and also was a Confederate general during the American Civil War.
Early life and career
Wilcox was ...
's Confederate division to defend that avenue of approach and that there was a large gap between Wilcox and Ewell. (This lack of information was a tangible consequence of the decision to send all of Sheridan's cavalry away from the battlefield.) As Burnside began to get resistance from Wilcox, he timidly stopped and entrenched. That evening Grant decided that Burnside was too isolated from the rest of the line and ordered him to pull back behind the Ni and move to join his lines with Wright's. Grant wrote about this significant lost opportunity in his ''Personal Memoirs'':
May 11: Planning for the grand assault
Despite his reverses on May 10, Grant had reason for optimism. The one bright spot in the day had been the partial success of Emory Upton's innovative assault. He recognized the failure stemming from the lack of support and reasoned that using the same tactics with an entire corps might be successful. Grant was then visited by General Wright, the new commander of the VI Corps, who suggested that the May 10 assaults had failed due to poor support, particularly from Mott's division. Wright told General Meade, "General, I don't want Mott's troops on my left; they are not a support. I would rather have no troops there."
He assigned Hancock's II Corps to the assault on the Mule Shoe, while Burnside's IX Corps attacked the eastern end of the salient and Warren's V Corps and Wright's VI Corps applied pressure to Laurel Hill. On the morning of May 11, Grant sent a famous message to the Secretary of War
The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...
Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin McMasters Stanton (December 19, 1814December 24, 1869) was an American lawyer and politician who served as U.S. Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during most of the American Civil War. Stanton's management helped organize ...
: "The result to this time is much in our favor. Our losses have been heavy as well as those of the enemy. ... ''I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer''."
Although no major combat action occurred on May 11, small-scale skirmishing and artillery fire continued most of the day.
On the Confederate side, Lee received some intelligence reports that made him believe Grant was planning to withdraw toward Fredericksburg. If this came to pass, he wanted to follow up with an immediate attack. Concerned about the mobility of his artillery to support the potential attack, he ordered that the guns be withdrawn from Allegheny Johnson's division in the Mule Shoe to be ready for a movement to the right. He was completely unaware, of course, that this was exactly the place Grant intended to attack.
Hancock's men began assembling near the Brown farm that evening, about 1200 yards north of the Mule Shoe, in a torrential rainstorm. The men and junior officers were poorly prepared for the assault, lacking basic information about the nature of the ground to be covered, the obstacles to expect, or how the Confederate line was configured. Confederates could hear their preparations through the storm, but could not decide whether an attack was imminent or the Union Army was preparing to withdraw. Allegheny Johnson became suspicious and requested to Ewell that his artillery be returned. Ewell agreed, but somehow the order did not reach the artillery units until 3:30 a.m. on May 12, 30 minutes before Hancock's assault was planned to start.
May 12: The Bloody Angle
Hancock's assault was scheduled to commence at 4 a.m., but it was still pitch black and he delayed until 4:35, when the rain stopped and was replaced by a thick mist. The attack crashed through the Confederate works, virtually destroying Jones's Brigade, now commanded by Col. William Witcher. As Barlow's division swung around to the eastern tip of the Mule Shoe, it overran the brigade commanded by Brig. Gen. George "Maryland" Steuart, capturing both Steuart and his division commander, Allegheny Johnson. On Barlow's right, Brig. Gen. David B. Birney
David Bell Birney (May 29, 1825 – October 18, 1864) was a businessman, lawyer, and a Union general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Birney was born in Huntsville, Alabama, the son of an abolitionist from Kentucky, James G. Birney. The Bi ...
's division met stronger resistance from the brigades of Col. William Monaghan and Brig. Gen. James A. Walker
James Alexander Walker (August 27, 1832 – October 21, 1901) was a Virginia lawyer, politician, and Confederate general during the American Civil War, later serving as a United States Congressman for two terms. He earned the nickname "Ston ...
(the Stonewall Brigade
The Stonewall Brigade of the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, was a famous combat unit in United States military history. It was trained and first led by General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, a professor from Virginia Military In ...
).[Kennedy, p. 285; Jaynes, p. 94; Salmon, p. 276; Cullen, p. 32; Grimsley, pp. 84–85.]
The recent rain had ruined much of the Confederates' gunpowder, but they fought fiercely hand to hand. The Union troops continued to spread south along the western edge of the Mule Shoe. Despite the initial success at obliterating much of the Mule Shoe salient, there was a flaw in the Union plan—no one had considered how to capitalize on the breakthrough. The 15,000 infantrymen of Hancock's II Corps had crowded into a narrow front about a half mile wide and soon lost all unit cohesion, becoming little more than an armed mob.
Following the initial shock, the Confederate leadership at all levels began to react well to the Union onslaught. John B. Gordon sent Brig. Gen. Robert D. Johnston's brigade of North Carolinians racing toward the gap where Steuart's men had collapsed. Although Johnston was wounded, his brigade halted the breakthrough in that sector. Gordon then sent forward the brigade of Col. John S. Hoffman and three regiments from Col. Clement A. Evans
Brigadier-General Clement Anselm Evans (February 25, 1833 – July 2, 1911) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. Afterwards, he edited a 12-volume w ...
's brigade.[Jaynes, pp. 98–100; Welcher, p. 968; Salmon, p. 276; Cullen, p. 32; Eicher, p. 678; Grimsley, pp. 86–87.]
General Lee was at the scene to witness these men moving forward and, similar to his action at the Widow Tapp farm in the Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness was fought on May 5–7, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the first battle of Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Arm ...
, he attempted to move forward with the men, only to be stopped by Gordon and chants from the men, "Lee to the rear!" These brigades were able to secure most of the eastern leg of the Mule Shoe after about 30 minutes of fierce fighting. On the western leg, Maj. Gen. Robert E. Rodes
Robert Emmett (or Emmet) Rodes (March 29, 1829 – September 19, 1864) was a Confederate general in the American Civil War, and the first of Robert E. Lee's divisional commanders not trained at West Point. His division led Stonewall Jackso ...
coordinated the defense and the brigade of Brig. Gen. Stephen D. Ramseur
Stephen Dodson Ramseur (May 31, 1837 – October 20, 1864) was a Confederate States Army, Confederate General officer, general in the American Civil War, at one point the youngest in the army. He impressed Lee by his actions at Malvern Hill and ...
suffered heavy casualties as they fought their way to regain the entrenchments lost by the Stonewall Brigade.
Grant sent in reinforcements at about 6:30 a.m., ordering both Wright and Warren to move forward. The VI Corps division of Brig. Gen. Thomas H. Neill
Thomas Hewson Neill (1826–1885) was a native of Pennsylvania, became a general in the American Civil War, serving in the Army of the Potomac in some of its most important campaigns.
Birth and early years
Neill was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylva ...
headed for the western leg of the Mule Shoe, at the point where it turned to the south. This sector of the line, where the heaviest fighting of the day would occur, became known as the "Bloody Angle." As Union brigade after brigade slammed into the line, William Mahone brought two of his brigades—under Brig. Gens. Abner M. Perrin
Brigadier general, Brigadier-General Abner Monroe Perrin (February 2, 1827 – May 12, 1864) was an American lawyer who served as a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the Confederate States Army in the American Civil War until killed in act ...
and Nathaniel H. Harris—hurrying back from the extreme left flank to come to Ramseur's aid. Perrin was killed. By 8 a.m, heavy rain began to fall and both sides fought on the earthworks slippery with both water and blood. The South Carolinians of Brig. Gen. Samuel McGowan's brigade joined the defense at the critical point. At 9:30 a.m., the VI Corps division under Brig. Gen. David A. Russell joined the attack. A section of Union artillery was able to advance close to the Confederate lines and cause numerous casualties. But Confederate artillery also had a severe effect on the advance of Russell's men.
Warren's attack at Laurel Hill began on a small scale around 8:15 a.m. For some of his men, this was their fourth or fifth attack against the same objective and few fought with enthusiasm. After thirty minutes the attack petered out and Warren told Meade that he was not able to advance "at present." The irascible Meade ordered Warren to attack "at once at all hazards with your whole force, if necessary." Warren relayed the order to his division commanders: "Do it. Don't mind the consequences." The attack was yet another failure, adding to the high toll of casualties as the Union corps was held up by the fire of a single Confederate division.[Welcher, p. 970; Grimsley, pp. 87–88; Salmon, p. 277; Rhea, ''Spotsylvania Court House'', pp. 282–90.]
Not only was the V Corps unable to take its objective, it had also failed to draw Confederate troops from elsewhere in the line, as Grant had intended. Both Meade and Grant were upset with Warren's performance and Grant authorized Meade to relieve Warren, replacing him with Meade's chief of staff, Maj. Gen. Andrew A. Humphreys. Humphreys diplomatically coordinated the withdrawal of the V Corps units without relieving Warren, but Meade began to order Warren's subordinates to reinforce Wright, and no further attacks against Laurel Hill would be planned.
Ambrose Burnside was also part of the grand assault, advancing against the eastern leg of the Mule Shoe before dawn. The attack by his division under Brig. Gen. Robert B. Potter
Robert Brown Potter (July 16, 1829 – February 19, 1887) was a United States lawyer and a Union Army general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Potter was born in Schenectady, New York on July 16, 1829. He was the third son of Alonzo Pot ...
against the sector just below Steuart's Brigade materially aided Hancock's breakthrough. The North Carolina brigade of Brig. Gen. James H. Lane fought back, reinforced by a Georgia brigade under Brig. Gen. Edward L. Thomas
Edward Lloyd Thomas (March 23, 1825 – March 8, 1898) was a Confederate States Army, Confederate Brigadier General (CSA), brigadier general of infantry during the American Civil War from the state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. He was colonel ...
and the North Carolina brigade of Brig. Gen. Alfred M. Scales
Alfred Moore Scales (November 26, 1827 – February 9, 1892) was a North Carolina state legislator, Confederate States Army, Confederate General officer, general in the American Civil War, and the List of Governors of North Carolina, 45th G ...
. The two sides became stalemated. At 2 p.m., Grant and Lee coincidentally ordered simultaneous attacks. Grant considered this sector to be lightly defended and hoped for a new breakthrough while Lee wanted to take out an artillery position that the IX Corps was using to harass his line. The advance by Union Brig. Gen. Orlando B. Willcox
Orlando Bolivar Willcox (April 16, 1823 – May 11, 1907) was an American soldier who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Early life
Willcox was born in Detroit, Michigan. He entered the United States Military Ac ...
's division against a minor salient in the line was stopped as Lane's brigade moved forward and hit them in the flank.
Throughout the afternoon, Confederate engineers scrambled to create a new defensive line 500 yards further south at the base of the Mule Shoe, while fighting at the Bloody Angle continued day and night with neither side achieving an advantage, until around 12:00 AM on May 13, the fighting finally stopped. At 4 A.M., the exhausted Confederate infantrymen were notified that the new line was ready and they withdrew from the original earthworks unit by unit.[Rhea, ''Spotsylvania Court House'', pp. 293, 311–12; Kennedy, p. 285; Salmon, pp. 277–78; Cullen, p. 32; Eicher, p. 678; Welcher, p. 970]
Smithsonian Spotsylvania Stump
The combat they had endured for almost 24 hours was characterized by an intensity of firepower never previously seen in Civil War battles, as the entire landscape was flattened, all the foliage destroyed. An example of this can be found in the Smithsonian Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...
: a 22-inch stump of an oak tree at the Bloody Angle that was completely severed by rifle fire. There was a frenzy to the carnage on both sides. Fighting back and forth over the same corpse-strewn trenches for hours on end, using single shot muskets, the contending troops were periodically reduced to hand-to-hand combat reminiscent of battles fought during ancient times. Bodies piled up four and five high, and soldiers were forced to pause from time to time and throw corpses over the parapet since they formed an obstacle in the way of the fighting. Dead and wounded men were shot so many times that many of them simply fell apart into unrecognizable heaps of flesh.
Surviving participants attempted to describe in letters, diaries, and memoirs the hellish intensity of that day, many noting that it was beyond words. Or, as one put it: "Nothing can describe the confusion, the savage, blood-curdling yells, the murderous faces, the awful curses, and the grisly horror of the melee." Some men claimed to have fired as many as 400 rounds that day. May 12 was the most intensive day of fighting during the battle, with Union casualties of about 9,000, Confederate 8,000; the Confederate loss includes about 3,000 prisoners captured in the Mule Shoe.
May 13–16: Reorienting the lines
Despite the significant casualties of May 12, Grant was undeterred. He telegraphed to the Army's chief of staff, Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck
Henry Wager Halleck (January 16, 1815 – January 9, 1872) was a senior United States Army officer, scholar, and lawyer. A noted expert in military studies, he was known by a nickname that became derogatory: "Old Brains". He was an important par ...
, "The enemy are obstinate and seemed to have found the last ditch." He planned to reorient his lines and shift the center of potential action to the east of Spotsylvania, where he could renew the battle. He ordered the V and VI Corps to move behind the II Corps and take positions past the left flank of the IX Corps.[Rhea, ''To the North Anna River'', pp. 31–33, 65–94; Jaynes, p. 125; Cullen, pp. 33–35; Welcher, p. 971.]
On the night of May 13–14, the corps began a difficult march in heavy rain over treacherously muddy roads. Early on May 14, elements of the VI Corps occupied Myers Hill, which overlooked most of the Confederate line. Col. Emory Upton's brigade skirmished most of the day to retain possession of the high ground. Grant's command was too scattered and exhausted to undertake an assault against Spotsylvania Court House on May 14, despite Lee having left it practically undefended for most of the day. When he realized what Grant was up to, Lee shifted some units from Anderson's First Corps to that area. Grant notified Washington that, having endured five days of almost continuous rain, his army could not resume offensive operations until they had 24 hours of dry weather.
May 17–18: Final Union attacks
The weather finally cleared on May 17. Grant made an assumption that led him to his next attack plan: since Lee had observed Grant's buildup along the Fredericksburg Road, it was likely that he had countered the Union moves by shifting his forces away from the former Mule Shoe positions. He ordered the II Corps and the VI Corps to attack there at sunrise, May 18. They retraced their steps to the vicinity of the Landrum house the night of May 17. Hancock's II Corps would make the primary assault with support from Wright on their right and Burnside on their left.
Unfortunately for the Union plan, the former Confederate works were still occupied by Ewell's Second Corps and they had used the intervening time to improve the earthworks and the obstacles laid out in front of them. And, unlike May 12, they were not caught by surprise, nor had they sent their artillery away. As Hancock's men advanced, they were caught up in an abatis
An abatis, abattis, or abbattis is a field fortification consisting of an obstacle formed (in the modern era) of the branches of trees laid in a row, with the sharpened tops directed outwards, towards the enemy. The trees are usually interlaced ...
and subjected to artillery fire so devastating that infantry rifle fire was not necessary to repulse the attack. Wright and Burnside had no better luck.
May 19: Harris Farm
Grant reacted to this final repulse by deciding to abandon this general area as a battlefield. He ordered Hancock's II Corps to march to the railroad line between Fredericksburg and Richmond, and then turn south. With luck, Lee might take the bait and follow, seeking to overwhelm and destroy the isolated corps. In that case, Grant would chase Lee with his remaining corps and strike him before the Confederates could entrench again.
Lee was engaged in his own planning, however. Before Hancock began to move, Lee ordered Ewell to conduct a reconnaissance in force to locate the northern flank of the Union army. Ewell took the majority of his Second Corps divisions under Rodes and Gordon up the Brock Road, and swung widely to the north and east to the Harris farm. There they encountered several units of Union heavy artillery soldiers who had recently been converted to infantry duty.[Jaynes, pp. 125–30; Kennedy, pp. 285–86; Salmon, pp. 278–79; Grimsley, pp. 131–33; Welcher, pp. 973–74.]
Fighting commenced against these relatively green troops, who were soon reinforced by the 1st Maryland Regiment and then David Birney's infantry division. The fighting lasted until about 9 p.m. and Lee, concerned that Ewell was risking a general engagement while separated from the main army, recalled his men. A number of them lost their way in the dark and were captured. The Confederates had lost over 900 men on a pointless skirmish that could have been assigned to a small cavalry detachment.
Aftermath
Grant's intended advance of Hancock's corps was delayed by the Harris farm engagement, so the troops did not begin their movement south until the night of May 20–21. Lee did not fall into Grant's trap of attacking Hancock, but traveled on a parallel path to the North Anna River
The North Anna River is a principal tributary of the Pamunkey River, about long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 in central Virginia in the United States. ...
. The Overland Campaign continued as Grant attempted several more times to engage Lee, found himself stymied by strong defensive positions, and moved again around Lee's flank in the direction of Richmond. Major engagements occurred at the Battle of North Anna
The Battle of North Anna was fought May 23–26, 1864, as part of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. It consisted of a series of small actions near the North ...
and the Battle of Cold Harbor
The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought during the American Civil War near Mechanicsville, Virginia, from May 31 to June 12, 1864, with the most significant fighting occurring on June 3. It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S ...
, after which Grant crossed the James River
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...
to attack Petersburg. The armies then faced each other for nine months in the Siege of Petersburg
The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...
.
Casualties
With almost 32,000 total casualties, Spotsylvania Court House was the costliest battle of the Overland Campaign and one of the top five battles of the Civil War. As at the Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness was fought on May 5–7, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the first battle of Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Arm ...
, Lee's tactics had inflicted severe casualties on Grant's army. This time, the toll was over 18,000 men, of whom close to 3,000 were killed.[ In two weeks of fighting since the start of the Wilderness, Grant had lost about 36,000 men, and another 20,000 went home when their enlistments ended. Grant on May 19 had only 56,124 effectives. Lee did not come out of these battles unscathed. At Spotsylvania, he lost another 10–13,000 men, about 23% of his army (versus 18% of Grant's). While the Union had many men available to reinforce Grant, the Confederates were forced to pull men away from other fronts to reinforce Lee. Making matters worse, the army was taking heavy losses among its veteran units and its best officers.
Estimates vary as to the casualties at Spotsylvania Court House. The following table summarizes a variety of sources:
Five general officers were killed or mortally wounded during the battle: Union Maj. Gen. ]John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick (September 13, 1813 – May 9, 1864) was a military officer and Union Army general during the American Civil War.
He was wounded three times at the Battle of Antietam while leading his division in an unsuccessful assault against C ...
and Brig. Gens. James C. Rice
James Clay Rice (December 27, 1828 – May 10, 1864) was a lawyer from Massachusetts, who became a brigadier general of volunteers in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Early life
Rice was born in Worthington, Massachusetts on December ...
and Thomas G. Stevenson
Thomas Greely Stevenson (February 3, 1836 – May 10, 1864) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action during the battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse.
Biography
Stevenson was born in Boston, Massachusett ...
; and Confederate Brig. Gen. Junius Daniel
Junius Daniel (June 27, 1828 – May 13, 1864) was a planter and career military officer, serving in the United States Army, then in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War, as a brigadier general. His troops were instrumenta ...
and Abner M. Perrin
Brigadier general, Brigadier-General Abner Monroe Perrin (February 2, 1827 – May 12, 1864) was an American lawyer who served as a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the Confederate States Army in the American Civil War until killed in act ...
. Sedgwick's death is notable in that he was the highest-ranking officer by seniority to die in the war. He also famously said the ironic words "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance" shortly before his death. Among the wounded and captured were Confederate Maj. Gen. Edward Johnson and Brig. Gens. John R. Cooke, Harry T. Hays
Harry Thompson Hays (April 14, 1820 – August 21, 1876) was an American Army officer serving in the Mexican–American War and a general who served in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.
Known as the "Louisiana Tigers," his brigad ...
, Samuel McGowan, Stephen D. Ramseur
Stephen Dodson Ramseur (May 31, 1837 – October 20, 1864) was a Confederate States Army, Confederate General officer, general in the American Civil War, at one point the youngest in the army. He impressed Lee by his actions at Malvern Hill and ...
, Cullen A. Battle
Cullen Andrews Battle (June 1, 1829 – April 8, 1905) was an American attorney, farmer, and politician. He was a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He fought Congressional Reconstruction after the war in Al ...
, James A. Walker
James Alexander Walker (August 27, 1832 – October 21, 1901) was a Virginia lawyer, politician, and Confederate general during the American Civil War, later serving as a United States Congressman for two terms. He earned the nickname "Ston ...
, Robert D. Johnston, George H. Steuart and Henry H. Walker.
Medal of Honor
Forty-three men received the Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, including Frederick Alber
Frederick Alber (June 28, 1838 – September 12, 1913) was a United States soldier who fought for the Union Army as a member of Company A, 17th Michigan Infantry during the American Civil War. He was awarded his nation's highest military honor, t ...
, George W. Harris
George W. Harris (March 6, 1835 – January 30, 1921) was a United States soldier who fought with the Union Army during the American Civil War as a private with Company B of the 148th Pennsylvania Infantry, a regiment which "was present in every ba ...
, John C. Robinson
John Cleveland Robinson (April 10, 1817 – February 18, 1897) had a long and distinguished career in the United States Army, fighting in numerous wars and culminating his career as a Union Army brigadier general of volunteers and brevet major ...
, Archibald Freeman
Archibald C. Freeman (August 13, 1847 – January 26, 1918) was an American soldier who received the Medal of Honor for valor during the American Civil War.
Biography
Freeman joined the Army from Newburgh, New York, in July 1862, claiming to be ...
, and Charles H. Tracy
Charles H. Tracy (October 3, 1833 - September 13, 1911) was an infantry soldier who received the Medal of Honor while serving in the Union Army during the American Civil War for two acts of bravery.
Early life
Tracy was born the son of Albert Trac ...
.
Battlefield preservation
Portions of the Spotsylvania Court House battlefield are now preserved as part of Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park is a unit of the National Park Service in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and elsewhere in Spotsylvania County, commemorating four major battles in the American Civil War: Fredericksburg, Chance ...
. In addition, the Civil War Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...
(a division of the American Battlefield Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...
) and its partners have acquired and preserved of the battlefield.
American Battlefield Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...
"Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 29, 2018.
See also
* Troop engagements of the American Civil War, 1864
The following engagements took place in the year 1864 during the American Civil War. The Union (American Civil War), Union armies, under the command of U.S. Grant, launched multiple offenses in all theaters of the war, in an attempt to prevent Conf ...
* List of costliest American Civil War land battles
This is a list of the costliest land battles of the American Civil War, measured by casualties (killed, wounded, captured, and missing) on both sides.
Highest casualty battles
See also
* List of American Civil War battles
* Timeline of events l ...
* Armies in the American Civil War
Notes
References
* Bonekemper, Edward H., III. ''A Victor, Not a Butcher: Ulysses S. Grant's Overlooked Military Genius''. Washington, DC: Regnery, 2004. .
* Cullen, Joseph P. "Battle of Spotsylvania." In ''Battle Chronicles of the Civil War: 1864'', edited by James M. McPherson
James Munro McPherson (born October 11, 1936) is an American Civil War historian, and is the George Henry Davis '86 Professor Emeritus of United States History at Princeton University. He received the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for '' Battle Cry of ...
. Connecticut: Grey Castle Press, 1989. . First published in 1989 by McMillan.
* Eicher, David J. ''The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. .
* Esposito, Vincent J. ''West Point Atlas of American Wars''. New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1959. . The collection of maps (without explanatory text) is available online at th
West Point website
* Foote, Shelby. '' The Civil War: A Narrative''. vol. 3, Red River to Appomattox. New York: Random House, 1974. .
* Fox, William F
''Regimental Losses in the American Civil War''
Dayton, OH: Morningside Press, 1993. . First published 1898 in Washington, DC.
* Grimsley, Mark. ''And Keep Moving On: The Virginia Campaign, May–June 1864''. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2002. .
* Hattaway, Herman, and Archer Jones. ''How the North Won: A Military History of the Civil War''. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1983. .
* Humphreys, Andrew A.br>''The Virginia Campaign of '64 and '65: The Army of The Potomac and the Army of The James''
New York: C. Scribner's Sons, 1883. .
* Jaynes, Gregory, and the Editors of Time-Life Books. ''The Killing Ground: Wilderness to Cold Harbor''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1986. .
* Kennedy, Frances H., ed
2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998. .
* McPherson, James M. '' Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era''. Oxford History of the United States. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. .
* Rhea, Gordon C. ''The Battles for Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern, May 7–12, 1864''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1997. .
* Rhea, Gordon C. ''To the North Anna River: Grant and Lee, May 13–25, 1864''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2000. .
* Salmon, John S. ''The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. .
* Simpson, Brooks D. ''Ulysses S. Grant: Triumph over Adversity, 1822–1865''. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2000. .
* Smith, Derek. ''The Gallant Dead: Union & Confederate Generals Killed in the Civil War''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2005. .
* Trudeau, Noah Andre. ''Bloody Roads South: The Wilderness to Cold Harbor, May–June 1864''. Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1989. .
* Welcher, Frank J. ''The Union Army, 1861–1865 Organization and Operations''. Vol. 1, ''The Eastern Theater''. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1989. .
* Young, Alfred C., III. ''Lee's Army during the Overland Campaign: A Numerical Study''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2013. .
National Park Service battle description
Memoirs and primary sources
* Atkinson, Charles Francis
''Grant's Campaigns of 1864 and 1865: The Wilderness and Cold Harbor (May 3 – June 3, 1864)''
The Pall Mall military series. London: H. Rees, 1908. .
* Badeau, Adam
''Military History of Ulysses S. Grant''
(Vol. III). New York: D. Appleton & Co., 1881.
* Grant, Ulysses S.br>''Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant''
2 vols. Charles L. Webster & Company, 1885–86. .
* Longstreet, James. ''From Manassas to Appomattox: Memoirs of the Civil War in America''. New York: Da Capo Press, 1992. . First published in 1896 by J. B. Lippincott and Co.
* Porter, Horace
''Campaigning with Grant''
New York: Century Co., 1897. .
* U.S. War Department
''The War of the Rebellion''
''a Compilation of the Official Records
The ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies in the War of the Rebellion'', commonly known as the ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies'' or Official Records (OR or ORs), is the most extensive collection of Americ ...
of the Union and Confederate Armies''. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880–1901.
Further reading
* Alexander, Edward P. ''Fighting for the Confederacy: The Personal Recollections of General Edward Porter Alexander''. Edited by Gary W. Gallagher
Gary William Gallagher is an American historian specializing in the history of the American Civil War. Gallagher is currently the John L. Nau III Professor in the History of the American Civil War at the University of Virginia. He produced a ...
. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1989. .
* Bearss, Edwin C. ''Fields of Honor: Pivotal Battles of the Civil War''. Washington, DC: National Geographic Society, 2006. .
* Carmichael, Peter S., ed. ''Audacity Personified: The Generalship of Robert E. Lee''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2004. .
* Catton, Bruce. ''A Stillness at Appomattox''. Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company, 1953. .
* Frassanito, William A. ''Grant and Lee: The Virginia Campaigns 1864–1865''. New York: Scribner, 1983. .
* Gallagher, Gary W., ed. ''The Wilderness Campaign''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1997. .
* Hogan, David W. Jr
''The Overland Campaign''
. Washington, DC: United States Army Center of Military History, 2014. .
* King, Curtis S., William G. Robertson, and Steven E. Clay
''Staff Ride Handbook for the Overland Campaign, Virginia, 4 May to 15 June 1864: A Study on Operational-Level Command''
.
PDF document
). Fort Leavenworth, Kan.: Combat Studies Institute Press, 2006. .
* Lyman, Theodore. ''With Grant and Meade: From the Wilderness to Appomattox''. Edited by George R. Agassiz. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1994. .
* Mackowski, Chris, and Kristopher D. White. ''A Season of Slaughter: The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, May 8–21, 1864''. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2013. .
* Matter, William D. ''If It Takes All Summer: The Battle of Spotsylvania''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1988. .
* Miller, Francis Trevelyan, Robert S. Lanier, and James Verner Scaife, eds
''The Photographic History of the Civil War''
10 vols. New York: Review of Reviews Co., 1911. .
* Power, J. Tracy. ''Lee's Miserables: Life in the Army of Northern Virginia from the Wilderness to Appomattox''. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1998. .
* Rhea, Gordon C. ''The Battle of the Wilderness May 5–6, 1864''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1994. .
* Rhea, Gordon C. ''In the Footsteps of Grant and Lee: The Wilderness Through Cold Harbor''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2007. .
* Smith, Jean Edward. ''Grant''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. .
* Wert, Jeffry D. ''The Sword of Lincoln: The Army of the Potomac''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005. .
External links
Battle of Spotsylvania Court House
histories, photos, and preservation news (Civil War Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...
)
Animated map of the Overland Campaign
(Civil War Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization ( 501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. Th ...
)
National Park Service battlefield site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spotsylvania
Overland Campaign
Battles of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War
Inconclusive battles of the American Civil War
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
1864 in Virginia
Battles of the American Civil War in Virginia
May 1864 events
Battles commanded by Ulysses S. Grant