58: Chapter LVIII.
<< 57: Chapter LVII. || 59: Chapter LIX. >>
We had our troops on the Weldon Railroad contending against a
large force that regarded this road of so much importance that
they could afford to expend many lives in retaking it; Sherman
just getting through to Atlanta with great losses of men from
casualties, discharges and detachments left along as guards to
occupy and hold the road in rear of him; Washington threatened
but a short time before, and now Early being strengthened in the
valley so as, probably, to renew that attempt. It kept me pretty
active in looking after all these points.
On the 10th of August Sheridan had advanced on Early up the
Shenandoah Valley, Early falling back to Strasburg. On the 12th
I learned that Lee had sent twenty pieces of artillery, two
divisions of infantry and a considerable cavalry force to
strengthen Early. It was important that Sheridan should be
informed of this, so I sent the information to Washington by
telegraph, and directed a courier to be sent from there to get
the message to Sheridan at all hazards, giving him the
information. The messenger, an officer of the army, pushed
through with great energy and reached Sheridan just in time. The
officer went through by way of Snicker's Gap, escorted by some
cavalry. He found Sheridan just making his preparations to
attack Early in his chosen position. Now, however, he was
thrown back on the defensive.
On the 15th of September I started to visit General Sheridan in
the Shenandoah Valley. My purpose was to have him attack Early,
or drive him out of the valley and destroy that source of
supplies for Lee's army. I knew it was impossible for me to get
orders through Washington to Sheridan to make a move, because
they would be stopped there and such orders as Halleck's caution
(and that of the Secretary of War) would suggest would be given
instead, and would, no doubt, be contradictory to mine. I
therefore, without stopping at Washington, went directly through
to Charlestown, some ten miles above Harper's Ferry, and waited
there to see General Sheridan, having sent a courier in advance
to inform him where to meet me.
When Sheridan arrived I asked him if he had a map showing the
positions of his army and that of the enemy. He at once drew
one out of his side pocket, showing all roads and streams, and
the camps of the two armies. He said that if he had permission
he would move so and so (pointing out how) against the
Confederates, and that he could "whip them." Before starting I
had drawn up a plan of campaign for Sheridan, which I had
brought with me; but, seeing that he was so clear and so
positive in his views and so confident of success, I said
nothing about this and did not take it out of my pocket.
Sheridan's wagon trains were kept at Harper's Ferry, where all
of his stores were. By keeping the teams at that place, their
forage did not have to be hauled to them. As supplies of
ammunition, provisions and rations for the men were wanted,
trains would be made up to deliver the stores to the
commissaries and quartermasters encamped at Winchester. Knowing
that he, in making preparations to move at a given day, would
have to bring up wagons trains from Harper's Ferry, I asked him
if he could be ready to get off by the following Tuesday. This
was on Friday. "O Yes," he said, he "could be off before
daylight on Monday." I told him then to make the attack at that
time and according to his own plan; and I immediately started to
return to the army about Richmond. After visiting Baltimore and
Burlington, New Jersey, I arrived at City Point on the 19th.
On the way out to Harper's Ferry I had met Mr. Robert Garrett,
President of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. He seemed very
anxious to know when workmen might be put upon the road again so
as to make repairs and put it in shape for running. It was a
large piece of property to have standing idle. I told him I
could not answer then positively but would try and inform him
before a great while. On my return Mr. Garrett met me again with
the same and I told him I thought that by the Wednesday he might
send his workmen out on his road. I gave him no further
information however, and he had no suspicion of how I expected
to have the road cleared for his workmen.
Sheridan moved at the time he had fixed upon. He met Early at the
crossing of Opequon Creek, a most decisive victory—one which
the country. Early had invited this attack himself by his bad
generalship and made the victory easy. He had sent G. T.
Anderson's division east of the Blue Ridge before I went to Harper's
Ferry; and about the time I arrived there he started other
divisions (leaving but two in their camps) to march to
Martinsburg for the purpose destroying the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad at that point. Early here learned that I had been with
Sheridan and, supposing there was some movement on foot, started
back as soon as he got the information. But his forces were
separated and, as I have said, he was very badly defeated. He
fell back to Fisher's Hill, Sheridan following.
The valley is narrow at that point, and Early made another stand
there, behind works which extended across. But Sheridan turned
both his flanks and again sent him speeding up the valley,
following in hot pursuit. The pursuit was continued up the
valley to Mount Jackson and New Market. Sheridan captured about
eleven hundred prisoners and sixteen guns. The houses which he
passed all along the route were found to be filled with Early's
wounded, and the country swarmed with his deserters. Finally,
on the 25th, Early turned from the valley eastward, leaving
Sheridan at Harrisonburg in undisputed possession.
Now one of the main objects of the expedition began to be
accomplished. Sheridan went to work with his command, gathering
in the crops, cattle, and everything in the upper part of the
valley required by our troops; and especially taking what might
be of use to the enemy. What he could not take away he
destroyed, so that the enemy would not be invited to come back
there. I congratulated Sheridan upon his recent great victory
and had a salute of a hundred guns fired in honor of it, the
guns being aimed at the enemy around Petersburg. I also
notified the other commanders throughout the country, who also
fired salutes in honor of his victory.
I had reason to believe that the administration was a little
afraid to have a decisive battle at that time, for fear it might
go against us and have a bad effect on the November elections.
The convention which had met and made its nomination of the
Democratic candidate for the presidency had declared the war a
failure. Treason was talked as boldly in Chicago at that
convention as ever been in Charleston. It was a question
whether the government would then have had the power to make
arrests and punish those who talked treason. But this decisive
victory was the most effective campaign argument made in the
canvass.
Sheridan, in his pursuit, got beyond where they could hear from
him in Washington, and the President became very much frightened
about him. He was afraid that the hot pursuit had been a little
like that of General Cass was said to have been, in one of our
Indian wars, when he was an officer of army. Cass was pursuing
the Indians so closely that the first thing he knew he found
himself in front, and the Indians pursuing him. The President
was afraid that Sheridan had got on the other side of Early and
that Early was in behind him. He was afraid that Sheridan was
getting so far away that reinforcements would be sent out from
Richmond to enable Early to beat him. I replied to the
President that I had taken steps to prevent Lee from sending
reinforcements to Early, by attacking the former where he was.
On the 28th of September, to retain Lee in his position, I sent
Ord with the 18th corps and Birney with the 10th corps to make
an advance on Richmond, to threaten it. Ord moved with the left
wing up to Chaffin's Bluff; Birney with the 10th corps took a
road farther north; while Kautz with the cavalry took the Darby
road, still farther to the north. They got across the river by
the next morning, and made an effort to surprise the enemy. In
that, however, they were unsuccessful.
The enemy's lines were very strong and very intricate.
Stannard's division of the 18th corps with General Burnham's
brigade leading, tried an assault against Fort Harrison and
captured it with sixteen guns and a good many prisoners. Burnham
was killed in the assault. Colonel Stevens who succeeded him was
badly wounded; and his successor also fell in the same way. Some
works to the right and left were also carried with the guns in
them—six in number—and a few more prisoners. Birney's troops
to the right captured the enemy's intrenched picket-lines, but
were unsuccessful in their efforts upon the main line.
Our troops fortified their new position, bringing Fort Harrison
into the new line and extending it to the river. This brought
us pretty close to the enemy on the north side of the James, and
the two opposing lines maintained their relative positions to the
close of the siege.
In the afternoon a further attempt was made to advance, but it
failed. Ord fell badly wounded, and had to be relieved; the
command devolved upon General Heckman, and later General Weitzel
was assigned to the command of the 18th corps. During the night
Lee reinforced his troops about Fort Gilmer, which was at the
right of Fort Harrison, by eight additional brigades from
Petersburg, and attempted to retake the works which we had
captured by concentrating ten brigades against them. All their
efforts failed, their attacks being all repulsed with very heavy
loss. In one of these assaults upon us General Stannard, a
gallant officer who was defending Fort Harrison, lost an arm.
Our casualties during these operations amounted to 394 killed,
I,554 wounded and 324 missing.
Whilst this was going on General Meade was instructed to keep up
an appearance of moving troops to our extreme left. Parke and
Warren were kept with two divisions, each under arms, ready to
move leaving their enclosed batteries manned, with a scattering
line on the other intrenchments. The object of this was to
prevent reinforcements from going to the north side of the
river. Meade was instructed to watch the enemy closely and, if
Lee weakened his lines, to make an attack.
On the 30th these troops moved out, under Warren, and captured
an advanced intrenched camp at Peeble's farm, driving the enemy
back to the main line. Our troops followed and made an attack
in the hope of carrying the enemy's main line; but in this they
were unsuccessful and lost a large number of men, mostly
captured. The number of killed and wounded was not large. The
next day our troops advanced again and established themselves,
intrenching a new line about a mile in front of the enemy. This
advanced Warren's position on the Weldon Railroad very
considerably.
Sheridan having driven the enemy out of the valley, and taken
the productions of the valley so that instead of going there for
supplies the enemy would have to bring his provisions with him if
he again entered it, recommended a reduction of his own force,
the surplus to be sent where it could be of more use. I
approved of his suggestion, and ordered him to send Wright's
corps back to the James River. I further directed him to repair
the railroad up the Shenandoah Valley towards the advanced
position which we would hold with a small force. The troops
were to be sent to Washington by the way of Culpeper, in order
to watch the east side of the Blue Ridge, and prevent the enemy
from getting into the rear of Sheridan while he was still doing
his work of destruction.
The valley was so very important, however, to the Confederate
army that, contrary to our expectations, they determined to make
one more strike, and save it if possible before the supplies
should be all destroyed. Reinforcements were sent therefore to
Early, and this before any of our troops had been withdrawn.
Early prepared to strike Sheridan at Harrisonburg; but the
latter had not remained there.
On the 6th of October Sheridan commenced retiring down the
valley, taking or destroying all the food and forage and driving
the cattle before him, Early following. At Fisher's Hill
Sheridan turned his cavalry back on that of Early, which, under
the lead of Rosser, was pursuing closely, and routed it most
completely, capturing eleven guns and a large number of
prisoners. Sheridan lost only about sixty men. His cavalry
pursued the enemy back some twenty-five miles. On the 10th of
October the march down the valley was again resumed, Early again
following.
I now ordered Sheridan to halt, and to improve the opportunity
if afforded by the enemy's having been sufficiently weakened, to
move back again and cut the James River Canal and Virginia
Central Railroad. But this order had to go through Washington
where it was intercepted; and when Sheridan received what
purported to be a statement of what I wanted him to do it was
something entirely different. Halleck informed Sheridan that it
was my wish for him to hold a forward position as a base from
which to act against Charlottesville and Gordonsville; that he
should fortify this position and provision it.
Sheridan objected to this most decidedly; and I was impelled to
telegraph him, on the 14th, as follows:
City Point, VA.,
October 14, 1864.—12.30 P.M.
Major-General Sheridan,
Cedar Creek, Va.
What I want is for you to threaten the Virginia Central Railroad
and canal in the manner your judgment tells you is best, holding
yourself ready to advance, if the enemy draw off their forces.
If you make the enemy hold a force equal to your own for the
protection of those thoroughfares, it will accomplish nearly as
much as their destruction. If you cannot do this, then the next
best thing to do is to send here all the force you can. I deem a
good cavalry force necessary for your offensive, as well as
defensive operations. You need not therefore send here more
than one division of cavalry.
U. S. Grant,
Lieutenant-General.
Sheridan having been summoned to Washington City, started on the
15th leaving Wright in command. His army was then at Cedar
Creek, some twenty miles south of Winchester. The next morning
while at Front Royal, Sheridan received a dispatch from Wright,
saying that a dispatch from Longstreet to Early had been
intercepted. It directed the latter to be ready to move and to
crush Sheridan as soon as he, Longstreet, arrived. On the
receipt of this news Sheridan ordered the cavalry up the valley
to join Wright.
On the 18th of October Early was ready to move, and during the
night succeeded in getting his troops in the rear of our left
flank, which fled precipitately and in great confusion down the
valley, losing eighteen pieces of artillery and a thousand or
more prisoners. The right under General Getty maintained a firm
and steady front, falling back to Middletown where it took a
position and made a stand. The cavalry went to the rear, seized
the roads leading to Winchester and held them for the use of our
troops in falling back, General Wright having ordered a retreat
back to that place.
Sheridan having left Washington on the 18th, reached Winchester
that night. The following morning he started to join his
command. He had scarcely got out of town, when he met his men
returning in panic from the front and also heard heavy firing to
the south. He immediately ordered the cavalry at Winchester to
be deployed across the valley to stop the stragglers. Leaving
members of his staff to take care of Winchester and the public
property there, he set out with a small escort directly for the
scene of battle. As he met the fugitives he ordered them to
turn back, reminding them that they were going the wrong way.
His presence soon restored confidence. Finding themselves worse
frightened than hurt the men did halt and turn back. Many of
those who had run ten miles got back in time to redeem their
reputation as gallant soldiers before night.
When Sheridan got to the front he found Getty and Custer still
holding their ground firmly between the Confederates and our
retreating troops. Everything in the rear was now ordered up.
Sheridan at once proceeded to intrench his position; and he
awaited an assault from the enemy. This was made with vigor,
and was directed principally against Emory's corps, which had
sustained the principal loss in the first attack. By one
o'clock the attack was repulsed. Early was so badly damaged
that he seemed disinclined to make another attack, but went to
work to intrench himself with a view to holding the position he
had already gained. He thought, no doubt, that Sheridan would
be glad enough to leave him unmolested; but in this he was
mistaken.
About the middle of the afternoon Sheridan advanced. He sent
his cavalry by both flanks, and they penetrated to the enemy's
rear. The contest was close for a time, but at length the left
of the enemy broke, and disintegration along the whole line soon
followed. Early tried to rally his men, but they were followed
so closely that they had to give way very quickly every time
they attempted to make a stand. Our cavalry, having pushed on
and got in the rear of the Confederates, captured twenty-four
pieces of artillery, besides retaking what had been lost in the
morning. This victory pretty much closed the campaigning in the
Valley of Virginia. All the Confederate troops were sent back to
Richmond with the exception of one division of infantry and a
little cavalry. Wright's corps was ordered back to the Army of
the Potomac, and two other divisions were withdrawn from the
valley. Early had lost more men in killed, wounded and captured
in the valley than Sheridan had commanded from first to last.
On more than one occasion in these engagements General R. B.
Hayes, who succeeded me as President of the United States, bore
a very honorable part. His conduct on the field was marked by
conspicuous gallantry as well as the display of qualities of a
higher order than that of mere personal daring. This might well
have been expected of one who could write at the time he is said
to have done so: "Any officer fit for duty who at this crisis
would abandon his post to electioneer for a seat in Congress,
ought to be scalped." Having entered the army as a Major of
Volunteers at the beginning of the war, General Hayes attained
by meritorious service the rank of Brevet Major-General before
its close.
On the north side of the James River the enemy attacked Kautz's
cavalry on the 7th of October, and drove it back with heavy loss
in killed, wounded and prisoners, and the loss of all the
artillery. This was followed up by an attack on our intrenched
infantry line, but was repulsed with severe slaughter. On the
13th a reconnaissance was sent out by General Butler, with a
view to drive the enemy from some new works he was constructing,
which resulted in heavy loss to us.
On the 24th I ordered General Meade to attempt to get possession
of the South Side Railroad, and for that purpose to advance on
the 27th. The attempt proved a failure, however, the most
advanced of our troops not getting nearer than within six miles
of the point aimed for. Seeing the impossibility of its
accomplishment I ordered the troops to withdraw, and they were
all back in their former positions the next day.
Butler, by my directions, also made a demonstration on the north
side of the James River in order to support this move, by
detaining there the Confederate troops who were on that side. He
succeeded in this, but failed of further results by not marching
past the enemy's left before turning in on the Darby road and by
reason of simply coming up against their lines in place.
This closed active operations around Richmond for the winter. Of
course there was frequent skirmishing between pickets, but no
serious battle was fought near either Petersburg or Richmond.
It would prolong this work to give a detailed account of all
that took place from day to day around Petersburg and at other
parts of my command, and it would not interest the general
reader if given. All these details can be found by the military
student in a series of books published by the Scribners, Badeau's
history of my campaigns, and also in the publications of the War
Department, including both the National and Confederate reports.
In the latter part of November General Hancock was relieved from
the command of the 2d corps by the Secretary of War and ordered
to Washington, to organize and command a corps of veteran troops
to be designated the 1st corps. It was expected that this would
give him a large command to co-operate with in the spring. It
was my expectation, at the time, that in the final operations
Hancock should move either up the valley, or else east of the
Blue Ridge to Lynchburg; the idea being to make the spring
campaign the close of the war. I expected, with Sherman coming
up from the South, Meade south of Petersburg and around
Richmond, and Thomas's command in Tennessee with depots of
supplies established in the eastern part of that State, to move
from the direction of Washington or the valley towards
Lynchburg. We would then have Lee so surrounded that his
supplies would be cut off entirely, making it impossible for him
to support his army.
General Humphreys, chief-of-staff of the Army of the Potomac,
was assigned to the command of the 2d corps, to succeed Hancock.
<< 57: Chapter LVII. || 59: Chapter LIX. >>
