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On June 3, 1864, General Robert E. Lee won his last victory of Civil War at Battle of Cold Harbor. From the article:
"Battle of Cold Harbor Facts & Summary
On May 31st, 1864, Maj. Gen. Phil Sheridan’s cavalry seized the vital crossroads of Old Cold Harbor. The following morning, Sheridan was able to repulse an attempted repossession by Confederate infantry. Confederate reinforcements soon arrived and clashed with the Union Sixth and Eighteenth Corps when they reached Cold Harbor that evening. By June 2nd, the armies had formed a seven-mile front that extended from Bethesda Church to the Chickahominy River. Lieut. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant was poised for a major assault on General Robert E. Lee’s right flank to cut off the Confederates off from Richmond, but when Maj. Gen. Winfield Hancock's Second Corps arrived after a midnight march too fatigued to support the Union left flank, the operation was postponed until the following day. This fatal delay gave Lee's troops time to build an impressive line of trenches. At dawn June 3rd, the Union Second, Sixth and Eighteenth Corps, followed later by the Fifth and Ninth Corps, assaulted along the Bethesda Church-Cold Harbor line and were slaughtered at all points. Grant pulled out of Cold Harbor after nine days of trench warfare and undertook a new campaign to flank Lee's army across the James River at Petersburg. Grant later expressed remorse for the egregious Union casualties at Cold Harbor, stating, "I have always regretted that the last assault at Cold Harbor was ever made... no advantage whatever was gained to compensate for the heavy loss we sustained."
"Battle of Cold Harbor Facts & Summary
On May 31st, 1864, Maj. Gen. Phil Sheridan’s cavalry seized the vital crossroads of Old Cold Harbor. The following morning, Sheridan was able to repulse an attempted repossession by Confederate infantry. Confederate reinforcements soon arrived and clashed with the Union Sixth and Eighteenth Corps when they reached Cold Harbor that evening. By June 2nd, the armies had formed a seven-mile front that extended from Bethesda Church to the Chickahominy River. Lieut. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant was poised for a major assault on General Robert E. Lee’s right flank to cut off the Confederates off from Richmond, but when Maj. Gen. Winfield Hancock's Second Corps arrived after a midnight march too fatigued to support the Union left flank, the operation was postponed until the following day. This fatal delay gave Lee's troops time to build an impressive line of trenches. At dawn June 3rd, the Union Second, Sixth and Eighteenth Corps, followed later by the Fifth and Ninth Corps, assaulted along the Bethesda Church-Cold Harbor line and were slaughtered at all points. Grant pulled out of Cold Harbor after nine days of trench warfare and undertook a new campaign to flank Lee's army across the James River at Petersburg. Grant later expressed remorse for the egregious Union casualties at Cold Harbor, stating, "I have always regretted that the last assault at Cold Harbor was ever made... no advantage whatever was gained to compensate for the heavy loss we sustained."
Battle of Cold Harbor Facts & Summary
Posted from battlefields.org
Civil War
Military History
American History
Tactics
Combat
Posted >1 y ago
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This is one of the many battlefields I have actually visited. My husband is a historian by training and hobby and we walk the battlefields whenever we can.
SMSgt Lawrence McCarter LT Brad McInnis PO3 Bob McCord CW3 Dick McManus SGT John " Mac " McConnell CWO3 Dennis M. MSgt Stephen Council LTC (Join to see) LTC Stephan PorterLTC Stephen C. LTC Greg Henning SGT Gregory Lawritson Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D. SGT Jim Arnold Maj Robert Thornton Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC Francisco Rosario LTC (Join to see) SPC Douglas Bolton
SMSgt Lawrence McCarter LT Brad McInnis PO3 Bob McCord CW3 Dick McManus SGT John " Mac " McConnell CWO3 Dennis M. MSgt Stephen Council LTC (Join to see) LTC Stephan PorterLTC Stephen C. LTC Greg Henning SGT Gregory Lawritson Maj William W. 'Bill' Price Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D. SGT Jim Arnold Maj Robert Thornton Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC Francisco Rosario LTC (Join to see) SPC Douglas Bolton
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Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen
I'm the reverse of you. I dated a history major in college and we walked every battlefield in the state of Virginia, not just Civil War ones either. Actually it was a great learning experience for me plus we were young and in love. :-)
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Cpl Mark Gray
I started going to battlefields in 1957. their were still 2 or 3 Civil war Veterans stilll left. Gettysburg was the first one I went to.,(close, to home). Later on, after I was Married, we started going there regularly. After 5 years of that, and it got to be about twice a year , I began to know where everything was. Thats when we started to make longer trips, to Antietam, Fredricksburg, Richmond. and farther South. We took the Natchez Trace down to Mississippi. Simply beautiful country, stopped at Vicksburg, Shiloh almost next door and smaller battle fields near by, where Nathan Bedford Forrest had been.
And as years past we wemt to Chancelersville, the wilderness and cold harbor. At Cold Harbor, one Union commander said he would Not make another assault Not even if Jesus Christ himself came down and ordered it. One of those outfits were from my Area in New York, the 8th NewYork HA (Heavy Artillery), their commander Colonel Perter Porter was killed in the first assault and many of those commanders were. One confederate Soldier said about the slaughter , "all that was necessary , was to aim and shoot."
We even visited a cemetery in Hagerstown Maryland , close to Antietam. Their was an empty area about the size of a Football field, it was chained off. There was a sign on the gate, It read, "4000 Confederate Dead". There were 3 huge Monuments from the 3 neighboring states dedicated to those 4000. It is a sorry state of affairs when 4000 fam ilies knew their Husbands, sons, brothers went to war and after september 1862 had no idea what had happened to them and Never would find out.
And as years past we wemt to Chancelersville, the wilderness and cold harbor. At Cold Harbor, one Union commander said he would Not make another assault Not even if Jesus Christ himself came down and ordered it. One of those outfits were from my Area in New York, the 8th NewYork HA (Heavy Artillery), their commander Colonel Perter Porter was killed in the first assault and many of those commanders were. One confederate Soldier said about the slaughter , "all that was necessary , was to aim and shoot."
We even visited a cemetery in Hagerstown Maryland , close to Antietam. Their was an empty area about the size of a Football field, it was chained off. There was a sign on the gate, It read, "4000 Confederate Dead". There were 3 huge Monuments from the 3 neighboring states dedicated to those 4000. It is a sorry state of affairs when 4000 fam ilies knew their Husbands, sons, brothers went to war and after september 1862 had no idea what had happened to them and Never would find out.
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