May 5, 1863 Today’s letter features a very optimistic Isaac Mark Abbott. He is very confident that the Union’s prospects of squashing out the Confederacy are as high as they ever have been, especially if the Union generals continue to put the same amount of pressure on as they have been lately. He references Union General Joseph Hooker as “playing smash” with Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s troops. Upon some further digging, I realized that he was referencing the Battle of Chancellorsville, which took place from April 30-May 6, 1863. From reading the letter, clearly Union morale was high and there seemed to be a strong sense that the Union would prevail. The battle featured roughly 97, 382 Union soldiers of the Army of the Potomac vs. 57, 352 Confederate Army of Northern Virginia soldiers. Clearly, the Confederates were not in the most favorable position. The battle was fought near the Rappahannock River, mentioned by Abbott in his letter. At this point, there was great confidence in “Fighting Joe” Hooker’s ability to lead the Union to victory. He created a concrete, bold plan but as the battle progressed, became increasingly timid and changed tactics. As a result, the Union regiments became mired in the wilderness and thickets of the area. The Confederates were able to capitalize on these hesitations. Generals Lee and Stonewall Jackson collaborated and devised a plan that typically was not advisable if victory was the desired outcome. They decided to divide the Confederate forces, with Jackson taking a majority of them (30, 000) to mount a secret attack against the Union positions. Such a plan was extremely dangerous for the Confederates to attempt. “If Hooker’s army became aware of this division, Lee’s forces could face great peril.” Indeed, Lee was left with what was left of the Confederate regiments after Jackson snuck off with his soldiers. If the Hooker caught wind of this, Lee’s troops would easily have been defeated. However, this was not the case. Jackson’s attack was a huge success as he completely surprised the Union forces. The result was a decisive Confederate victory. The Union sustained 18, 000 casualties and the Confederates 13, 000. At the time, it was the bloodiest battle of the war, though that would change with Gettysburg a short time later. Today, it is the fourth bloodiest battle, still ranked up among the worst of the war. Furthermore, though it was a Southern victory, it came at a great cost. During his sneak attack, Jackson was accidentally wounded in his left arm by his own men. He had to have the arm amputated and, while beginning to recover from that, contracted pneumonia and died on May 10, 1863. Thus, the Confederate Army lost one of their most respected and talented generals, marking a significant blow to them, despite the battle victory. It is really interesting that Abbott mentions this battle. While not by name, he is commenting on what was later recognized as an important battle of the war. News must have traveled at a decent pace during this time as the letter was written only about a week after the battle started. Abbott’s optimism and confidence in Hooker and his army must have slightly diminished once word spread of the defeat. That’s another reason why this collection is so great. We get to see reactions while battles are happening, without the issue of hindsight getting in the way of interpreting the battle. Works Cited/Photo Credit: The Civil War Trust: Saving America's Civil War Battlefields, "The Battle of Chancellorsville." Accessed November 25, 2013. http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/chancellorsville.html?tab=facts.
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AuthorTessa Wakefield, student intern at the Concordia College Archives, assembled these blog entries in 2013-2014 for the Isaac Mark Abbott Civil War Letters Collection. The posts summarize the content of the letters, interpret Abbott's experiences and place them in the larger context of the Civil War. Archives
March 2014
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