CHAPTER III.

SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE.

As before stated, General Grant had determined to continue the movement by the left, and in that view directed General Meade to take position, by a night march, at Spottsylvania Court House with one corps, at Todd's tavern with another, and with a third at the intersection of the road from Piney Branch Church to Spottsylvania Court House, with the road from Alsop's to the Old Court House; Burnside to move to Piney Branch Church. These positions were merely preliminary to further movement in a more southerly direction, dependent partly upon the course that General Lee should take.

This movement required the trains to be set in motion about three o'clock in the afternoon of the 7th, so as to clear the road for the troops, though it was apprehended that the people of the country would inform General Lee of it, and that he would readily surmise its object.

In accordance with the project of General Grant, the army began to move at half-past eight in the evening; General Warren by the Brock road toward Spottsylvania Court House, General Sedgwick by the pike and plank roads to Chancellorville, and thence by way of Aldrich's and Piney Branch Church toward the point designated in the order of march, the intersection of the two roads named; but early in the morning of the 8th he was directed to hold one division at that point, another at Piney Branch Church, and the

third midway between the two. Burnside followed Sedgwick, but early on the 8th he was directed to halt at Aldrich's, where the Piney Branch Church road leaves the Fredericksburg plank road (about two miles from the church), in order to cover the trains. Ferrero's division went to the trains, with which it remained several weeks. Hancock followed Warren as far as Todd's tavern. The reserve artillery went to Piney Branch Church, the trains to that vicinity. General Sheridan was directed to have a sufficient force on the approaches from the right to keep the corps commanders advised in time of the appearance of the enemy.1

After overlooking, for a time, the commencement of the movement, General Meade, with General Grant, rode to General Hancock's headquarters on the Brock road, near the left of his line, to await there the arrival of the head of Warren's column, and about eleven o'clock set out for Todd's tavern, in advance of the Fifth Corps, reaching there about midnight.2

Arrived at Todd's tavern General Meade found Gregg's cavalry division there, Merritt's being further forward on the

1 See Appendix G for the orders of General Grant and General Meade.

2 While at General Hancock's headquarters it was learnt, about eleven o'clock, that the head of Warren's column was near by, halted and seriously delayed by the mounted troops of the Provost-Marshal-General, which, following the headquarters, had occupied the road instead of drawing out of it. General Warren had remained in the vicinity of the Lacy house to oversee the withdrawal of his troops, the most important part of his duty. Had he been at the head of his column the delay would not have occurred, since he would at once have notified General Meade of the obstruction, and it would have been removed immediately. The headquarters at once set out as the speediest way of removing the obstacle, and rode rapidly to Todd's tavern, reaching there about midnight. The narrow road lay through woods all the way, and made the night appear very dark; for some distance after passing the Second Corps the woods were still on fire, and at one time obliged us to turn off to the right, and there was a little uncertainty afterward whether we had returned to the right road, a matter of some concern, as the enemy were probably within a mile of us on the right. As we shall see further on, Longstreet's corps was at that time moving toward Spottsylvania Court House, along a road parallel with the Brock road, and about a mile from it.

road to Spottsylvania Court House. They had not yet received their orders, and General Meade at one A.M. directed Merritt to move his command at once beyond Spottsylvania Court House, placing one brigade at the Block House, which is at the intersection of the Shady Grove Church road with the old Court House road, a mile and a half west of the Court House, and a mile east of the Shady Grove road bridge over the Po River. He was to picket the roads approaching the Court House, and to dispose of the other two brigades to cover the trains. He was to open the Brock road beyond the Court House for the infantry corps, closely following him on its way to occupy that place. Gregg he directed to move immediately to the vicinity of Corbin's bridge and watch the roads approaching from Parker's store, and when the Second Corps reached Todd's tavern, to send a force on the Brock road to watch it in the direction of the Wilderness. General Sheridan was notified at the same hour of these orders.

At five A.M. General Warren informed General Meade that the head of his column reached General Merritt's headquarters (about a mile east of Todd's tavern) at half-past three a.m., that Merritt's troops had then already moved to clear the road, and that he, General Warren, had massed his troops there as they came up to rest, for the march on a dark night by a narrow road running through woods had much fatigued them; that at the hour of his writing General Merritt had been engaged some time.

General Fitzhugh Lee's cavalry division was on the road, which they had barricaded by felling trees across it, and disputed every foot of ground, and in the darkness of night General Merritt found it exceedingly difficult to make any progress. At six A.M. General Warren, upon an intimation from General Merritt that his infantry could push the enemy faster than he could, ordered an advance of his corps,

General Robinson's division now leading. In reporting this General Warren added, "It is difficult to do much with troops in an expeditious manner in these dense woods." The same obstacles continued until about half-past eight o'clock, when Robinson's division emerged from the woods into the open ground of Alsop's, about two and a half miles from the Court House. Here the Brock road forks, uniting again at the end of a mile. Robinson advanced along the left hand fork to the junction of the two, Lyle's brigade on the left, Dennison's on the right, Coulter's, formerly Baxter's, brigade on the left rear. At the junction of the forks the line was reformed in column of regiments, and advanced along the road in open ground, a strong line of skirmishers in front, to within two or three hundred yards of the wood which the road entered, when suddenly a severe musketry and artillery fire was opened upon their front and right from an intrenchment just inside the edge of the wood. This staggered them, and in a short time they fell back to the shelter of the woods in their rear. The Maryland brigade took up a position in the edge of the wood and checked the further advance of the enemy, who followed them after turning the left of Lyle's brigade, which had held on close to the enemy's intrenchment under the shelter of a steep crest. General Robinson was severely wounded at the first fire, while leading his men. Prisoners taken showed this force of the enemy to be Kershaw's and Humphreys's brigades of Kershaw's division. Their intrenchments were slight, but gave sufficient cover to the men. They were at the intersection of the Brock road by the old Court House road, and about a mile and a half from Spottsylvania Court House and the same distance from the Shady Grove Church road bridge over the Po.

In the meantime Griffin took the right fork, Bartlett in line of battle in advance, Ayres and Sweitzer marching on

the road. When Bartlett got half way across the open ground of Alsop, he also came under the fire of the enemy's infantry and artillery soon after Robinson, and with nearly similar results, but by the personal exertions of General Griffin, who led his division in person, and of Generals Bartlett and Ayres, the men reformed quickly under cover of Ayres's brigade, who were in a sunken part of the road; and Griffin again advanced, taking up the line afterward held for several days. Crawford came up on his left, driving the enemy out of the woods there. Field's division of Longstreet's corps had been coming up all this time, and taking part in the fight; they began now to push through the pines on Griffin's right, threatening that flank. But Cutler came up his division had had several hours' rest and were in good condition. Forming in a ravine, they advanced in fine style, drove the enemy out of the woods on Griffin's right, and established their line so as to connect with his. The position now held by the corps was intrenched. It was from two to four hundred yards distant from that of the enemy. At half-past twelve P.M. General Warren reported that he had pushed back the enemy, but had not quite gained the junction of the Brock and Catharpin roads (Shady Grove Church road he meant, not the Catharpin); that General Wright had, at his request, come up to his support; that the straggling had been heavy, the men, wounded and tired, falling out of the ranks into the woods; that he had encountered a division of cavalry (Fitzhugh Lee's) and two divisions of Longstreet's corps, from whom he had taken prisoners; that Longstreet's men stated that they had left their trenches the night before at eleven o'clock.

Turning now to the Second Corps, we find that the troops in front of Hancock occupied the road all night, and for that reason the head of his column did not march until after