452

TARDINESS OF RE-ENFORCEMENTS.

his papers, burned a few wagons, and carried off about two hundred prisoners, taken from the hospitals. The disgrace inflicted, it was thought, was more serious than the damage. Stuart recrossed the Rappahannock at Warrenton Springs, after a little skirmishing.

The National capital was now in imminent danger, and slowly the Army of the Potomac was coming up to its relief. Still it was coming, and Pope was made to believe that almost immediately he would be re-enforced by forty thousand or fifty thousand fresh troops, who had been resting for more than a month. His own force had become much weakened by fighting and marching, and at this time its effective men did not exceed forty thousand in number. But with the hope of immediate support, he massed his army in the neighborhood of Rappahannock Station, for the purpose 4 August 23, of falling upon the portion of the Confederates that had crossed the river above him, and was then supposed to be stretched between Waterloo Bridge, the Sulphur Springs, and Warrenton. He looked to the swollen river as a sufficient barrier to any attempt of the Confederates on its right bank to get between himself and Fredericksburg.

1862.

Sigel was directed to march his whole corps upon Sulphur Springs, supported by Banks and Reno, and McDowell (joined by the Pennsylvania Reserves, under Reynolds) was ordered, at the same time, to march directly upon Warrenton, that he might join with Sigel in pushing the Confederates back to Waterloo Bridge. General Halleck was requested to send Franklin's corps (which had arrived at Alexandria from the Peninsula) to Gainsville, on the Manassas Gap railway, eight miles west of the Junction. Sturgis, at Alexandria, had been ordered' to post strong guards along the railway between Manassas Junction and Catlett Station; and directions had been given to the commander at Manassas Junction, for

⚫ August 22.

Pope in his report says, the raid was "attended with but little damage," but "was most disgraceful to the force which had been left in charge of the trains."

* General Halleck had repeatedly urged General McClellan to hasten the departure of his army from the Peninsula. On the 9th, he informed him of the perils with which Pope's army and the capital were threatened, and said, "Considering the amount of transportation (an immense number of vessels in the James and at Hampton Roads) at your disposal, your delay is not satisfactory. You must move with all celerity." On the following day Halleck informed McClellan of the battle between Pope and Jackson, at Cedar Mountain, and said, "There must be no further delay in your movements; that which has already occurred was entirely unexpected, and must be satisfactorily explained." To these electrographs McClellan replied, that a lack of transportation was the cause of delay; and he assured the General-in-Chief that he was doing all in his power to carry out his orders. See McClellan's Report, pages 159–160.

After the first few days succeeding the retreat to Harrison's Landing, Leo's army having fallen back to Richmond, with the exception of a brigade of cavalry left to watch the movements of the Army of the Potomac, there was very little service, excepting camp duty, for that army to perform. Immediately on its arrival upon the little peninsula formed by the James and Herring Creek, between Harrison's Point and Westover, the approaches to it were strongly fortifled. It soon became evident that troops were gathering on the south side of the James, in the neighborhood of Petersburg. On the 30th of July, McClellan was informned from Washington that they were moving, when Hooker was ordered to advance with his division and Pleasanton's cavalry, and seize Malvern Hills as a menace of Richmond. He drove the Confederates from the Hills (Aug. 5), captured 100 of them, and pushed cavalry under Averill as far as White Oak Swamp Bridge, where they captured 23 men and horses of the Tenth Virginia cavalry. Hooker was satisfied that if he had been allowed to follow up this movement with any considerable number of troops, Richmond might have been taken with ease. McClellan had received a peremptory order to transfer his army to Acquia Creek, and it could not be done. Meanwhile General French, with a considerable Confederate force and 43 guns, had gone down the south side of the James to assail McClellan's camp. He appeared suddenly at Coggin's Point, before daylight on the morning of the first of August, and opened fire on the camp and vessels. So soon as McClellan's guns were brought to bear on him, he ceased firing and withdrew. McClellan sent a force across the James that drove the Confederates back to Petersburg, and strongly fortified Coggin's Point.

♦ Sigel's corps had become reduced to about 9,000 effectives; Banks's to 5,000; McDowells's, including Reynolds's division that had come from the Peninsula, was only 15,000; Reno's was 7,000; and the cavalry, greatly reduced in its equipment of horses and arms, did not exceed 4,000.

POSITION OF THE ARMY OF VIRGINIA.

453 the first division of re-enforcements that should arrive to halt and take part in the works there, pushing forward its cavalry to Thoroughfare Gap. Sigel with his supporters (Banks and Reno), moved slowly up the left side. of the Rappahannock, and drove the Confederates from Great Run." After re-building the bridge the latter had destroyed, he pushed forward, and, under the fire of artillery from the opposite side of the Rappahannock, took possession of Sulphur Springs the next morning, and went on toward Waterloo Bridge. The latter point was occupied by Buford's cavalry at noon, and Sigel's advance under Milroy arrived there late in the afternoon.

a Aug. 23, 1862.

Aug. 24.

Pope's army now faced westward, with Sigel's corps and Buford's

cavalry near the Rappahannock, at Waterloo Bridge, and Banks just behind them. Reno was near Sulphur Springs; McDowell, with the divisions of Ricketts and King, was at Warrenton; and Heintzelman,' who had just arrived from the Peninsula, was at Warrenton Junction. Porter had been reported as near Bealton Station, and it was expected that he would press forward and join Reno; while Franklin was expected to take post on Heintzelman's right. Sturgis and Cox were hourly expected at Warrenton Junction.

Such was the position of Pope's army, now about sixty thousand

Aug 26.

strong, on the 25th of August, the day on which Jackson, who led Lee's forces engaged in the great flank movement, crossed the Rappahannock at Hinson's Mill, four miles above Waterloo Bridge, passed through Orleans, bivouacked at Salem, and, moving with his accustomed celerity, the next day crossed the Bull's Run Mountains at Thoroughfare Gap to Gainesville, where he was joined by Stuart with two cavalry brigades, and at twilight reached Bristow Station, on the Orange and Alexandria railway, in Pope's rear, and between him and Washington and Alexandria. This movement had been so thoroughly masked that Pope was completely deceived, and on the previous evening, when Jackson was reposing at Salem, between Thoroughfare and Manassas Gaps, he sent word to McDowell at Warrenton, that he believed "the whole force of the enemy had marched for the Shenandoah Valley, by way of Luray and Front Royal." From information received from an officer of the signal corps, at noon that day, Banks was of the same opinion. So little was Jackson expected at the rear of the army that two trains of cars ran up to Bristow Station, and were captured by him.

Jackson knew the peril of his position, and the necessity for quick

1 Heintzelman was not well prepared for action at once. He had been sent forward by railway, without artillery, or wagons, or horses for his field officers, and only four rounds of ammunition to each man.

2 Porter had but a small supply of provisions, and barely forty rounds of cartridges to each man.

454

THE CONFEDERATES AT MANASSAS.

action. He immediately dispatched Stuart with his cavalry, supported by two infantry regiments under General Trimble, to Manassas Junction, with general instructions to "throw his command between Washington City and the army of General Pope, and to break up his communications." This order was obeyed, and while Jackson was destroying Bristow Station, Stuart, before midnight, surprised the post at Manassas Junction, captured three hundred men, eight guns, and a large quantity of public property, and an immense amount of stores.1 Some of the surprised party at the Junction fled to Union Mills, on Bull's Run, where Colonel Scammon, with the Eleventh and Twelfth Ohio, of General Cox's division, was stationed, and gave the alarm. Scammon immediately advanced upon the Junction, but after a severe skirmish at dawn, he was driven across Bull's Run, and made to retreat toward Alexandria by an overwhelming force, for Jackson had advanced with the rest of his command to the Junction, leaving General Ewell, with the Fifth Virginia cavalry, under Colonel Rosser, at Bristow Station. The Confederates, elated by their success, swept over the country along the line of the railway as far as Burke's Station, a few miles from Alexandria, and then around by Fairfax Court-House,' almost to Centreville. In the mean time Brigadier-General George W. Taylor, with the First, Second, Third, and Fourth New Jersey Infantry, of Franklin's division, had moved out from Alexandria by railway, to assist Scammon, and recover what was lost at the Junction; but the Confederates were too strong for him. His troops were soon routed, and in the conflict he lost a leg.

Pope and Lee were now both in a most critical position. The communications of the former with his re-enforcements and supplies were cut; and in the moving army of the latter, between Longstreet and Jackson, there was a gap of two marches, which Pope might occupy to Lee's mortal hurt. But Pope was not in a condition to take advantage of the occasion; yet he made

1862.

a skillful use of the means at his command. He ordered" Aug. 27, McDowell, with Sigel and Reynolds, to hasten to Gainesville that night, and there intercept Longstreet at the head of Lee's main column; and Reno was directed to move in parallel roads to Greenwich, followed by Kearney's division of Heintzelman's corps, with orders to communicate with, and support McDowell if necessary. Pope, in the mean time, had moved along the railway towards Manassas Junction, with Hooker's division of Heintzelman's corps. He directed Porter to remain at Warrenton Station until Banks should arrive there to hold it, and then to

1 They captured 175 horses, 200 new tents, 10 locomotives, 7 trains loaded with provisions and munitions of war, and a vast amount of commissary and quartermaster stores.

This vicinity was the scene of many gallant deeds during the earlier part of the war, when the two armies were posted near it. We have already (page 487, vol. I.), noticed the gallant dash into the village of Fairfax Court-House, by Lieutenant C. II. Tompkins, with a handful of cavalry, at the beginning of the war: but one of the most brilliant feats in that neighborhood was performed at Burke's Station, by only fourteen members of the Lincoln (New York) cavalry, under Lieutenant Hidden, on the 9th of March, 1862, at about the time of the evacuation of Manassas. General Kearney had ordered the gallant Hidden to move forward cautiously with his little squad of men and “feel the enemy's position." They came suddenly upon 150 of the Confederate cavalry at Burke's Station. There was a strong temptation for a dash. The lieutenant and his men could not resist it, and that gallant young leader at their head fell upon the astotinded foe with cheers and shouts. Some fled and others fought desperately. The victory finally rested with the Nationals, but at the cost of the life of Hidden. His comrades bore back his dead body, with eleven of the Virginia cavalry as prisoners. Kearney, who saw the whole movement, declared it to be one of the most brilliant he had ever scen, and took each man by the hand on his return, and complimented him for his bravery.

ATTEMPT TO CAPTURE JACKSON'S FORCE.

455

hasten forward to Gainesville, where it was expected the impending battle would be fought.

McDowell's movement was successfully accomplished without fighting. Hooker was not so fortunate. On approaching Bristow Station, late in the afternoon, he encountered Ewell. A sharp action ensued, by which each party lost about three hundred men. Ewell was driven away with a loss of part of his baggage, but he destroyed the bridge and railway track, and thus retarded pursuit, while he hastened to join Jackson at Manassas. Hooker's ammunition failed, and he could not pursue vigorously.

Aug. 28, 1862.

Pope now believed that by a vigorous movement in the morning he might "bag the whole crowd" at Manassas Junction. For that purpose he ordered McDowell, at Gainesville, to move rapidly toward the Junction very early the next morning. Reno was ordered to march at the same time from Greenwich to the Junction, and Kearney was directed to make his way to Bristow Station, for Jackson, hard pressed, might mass his troops and attempt to turn the National right at that point, seeking a way of escape. In order to make the right still further secure from a flank movement, Porter was ordered to move forward to Bristow Station at one o'clock in the morning. He did not obey, but waited until daylight before he moved, at which time Jackson had fortunately taken another direction, and "no serious consequences followed this disobedience of orders." The Confederate leader had perceived his peril, and at three o'clock that morning had taken steps to evacuate Manassas, and seek a junction with Longstreet. He destroyed an immense amount of his captured stores, and as the way between himself and Longstreet, along the Manassas Gap railway, was blocked by National troops, he marched through Centreville, to gain, by a more circuitous route,

a position where he might easily join Lee's main army, then approaching Thoroughfare Gap.

This movement might have been thwarted, had Pope's orders been promptly carried out by all. Sigel, instead of advancing from Gainesville at dawn, as directed by McDowell, did not leave there until

THOROUGHFARE GAP.

nearly three hours later, and Porter did not arrive at Bristow Station until after ten o'clock, when, instead of pushing forward with his fresh corps, he asked permission to remain there and rest his men. In the mean time the

1 Pope's order to McDowell, Aug. 27, 1862.

2 Pope's Report to Halleck, January 27, 1863.

3 Pope in his report says that the divisions of Sykes and Morell had been resting in camp all the day and night before, and that Porter's corps" was by far the freshest in the whole army," and was in better condition for service than any troops we had.

456

BATTLE NEAR GROVETON.

prompt Kearney, who had arrived at Bristow at eight o'clock in the morning, was sent forward in pursuit of Ewell, followed by Hooker, and, with the divisions of Kearney and Reno, Pope reached Manassas Junction at noon, just after Jackson with his rear-guard had left. He at once pushed all his available forces upon Centreville in pursuit, and ordered McDowell to march for that place, and Porter to come up to Manassas. Unfortunately McDowell had sent Ricketts' division toward Thoroughfare Gap, but with the remainder of his force he pushed on according to orders.

1962.

a

Kearney drove Jackson's rear-guard out of Centreville late in the afternoon, and the main body of the Confederates fled by way of the Aug. 28, Sudley Springs road and Warrenton turnpike,' destroying the bridges over the little streams behind them. Their faces were toward Thoroughfare Gap, from which was coming their help, and toward evening a strong force under Ewell and Taliaferro encamped on the wooded hills at the west side of the Warrenton pike, near the battle-ground of Bull's Run the year before. King's division of McDowell's corps was *July 21, in close pursuit, and when they had reached a point desired by 1861. the watching Confederates, the latter fell furiously upon their flank. A sanguinary battle ensued. The brunt of it, on the part of the Nationals, was borne by Gibbon's brigade, nobly supported by that of

Aug. 29,

1862.

o'clock in the morning, and follow Jackson closely along the Warrenton pike, to prevent his retreat northward toward Leesburg, and ordered Porter, whom he supposed to be at Manassas Junction, to move upon Centreville at dawn. But Longstreet's rapid march, quickened by a knowledge of Jackson's danger, defeated the plan. He had passed through Thoroughfare Gap before King's division was attacked, and near its entrance, between it and Haymarket, had encountered Ricketts' division, with the cavalry of Buford and Bayard, which had marched to confront him. An active engagement ensued, and ended only with the sunlight. The heaviest of the battle fell on the Eleventh Pennsyl

1 See map on page 588, volume I.