Fredericksburg, Battle of

Fredericksburg, Battle of
(1862)
   A disastrous defeat of Union forces in the American Civil War. Although the Army of the Potomac had checked Robert E. Lee’s advance into the North at Antietam in Maryland in September, President Abraham Lincoln cashiered George McClellan for having allowed the Confederate army to reach the safety of Virginia. Ambrose Burnside assumed command of Union forces and marched to outflank Lee at Fredericksburg, hoping to force Lee out into the open for a battle that would favor the superior numbers in the Union Army. Burnside was delayed crossing the Rappahannock River awaiting pontoon bridges. The delay allowed Lee the time to set up a powerful defense on high ground south and west of Fredericksburg. On the morning of December 13, 1862, Burnside launched a series of fruitless frontal assaults against well-defended Confederate positions under James Longstreet and Stonewall Jackson. Only the early darkness halted the massacre of Union troops. Burnside planned to renew the frontal attacks the next day, but was talked out of it by his subordinates. After Burnside ordered new movements against Lee in January, mockingly called the “mud marches” by the Union troops, Lincoln removed him from army command in favor of Joseph Hooker.
   FURTHER READING:
    O’Reilly, Francis Augustin. The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War of the Rappahannock. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2006.
   THOMAS D. VEVE

Encyclopedia of the Age of Imperialism, 1800–1914. 2014.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Fredericksburg, Battle of — (Dec. 13, 1862) Engagement of the American Civil War fought at Fredericksburg, Va. , that resulted in a decisive victory for the Confederate forces. Over 120,000 Union troops under Ambrose E. Burnside were met at Fredericksburg by an entrenched… …   Universalium

  • Battle of Chancellorsville — Part of the American Civil War …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Fredericksburg — Part of the American Civil War Battle of Fredericksburg …   Wikipedia

  • Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park — IUCN Category V (Protected Landscape/Seascape) …   Wikipedia

  • Fredericksburg — /fred riks berrg , fred euhr iks /, n. a city in NE Virginia, on the Rappahannock River: scene of a Confederate victory 1862. 15,322. * * * ▪ Virginia, United States       city, administratively independent of, but located in, Spotsylvania county …   Universalium

  • battle — battle1 battler, n. /bat l/, n., v., battled, battling. n. 1. a hostile encounter or engagement between opposing military forces: the battle of Waterloo. 2. participation in such hostile encounters or engagements: wounds received in battle. 3. a… …   Universalium

  • Fredericksburg, Virginia —   City   Historic downtown Fredericksburg …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Franklin's Crossing — Part of the American Civil War Date June 5–6, 1863 Location Near Fredericksburg, Virginia …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Shok Valley — Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present) …   Wikipedia

  • Battle of Chickamauga — Part of the American Civil War Battle of Chickamauga (lithograph by Kurz and Allison, 1890) …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”