User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Wed May 04, 2016 3:00 pm

[This AAR is mostly in real time, so I don't know what is next. I just sent Straight Arrow a turn, so I don't know if I've surrendered in Louisville, captured Norfolk, or fought an enormous battle in the Shanendoah. With the turn, I sent a report card and am pasting it below

"I'm giving myself a report card - this was the last turn where I have a serious resource crunch. This turn I get to issue bonds and tax and, while I'm still a bit overstretched, the end of that is in sight (you may feel the same way, of course):

I'm still in a lot of trouble in Kentucky. Grant vs Lee in the west is a bit odd for me. Against Athena, Grant gets to win a few battles and improve his stats and seniority before coming east as the most senior man in the Army and an incredible all-rounder. In the current case, I need to bring him a few more corps (which don't exist) and fight Lee where he stands. I thought I was doing better in the West than in Virginia, but now it looks like the opposite is true.

Far West is a disaster but there is some small hope: F+
Missouri is a great success with few concerns right now: B
Mississippi Valley is a stalemate with a lot of concerns: B-
Kentucky is another disaster with little hope in sight: F
West Virginia is a great success: A
Virginia is a mixed bag but generally a success: C
Atlantic Coast is a mixed bag, my naval power is a bit rough on you: C
An early attack on the Gulf Coast did not materialize in favor of a failed march on Richmond from Norfolk: F
River Navy was a mixed bag until my ironclads arrived: B-
Ocean-Coast Navy was going poorly until my ironclads arrived: B
Deepwater Navy (I have no idea how to optimize this and everything seems fine to me): B

Overall it is a solid C+. My goal in the first two years is to be active but not to lose much more (in a relative sense) than I would If I shelled, and I think I've achieved that.

You also have the potential to raid Illinois/Indiana/Ohio. You clearly had reserves in Richmond and Nashville, my hope is those are depleted and you are forced to contract soon in the West and that you are overstretched in Virginia. Here is my grades for you:

Far West is going ok, but you don't have a large force nor the supplies I have out there: B
Missouri is lost but has been a decent drain on my forces: F+
Mississippi Valley is a stalemate with a lot of concerns: C+
Kentucky is on the knife's edge, but your strategy was great: A
West Virginia is lost: F
Virginia a mixed bag but a lot of land has been lost: C-
Atlantic Coast is a mixed bag, but retaking Norfolk was a coup: B+
An early attack on the Gulf Coast did not materialize, I have no idea how much you've garrisoned, presumably not too much as you haven't drained yourself elsewhere: A
River Navy was a mixed bag until my ironclads arrived: B-
Ocean-Coast Navy was going well until my ironclads arrived: B-
Deepwater Navy (I don't think you've been particularly active or innovative): B-

Overall it is a solid B-. You haven't outperformed history, but you haven't lost any armies (no Fort Donelson). I prioritized HF, Missouri, and West Virginia early, so there wasn't much you could do. I got lucky dislodging you from Manassas, we'll see what is next there. Lee out West is gutsy, so you get points for that. And Kentucky was well done. I'm not super weak in Louisville, but I am trapped."


Let me know what grades you'd give me/us and let me know if you have any questions. I don't plan on taking advice, such as Gray Fox's very good advice about artillery divisions which I still haven't had the resources to build but will soon (I planned to build them soon in any case). Feel free to give advice if you like, though. Mostly, this is a midpoint, I think, so what are your midterm grades for me/us? BTW, I use the square brackets to write out of character, the rest attempts to be written as if it was a history, even though it is written more or less in real time. Thanks for reading!]
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Wed May 04, 2016 11:16 pm

In Early August, Halleck lost another 2000 men in skirmishing around Louisville, but there was generally no change in the area. 4,200 men remained in the city with about 10,000 outside. However, the forces outside were exhausted from repeated sorties of Halleck's and their was hope that the siege would end.

On August 7, General Butler landed again in Norfolk with four divisions under Butterfield, Parke, Meagher, and Stone and pushed aside Winders single garrison division. All of the generals did will and Butterfield was particularly aggressive. Naval bombardment in advance of the landing was heavy, and seven US boats were sunk. While Butler's landing was an important success, and the Army saw light losses, losing about 2,000 men to Winders 1,000 (Winder lost about 2000 more in the bombardment) some questioned the cost in men and materials.
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Thu May 05, 2016 5:14 pm

In August and September of 1862, Virginia erupted. Jackson slipped away from Union forces and swong down into Harpers Ferry, killing or capturing the entire garrison. Generall Crittendon held Manassas, which was marched upon by General Beauregard. General Keyes' cavalry corps rested in Winchester, but retreated when Jackson took Harpers Ferry to the Manasses railroad in Clarke County. General Burnside moved south from New Market towards General Buell in Lexington where it lost a skirmish against General Holmes. These moves left the Union in control of the southern parts of the Shanendoah Valley but having given up Culpepper, Falmouth, Winchester, and Harpers Ferry.

[ATTACH]38741[/ATTACH]

The cavalry corps under General Keyes and General Ord did not remain in Clarke County, perhaps due to a mix-up in orders or perhaps for another reason and moved into Manasses, where it was destroyed by General Beauregard. Beauregard's all out attack took the town garrison and bypassed Crittendon's force, which was in the area. Generals Ord and Keyes escaped with their lives, but little else.

[ATTACH]38742[/ATTACH]

In Arkansas, General Lyon attacked Magruder outside of Fort Smith. General Curtis was captured in the attack, and is not likely to be exchanged for a few weeks, and General Wood was returned to command of his division.

[ATTACH]38743[/ATTACH]

General Butler again fought a battle outside of Suffolk. There was great disagreement in Washington about this move, with some demanding some or all of Butler's force be returned to secure the capital. However, two divisions have been sent from McClellan's training in New England, one under General Auger arriving in Alexandria about August 15 and another under General Sedgewick scheduled to arrive by the end of the month.

[ATTACH]38744[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled3.jpg
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Untitled4.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Fri May 06, 2016 11:03 am

On September 16, 1862, what is known as the Great Battle of Bull Run was fought, a battle which took six stages. It is given this name to differentiate it from the other battles around that site. The battle was opened by an assault by General Beauregard with four divisions under Generals Loring, D.H. Hill, McClaws, and N.S. Evans. The assault was made upon General Crittendon's corps which was arranged across Bull Run Creek in three infantry divisions under Generals Richardson, Hunter, and Miles and one artillery division under Humphreys. Generals Loring and Evans led the initial assault, which landed largely on General Richardson's division and partially on General Miles. General Richardson performed well, and Richardson, Loring, and Evans all saw men retreat from the field. McClaws was not engaged and D.H. Hill was barely so, nor was infantry under Hunter, but the Confederate Divisions did not bring artillery to the field, while Richardson, Hunter, and especially Humphreys' artillery were effective.

In the second and third stages, nearby corps under General Fourney consisting of a division under General Cleburn joined the fray, while McDowell's Army arrived from its lines along the Manassas Gap railway with divisions under Sykes, Heintzelmen, Runyon, and Tyler. Cleburn's division moved forward unsupported against General Miles. Cleburn's division was fresh and full strength and lost nearly one third of their men in the ill-conceived attack, fully exposed to Union artillery from all sides. In the third stage, General Tyler counter attacked Cleburn, destroying more a third of his command original command and nearly half of the men who were left.

The fourth stage saw battle between the united Confederate artillery directed at Crittenden's corps in an effort to extricate Cleburns forces. Exposed due to their counterattack against Cleburn, Miles and Richardson saw heavy losses, and Hunter saw light losses. Cleburn continued to take heavy losses, although there was some hope that he would escape. In the fifth stage, however, this hope was lost as Generals Tyler and Runyon attacked the retreating division, destroying its remnants and severely wounding Cleburn, who left the field in a stretcher along with a Confederate Engineer from Corps or Army staff.

In the sixth stage, Generals Loring, Hill, and Evans served as rear guard, taking heavy losses especially due to the attacks of General Runyon, Heintzelman, and to some extent Sykes and to a lesser extent Miles. During the retreat, Union forces captured an entire supply wagon train.

[ATTACH]38756[/ATTACH]

In Suffolk, General Hooker under General Butler skirmished with Holmes' force as Holmes retreated. Hooker lost 1,800 while Holmes lost about 1,300 of his force of 8,000. Butler's full force consisted of about 27,500 men after the fight.

In Kentucky, in August, General Pope took Fort Donelson, capturing an artillery regiment and supply train. However, he was not permitted to continue moving towards Nashville, and instead was moved towards Louisville. Confederate General Cheatham retook Donelson September 25, while General Pope railed through Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio with two divisions under Generals Nelson and George Thomas. In Indiana, they were joined with a division from Missouri under General Palmer. This force arrived in Louisville on September 26 and attacked divisions under Forrest and Maury under the overall command of Forrest. Palmer's division saw over 50% casualties, and Forrest took the brunt of the attack, holding the field against superior Union numbers.

[ATTACH]38757[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Sat May 07, 2016 1:23 pm

In October of 1862, General King reported to Grant with the Iron brigade, who sent the command to support Halleck and Rosecranz, who then were endeavoring to secure Northern Virginia with Pope's corps. On October 5, General Hollins with 4 ironclads ran the forts at Island 10 and Cairo and moved towards Nashville. Hollins met King while his command was aboard river transports heading north and east. The entire command was destroyed, 3000 crack troops gone.

On October 6, 1862, a corps under Milroy challenged Jackson at Leesburg, losing a small battle along with 2,500 soldiers to Jackson's loss of 1,500. Both forces began with approximately 15,000. On October 25, General Kearney and General Buell met in Staunton where Holmes' corps containing divisions led by General A.P. Stewart and General E.P. Alexander. The battle opened with Kearney crossing the Middle River from New Market with divisions under Sykes, Porter, Hurlburt, and Howe. Buell with Generals Burnside, and McCall and a cavalry division under W.H.L. Wallace joined the fray shortly later. Generals Porter, Howe, Sykes, and Burnside performed especially well on the Union side, while General Alexander performed well on the Confederate side. Kearney and Buell's force of 50,000 lost 6,500, while Holmes' force of 12,000 lost about 4,000.

In the West, General Thomas was in Cincinnati when a cavalry division under Sheridan arrived from Missouri almost simultaneously with a Confederate cavalry division under General Hindman. The two forces skirmished on October 28, with the Union claiming victory, losing 850 of their 5000 defenders including the garrison, while Hindman lost 970 men out of a force of 5500.
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Sun May 08, 2016 9:15 pm

November 1, 1862 was the beginning of the worst period in the history of the Union. On that day, General T. J. Jackson began marching his force of 16,700 towards Alexandria from Leesburg. He had two infantry divisions under General Ewell and David Jones and on artillery division under Stuart. In his way was Milroy's corps, hereafter known as Milroy's "weary boys", with divisions under Sedgewick and Auger. Jackson's force was well rested, while Milroy's was exhausted, especially Sedgewick, and Milroy was routed, losing 2,250 compared to Jackson's 1000. Most of Milroy's losses were to Auger's division, and Milroy retreated south into Clarke County where McDowell's Army awaited. Milroy's message to McDowell to join in the defense arrived after Milroy had begun the retreat.

On November 4, Jackson met with General Franklin's corps outside of Alexandria. Again, McDowell failed to join the battle and again Jackson scored a victory, killing, wounding, or capturing 7,500 of Franklin's nearly 10,000 poorly organized troops. General Franklin moved north into Washington DC to organize the defenses of the capital, while General van Cleeve formed a rear guard to round up the fleeing troops and retreat, again to the south, this time towards General Howard's corps in Manassas.

These events put the union into a very difficult position. Confederate control of the rail lines around Alexandria extended a significant ways towards Beauregard's nearly 30,000 man force in its standoff with General Howard's corps. This meant that nearly 50,000 men could arrive outside of the capital within days, a capital which was defended by less than 20,000 troops. General Meade with one division of fresh reserves under General Cocoran was being railed from New York to Annapolis, but was unlikely to be able to join in any defense of an early initial assault. General McDowell and Howard had been maneuvered away from being a factor and General Kearney and Buell were in the Valley. General Banks had moved to take command at Norfolk while General Butler had orders to move towards North Carolina to command General Foster's and General Hooker's corps which had orders to move towards New Bern and either Wilmington or Raleigh.

McDowell had enough men, but perhaps not enough time, and was ordered to follow Confederate forces moving on the capital. In the meantime, Hooker and Buell were given orders to counter-strike. Buell sent a small corps to secure New Market and the southern reaches of the Valley where Longstreet was bottled up, while Kearney's larger corps of 26,000 began a march towards Richmond from the East. Hooker, in the meantime, boarded boats in Beaufort, North Carolina under the command of Admiral Farragut and began sailing for the James River. Their destination was Richmond, and they hoped to find a point further up the river than Malvern Hill to disembark and begin a siege of the city. There was still an ironclad in the area, but there was no rumor of further naval defense, and Farragut hoped to be able to run any fort bombardment that may occur. That said, their was no time to scout and there was fear of another disaster like what befell Rufus King a few weeks earlier. General Keyes and a small division under General Geary was to move from Norfolk towards James City and then to move up the peninsula, securing a supply line for Hooker and eventually joining his forces in Richmond. General Foster was to move into Norfolk to defend that place. When General Foster arrived, General Butler would move with General Stone towards Richmond as well.

In New England, General McClellan had two infantry divisions and one cavalry division nearly ready for action, and these hoped to play a decisive role wherever they were sent - although their destination was at this point undecided, Richmond or Washington.
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Mon May 09, 2016 11:57 am

In late November, General Jackson crossed the Potomac into Montgomery County, Maryland, attempting to avoid Ironclads in the Potomac and nearby river batteries in the capital by making the eventual charge on the city come from the northwest. Meanwhile, General Beauregard consolidated his hold on Alexandria. General Meade led a Corcoran's division into the capitol entrenchments and DC prepared itself for a siege. Union forces in the capital now consisted of about 26,000 men and faced off against a Confederate force of 50,000. Hooker's forces landed near Haxall's landing and a siege was established at Richmond. A battle was fought at the landing against Pryor's brigade which defended the city. The defense of about 6,500 men lost 2,300 while Hooker's force of 19,000 lost 3,700.

In the west, General Pope moved to New Albany, Indiana, across from General Forrest's forces at Louisville, while General Thomas brought a division under General Rousseau south from Cincinnati to Lexington, defeating the garrison of the 10th Kentucky brigade. Thomas' 5,500 lost about 460 men while the Garrison of 2,500 lost 700 men. Confederates in the city of Lexington remained, however, and Thomas' forces were not allowed to enter. General Rosecrans moved with a division under General Devens into Mumfordville, stopping a train loaded with a division under General Pickett which was moving to reinforce Forrest. Both forces contained about 7,000 men, and Rosecrans lost about 700 men while Pickett only 300.
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
Gray Fox
AGEod Guard of Honor
Posts: 1583
Joined: Wed Aug 22, 2012 7:48 pm
Location: Englewood, OH

Mon May 09, 2016 1:04 pm

So you are both poised for a headshot. Good luck!
I'm the 51st shade of gray. Eat, pray, Charge!

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Mon May 09, 2016 4:10 pm

[ATTACH]38815[/ATTACH]

Thomas Jackson's force moved into DC and assaulted with his two infantry divisions (under Richard Ewell and David Jones) and artillery division (under JEB Stewart) comprised of 21,000 men. William Franklin's corps, combined with Meades force containing Michael Corcoran's division, included 27,000 men, most of whom were relatively unorganized. The attack came in three stages. In the initial stage, General Ewell attacked near Fort Mansfield and Fort Reno south of Old Stone Tavern where the 12th Maine Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade was aligned. General Corcoran actively moved to defend, and the 3rd Massachusetts Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade was involved as well. Corcoran's forces were initially pushed from the field, but the 2nd Delaware Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, the 2nd Maryland Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, the 2nd New Jersey Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, the two Reserve Brigades, and Washington Militia all provided supporting enfilading fire without having to face any direct fire themselves. Union forces performed extremely well in this stage, and the ultimate outcome was all but guaranteed.

In the second stage, the 2nd Maine Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade took the place of the 12th Maine, and the 3rd Massachusetts Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade remained in the line along the edge of the battle. General Corcoran continued to play a key role, and the 4th New York Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, the 2nd Vermont Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, the 2nd New Jersey Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade and the 1st Reserve Brigade provided enfiladingfire. This stage was relatively bloodless, with losses roughly equal on both sides.

The third stage saw Ewell and Jones charging union artillery with devastating results for the Confederacy. The attack fell directly on the 2nd Maine Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, destroying the brigade. The 3rd Massachusetts remained alongside and took heavy losses as well. Corcoran remained in his central role in this stage and Ewell took the heaviest losses, losing over half of his remaining men. 4th New York Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, the 2nd West Virginia Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, 3rd Maryland Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, 1st Rhode Island Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, 2nd Maryland Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, and 2nd Delaware Volunteers Light Infantry Brigade, all provided enfiladingfire.

Washington Mortars, newly invented Gatling Guns, and Washington Artillery performed very well in all stages, particularly the Gatling Guns and Washington Artillery in the third stage.

Beuaregard's control of the forts of Alexandria, along with the size of his army, prevented the Union from taking a direct offensive against his army. However, consolidation of Beauregard's forces meant that Culpepper, Leesburg, and Falmouth were not heavily garrisoned. Thus, McDowell was given permission to secure central Virginia and cut off all lines of retreat for Beauregard and Jackson, as well as lines of retreat open to Confederate forces in the valley led by General Longstreet. To this purpose, Crittendon's corps of two divisions under Hunter and Miles moved into Culpepper which was held by a small division under Zollicoffer. Crittenden lost 200 of 15,000 men, while Zollicoffer lost 1,000 of his 1,300 men, with no men captured.

Confederate forces in the Valley were blocked from retreating south by Buell's corps in New Market and Longstreet moved his forces to Leesburg. At the same time, General Oliver Howard moved north from Manassas to Leesburg. On December 14, General Howard with infantry divisions under Couch, Heintzelman, and Runyon and an artillery division under Humphries arrived in Leesburg and opened battle against two divisions who were in that area at the time under Generals Bushrod Johnson and AP Hill. The opening stage of the battle was fought evenly, as AP Hill's division took the brunt of attacks by Runyon and Heintzelman. In the next stage, a division under General Winder joined the Confederate side and divisions under Generals Richardson and Tyler joined the Union side. Couch joined Heintzelman and Runyon in a continued assault on Johnson, but the Confederacy's defensive position were effective and the Confederacy began to take the upper hand, in spite of the numbers against them. In the next stage, General Loring, DH Hill, McClaws, Anderson, and Hood brought divisions to the Confederate side, although none of the late arriving divisions as yet took part in the battle. In the forth round, Union forces began their retreat, with General Heintzelman forming an effective rear guard. In the third and forth stage, losses were fairly even and light on both sides. In the fifth stage, the confederates counterattacked, Johnson, AP Hill, and Winder attacked Richardson's and Tyler's divisions, and the Confederate side took slightly heavier losses than the Union. In the sixth round, as the Union pulled away from a losing battle, Union losses were general across all divisions particularly divisions led by Heintzelman and Runyon, while Confederate losses were concentrated in Hill's and Winder's divisions. Overall losses were 8,000 on the Union side and 5,800 on the Confederate.

Further South and East, Milroy's Corps took Falmouth, effectively closing the Confederate supply lines, while Kearney's forces marched into Charlottesville Virginia, which was abandoned by Confederate defenders under General Johnston with Divisions under Early and Bee. Johnston's corps had railed into Richmond.

As can be seen in the map below, the Union position in Virginia was very strong overall in early December, 1862, but the risk of collapse in Washington DC was overwhelming.

[ATTACH]38816[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
Cardinal Ape
General of the Army
Posts: 619
Joined: Wed Mar 07, 2012 1:59 am

Mon May 09, 2016 9:58 pm

Looks to be a very fun and tense game you guys are having. Quite the precarious supply situation for both sides in VA. One would expect things to settle down in the dead of winter, but nah, it never seems to happen.

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Tue May 10, 2016 10:54 am

[Thanks Gray Fox and Cardinal Ape. Straight Arrow informs me the Confederacy has moved its capital to Atlanta, so I'm not going to get much of a head shot even if all of Virginia falls. Also, The Confederacy is up by about 60 NM (75 to 133 as of January 1, 1863), so if the Union eventually wins, the win won't come soon. I was active last winter and planned to rest this winter except for the North Carolina Coast and a naval strike at Charleston, but both of those got shifted towards Richmond. It is a wonder I win any battles with that NM deficit.]
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Tue May 10, 2016 11:38 am

In late December, the sieges of Richmond and Washington continued. Irving McDowell moved towards Leesburg which was undermanned. At the same time, Beauregard moved back torwards the depot there. The pair met, fighting a battle on December 26 with 50,200 men against 56,600 men under Beauregard. McDowell lost 4,800 to Beauregard's loss of 6,900 in a Union victory.

[ATTACH]38852[/ATTACH]

The battle was followed two days later when the remaining 45,700 men under McDowell retreated to another assault by 49,900 under Beauregard, with divisions under AP Hill and Hood being particularly effective, although McDowell lost a nearly identical 4,700 while Beauregard lost 5,900.

[ATTACH]38853[/ATTACH]

Abraham Lincoln told his generals that the Union would never surrender, but was unwilling to signal any weakness and refused to flee the capital, especially given there were more men inside the capital than outside (as yet, Beauragard remained across the Potomac). Further Lincoln finally signed the emancipation proclamation on January 1, 1863, signalling a willingness of the Federal government to join in the was against slavery, which had been fought for hundreds of years in plantations and farms throughout the country and in the last 50 years or so predominately in states currently a part of the Rebellion. A number of black militia regiments had already been recruited in West Virginia and on the Mid-Atlantic coast, and black militia were garrisoning some towns in West Virginia and on the Virginia Peninsula.
Attachments
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Wed May 11, 2016 10:20 am

After a restful new years day, Confederate forces attempted to dislodge the Union camp outside of Richmond (images here) in a battle which saw the destruction of Evans' division. Union divisions under Doubleday, Ord, Meagher, and Parke performed extremely well. Ord's performance was a bit of redemption for the young General after the disaster that befel him when he led a division of cavalry earlier in the war.

In the meantime, the Confederate forces left the siege of the capital. Their supplies, especially ammunition, were dwindling and they moved on Falmouth, whose harbor contained considerable stores, and Manassas with its depot. On January 9th, Jackson stormed Falmouth. McDowell's force marched to support and David Jones' division was destroyed, but Jackson took the field. General Sedgewick's Union division took losses in the battle and General Sedgewick was injured. In the retreat, Sedgewick's entire division was destroyed.

[ATTACH]38868[/ATTACH]

On January 12, Union efforts to bottle the Confederacy up took an extremely sever hit when Beauregard brought 50,000 men into Manassas where he fought against McDowell. Beauregard's attack first hit Howard's corps, which was out of ammunition and passively postured. Howard continued to attempt to retreat, and his fleeing the field left Union forces unable to fight. Beauregard took 3,500 losses, but in the retreat, Heintzelman, Couch, and Runyon's divisions were nearly completely destroyed and Howard's crippled corps consisted of 1,900 starving men limping from the field and unlikely to survive.

[ATTACH]38869[/ATTACH]

General Buell moved his corps of two divisions up the valley towards General Hoke. Buell's force consisted of 16,800 and lost 3,000 while Hoke had a 7,900 man division and lost 1,900.
Attachments
Untitleda.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Fri May 13, 2016 7:49 am

As winter moved along, the sieges of Washington and Richmond came to an end during February of 1863. General Pleasenton's cavalry division tried to move north from its place in the lines around Richmond to help deal with the threat of Virginia militia around New Market, Charlottesville, and Staunton, but was captured and destroyed in the process by the Richmond Armies, only the horse artillery surviving, this marked yet another Union cavalry division lost. General Jackson crossed the Rappahannock east of Fredericksburg, showing that the Union cordon around the invading Confederate forces may not be complete. General Meade had moved on Strasburg with Corcoran's force from the Washington Defenses, and Union control of the Valley seemed inevitable.

[ATTACH]38883[/ATTACH]

However, General Lee took control of the forces at Richmond, which now surpassed 50,000 and General Butler's 30,000 was no match for the old man, both losing about 7,000 in a battle which pushed Butler from the field.

[ATTACH]38884[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled.jpg
Untitled2.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Fri May 13, 2016 8:05 am

On March 9, General Lee brought half of his Richmond force towards Fredericksburg, meeting with Jackson's in an attempted follow-up of Lee's Richmond victory, totaling about 43,000 men. General Howard had taken command of the forces there, and had about 20,000 men, but General Kearney moved across the the Rapidan from his base near Culpeper in support, and together the force of nearly 50,000 repulsed Lee's attack in the bloodiest battle to date. All of the Union division commanders involved did excellently: Sykes, Auger, Howe, Gibbon, Porter, Mansfield, and Humphries. Confederate Artillery under A.P. Stewart and N.S. Evans were the brightest spots in the losing Confederate effort.

Some consider politics to be an important factor in the Confederate loss; Longstreet's forces across the Rappahanock were still considered a part of Beauregard's Army in Manassas and refused to join in Lee's assault.

[ATTACH]38885[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
Gray Fox
AGEod Guard of Honor
Posts: 1583
Joined: Wed Aug 22, 2012 7:48 pm
Location: Englewood, OH

Fri May 13, 2016 1:41 pm

Lee did everything right and still lost. Nice work by Kearny. Each stack seems to have Divisions led by the usual 3-1-1's with one or two Divisions led by better commanders. If you took all of the better commanded Divisions and put them in one stack together with Kearny or Grant in overall command...
I'm the 51st shade of gray. Eat, pray, Charge!

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Fri May 13, 2016 2:31 pm

Gray Fox wrote:Lee did everything right and still lost. Nice work by Kearny. Each stack seems to have Divisions led by the usual 3-1-1's with one or two Divisions led by better commanders. If you took all of the better commanded Divisions and put them in one stack together with Kearny or Grant in overall command...


[For some reason that ("doomstacking" with top generals) doesn't seem organic to me, so I don't do it. On the other hand, for the most part McDowell's first five "division" commanders still lead more or less the same divisions that they are given at the outset by event (with some exceptions), and that is definitely ahistorical (for one thing, many of those regiments were 90 days). Straight Arrow is a lot more active in moving his top division generals around. I'll finish my response in the voice of the alternate historian.]

The conclusion of the Battle of Fredericksburg was not, necessarily, a positive one for the Union as Lee held the field, besieging a regiment of Maryland militia garrisoning the depot of the town, and Howard retreated back towards Culpepper (he called it a changing of base, but there was no better depot in Virginia for a base). The battle at Fredericksburg was indicative of different political pressures placed on the strategies of the two forces. Among the infantry divisions that performed well under Lee, for instance, was that of General Cheatham, whose Kentucky and Tennessee regiments had in the previous year retaken Fort Donelson. Political pressures on the Union meant that the Union Armies in Virginia were predominantly eastern men, while western men were sent to guard the Ohio and fight in the Confederate West.
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Fri May 13, 2016 2:58 pm

[I'd like to add one more note about generals and especially corps commanders like Kearny. I ignore the general's statistics as best I can, I'm not sure I should really know these things in a historic sense. I prioritize giving divisions to leaders with the highest seniority, and if a general leads a division, I don't like giving it to a new general. I have three Armies in Virginia, Banks with a small militia garrison recruiting contraband in Norfolk with a corps on the Penninsula and another in Suffolk, Butler who has just been kicked out of Richmond and whose corps under Hooker may be transferred to McDowell and whose is a general without an army right now and is being sent to the Valley, and McDowell, whose main corps are a smaller one under Buell in the Valley and Kearney in Fredericksburg. Howard and Crittendon also lead important and active corps. Anyway, corps commanders statistics for Banks' and Butler's corps have some malus due to those commanders low statistics. At times, McDowell's corps also have a mallus, although right now everyone is within his strategic command radius and he's gained a level so he is 2-2-3 and isn't giving anyone a mallus. So when you see a corps fighting, remember that its statistics may not represent only the ability of the corps commander, but also that of the Army commanders who are much weaker. I do avoid putting good corps commanders under bad army commanders, Kearney and Howard were given more active commands than Dix, for example.]
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Sun May 15, 2016 3:35 pm

The 1863 campaign season in the West was delayed by bad weather and forces arranged in a perilous stalemate. In late may, General Smith moved a small corps (13,000 men) of two divisions under McPherson and Willich south from New Madrid into Osceola against a division under General Withers under the overall command of General Van Dorn (6,000 men), losing the battle and about 1,000 men while Withers lost just over 400. In Kentucky, Confederate control of Louisville was loosened, as General Rosecrans, now in command of an Army, moved south of Louisville to cut off the Confederate forces with corps under Halleck in New Albany, Indiana and under Thomas in Lexington poised to move into Harodsburg and Louisville. At the same time, Confederate forces in Louisville moved south into Nelson and Hart County and [not Hard].
Attachments
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Sun May 15, 2016 3:36 pm

The 1863 campaign season in the West was delayed by bad weather and forces arranged in a perilous stalemate. In late may, General Smith moved a small corps (13,000 men) of two divisions under McPherson and Willich south from New Madrid into Osceola against a division under General Withers under the overall command of General Van Dorn (6,000 men), losing the battle and about 1,000 men while Withers lost just over 400. McPherson was killed in the retreat. In Kentucky, Confederate control of Louisville was loosened, as General Rosecrans, now in command of an Army, moved south of Louisville to cut off the Confederate forces with corps under Halleck in New Albany, Indiana and under Thomas in Lexington poised to move into Harodsburg and Louisville. At the same time, Confederate forces in Louisville moved south into Nelson and Hart County and [not Hard].

[ATTACH]38897[/ATTACH]

Also in May, General Sigel arrived from training in Milwaukee with two divisions of Wisconsin infantry under John Newton and James Rickets. Sigel's force was moving from training in Milwaukee to training in Cairo, Illinois and, in that single turn, Sigel was inspired, he said by the "Stimme Gottes", and somehow changed course and came to New York City during that fortnight. Those two divisions were combined with divisions under Reynolds and Barlow and sent to General Dodge in Fredericktown, Maryland; forming a corps of over 30,000 men. At the same time, leaving a single division in the capital, General Milroy railed three infantry divisions and two cavalry forces from Washington to Fredericktown, and from there marched into Harper's Ferry to fight a battle against General Holmes, who fought with divisions under Generals Johnson and Hoke. Milroy's infantry divisions were led by Generals Warren, Corcoran, and S. P. Carter, who also had a commission with the Navy and was one of the few men to be an officer in both the Navy and Army during the war. Cavalry consisted of a division under Pleasanton and the Saber brigade under Minty. Michigander's in the Saber brigade were especially happy to be fighting under Sigel's Wisconsin men, particularly under Newton. General Reynold's performed very well in the fight, and General Warren took heavy losses, taking the lead in the early stages of the assault. Union forces counted almost 67,000 men while Confederates included nearly 15,000. Union losses were about 6,000, while the Confederates lost almost 4,000.
Attachments
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Mon May 16, 2016 10:30 pm

By early July, the corps under Milroy and Dodge had pushed the confederate forces out of the valley, although with no other significant battles. General Sykes was viewed as a slow campaigner, and found his services would be more highly valued garrisoning the capital, and he took over as a corps commander, commanding much of the corps that was under Milroy consisting of Carter, Warren, and Corcoran. General Stevens, a militia division under General Couch, and the Saber brigade remained in the valley, while Dodge railed his corps consisting of divisions under Reynolds, Barlow, Newton, and Ricketts back to the capital. This command then crossed the Potomac, to assault the Confederate fort established near Alexandria. Sykes corps with Milroy now second in command supported, and the combined Union force consisted of 53,000 men and faced Forney's corps of 15,000 men with divisions under McClaws and Johnson, Johnson having joined McClaws after his divisions recent loss at Harper's Ferry. A large battle occurred on July 13, costing 15,300 Union casualties and 8,500 Confederate casualties. Both the Confederate divisions took heavy losses, while Barlow and Newton took the heaviest losses on the Union side. The Confederate's held the field, but there force was utterly exhausted, and Union forces did not withdraw, electing to set camp in the yard of the Custus-Lee plantation, which they claimed they would never again lose. At this time, a number of the dead from the recent battle were buried in the yard of the first first lady's former home and it was thus, on this sad day, that Arlington Cemetery had its first inhabitants.

[ATTACH]38907[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Wed May 18, 2016 9:36 am

On July 21, 1863, a 4 part battle in the area around Burkeville and Petersburg. The first battle was near Petersburg, General Foster's corps from Banks' army in Norfolk moved west with 4,900 men under a division of Alpheus Williams, meeting a cavalry corps under General Holmes leading a division under John Hunt Morgan with 2,900 men. Holmes won the battle, but withdrew.

[ATTACH]38913[/ATTACH]

On July 22, General Gibbon's corps of two divisions under McCall and Burnside crossed the Appomattox near Burkeville and fought against combined Longstreet and Holmes' combined corps, Longstreet contributing divisions under Wheeler, A. P. Stewart, and Stevenson. Gibbon's losses were very heavy on that first day, losing half of his 16,000 men. Confederate forces were also around 16,000, and lost 2,000.

[ATTACH]38914[/ATTACH]

Two days later General Howard arrived, also crossing Appomattox creek, and fought the 14,000 Confederates remaining. Howard brought about 33,000 men under divisions under Mansfield, Auger, and Tyler. Howard lost about 5,000 men, while Holmes and Longstreet lost another 2,000.

[ATTACH]38915[/ATTACH]

On July 29, General Kearney arrived with his corps bringing the Union total involved in the one week affair to 64,000 men in Burkeville and 5,000 in Petersburg, although Kearney would only have 50,000 men to fight with that day. Kearney's corps had three infantry divisions under Sickles, Buford, and Hunter and an artillery division under Humphreys. Confederate forces were exhausted at this time, and the battle was very short. In the initial stage, General Humphreys artillery and General Sickles were very effective, and in the second stage, Mansfield, Auger, and Tyler joined in an effective attack which defeated completely Confederate divisions under A.P. Stewart and John Morgan.

[ATTACH]38916[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH]38917[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled5.jpg
Untitled4.jpg
Untitled3.jpg
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Wed May 18, 2016 11:19 pm

In early August, Grant's forces in Humboldt, Tennessee moved out of their trenches and were replaced by a new corps under Gilbert withe divisions under Willich and Wadsworth and a cavalry division under Mitchell. Grant moved East into Fort Henry, where he pushed back a disorganized corps under General Smith with a division under General W.H.F. Lee and with General Armstrong arriving to form a second division which would include Powell's and Vaughn's Tennessee Brigades. Grant's force in the battle consisted of about 48,000 and lost about 4,800, while Smith's 12,000 lost 3,200. General Granger's Cavalry and Buford's infantry performed exceptionally well for Grant, whose force also included divisions under Sherman McClernand and Schurz. General Hamilton's corps of a militia division under General Steele also took part, and Steele's militia and Granger's cavalry took the heaviest losses on the Union side.

[ATTACH]38918[/ATTACH]

After the battle, the situation in Western Tennessee was highly disorganized. The Union had made a breakthrough, and could continue to march south along the Tennessee River or march east towards Nashville. Further, the Union was organizing new divisions in Cairo that would soon arrive and may allow Grant to move west through Joe Johnston's force at Humboldt towards Memphis. Dupont, Porter, and Foote all had considerable fleet's of 1, 2, and 5 ironclads available for support. In Central Kentucky, A.S. Johnston's army consisted of seven divisions split between a main group under Johnston in Bowling Green, two divisions across the Barren River under Forrest and two more under Huger in Clarksville. Facing off against these are 8 divisions in Rosecrans Kentucky Department stretching from east of Munfordville to the Western shore of the Green River.

[ATTACH]38919[/ATTACH]

In the East, Lee has moved to Petersburg, breaking the siege of that town by a Union corps under Howard, which retreated back into Burkeville, joining with the corps under Kearney and Gibbon in that place. Another corps under Franklin of two divisions arrived at City Point seeking to stretch the encirclement of Richmond to the East. However, the Confederate breakthrough at Petersburg changes the options at City Point. Confederate forces were disorganized, but may have consisted of about 80,000 between the force under Lee in Petersburg of three to six divisions, another corps of two divisions under Longstreet in Manchester, and two to four divisions in Richmond.

In the rest of Virginia, three cavalry forces under Stoneman and Minty in the West and Pleasanton in the northeast are limiting the effectiveness of partisan activities in the state. A large portion of the Union army under McDowell and a corps under Hooker remain at Charlottesville. Three large corps under Hancock, Dodge, and Keyes are in the northern part of the state, following the retreating Confederate army, which in August still had about two divisions at Manassas and three more along the Rapidan river. Beauregard and Jackson were the main leaders in that part of the state, and at least 25,000 men remained north of Richmond's defenses.

[ATTACH]38920[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled3.jpg
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
Cardinal Ape
General of the Army
Posts: 619
Joined: Wed Mar 07, 2012 1:59 am

Thu May 19, 2016 1:13 am

Really bloody and interesting... :thumbsup:

I'd like to request a peek at the objectives page, please. Is there still a 60NM difference?

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Thu May 19, 2016 1:57 pm

Napoleon tells us that "Geography is destiny", and it is through the crumbling extent of Confederate controlled geography that in mid-1863 Unionists were predicting the future demise of the Confederacy, even as Union newspapers decried the enormous loss of life in the war.

[ATTACH]38921[/ATTACH]

This history has largely ignored the trans-Mississippi, but we should quickly review the conditions that brought about the situation in mid-1863. In mid-1862, a Sioux faction in Minnesota declared war on the United States for reasons that we should not go into in a military history such as this one, but which were certainly more respectable than those of the traitorous Confederacy. However, they were unable to see a way forward with their rebellion and Minnesota militia secured settlements. The Union government was willing to allow the Indians to remain in their regions, no blood was shed, and peace was restored. In late-1862 and 1863, those Minnesota militia moved south and were assigned to garrisons. In 1863, Union forces overran El Paso, Texas, and during that year a cavalry division, a militia division, and a division of US infantry began moving across Texas, garrisoning various points. In Arkansas, Lyon's force took heavy losses from disease in the winter of 1862-1863, and Union need to give commands to new division leaders restricted the number of recruits sent to Lyon as replacements for depleted regiments. In this state, Arkansas and Missouri remained in stalemate, Missouri nearly entirely Union, Arkansas nearly entirely Confederate. South of North Carolina on the Confederate coasts there has been little or no action, with an exception of a militia skirmish north of Union held Fort Pickens in Santa Rosa County, Florida.

Eight commanders had, by this time, been made commanders of Armies or districts. Grant, Rosecrans, and McDowell have been well discussed. Lyon, as just mentioned, was in North-west Arkansas. Butler was in western Virginia awaiting orders to move into Tennessee. Independent cavalry nominally under Rosecrans and McDowell were both tasked with raiding towards Knoxville, but Butler's calls for infantry divisions were not being heeded. Fremont was in Missouri organizing political affairs. Lyon had, until recently, been under his command. Buell was moving towards the capital, where he would be given garrison duties. McClellan was in New York City as head of national recruiting.

[ATTACH]38922[/ATTACH]

The Union economy was heavily stretched, as every dollar was being spent on recruiting and every conscript was immediately being sent forward. Union leaders were lucky there were no polling companies at the time, as they would have found a despondent population due to the frequent tactical losses in the field and the Union's steadfast position of ignoring the recommendations of newspapers and non-military politicians. Union production was at high gear, investment in rail and river improvements was regular and made at the highest possible levels. So to were investments in industrial improvements, and Armies should not be in want of general or war supplies so long as supply lines were maintained by the generals in the field.

[ATTACH]38923[/ATTACH]

In spite of ignoring newspapers, one cannot help but consider Union objectives. In general, the Union had fought well. It had taken control of numerous towns in the South and had, since the declaration of Emancipation, loosened the shackles holding many people to bondage. Union naval power was considerable and army power was also worthy. Casualties had been heavy on both sides, although the bloody calculus remained in the Union's favor, as losses had been 358,000 Union soldiers to 266,000 Confederate, a ratio of slightly over 4:3, while the populations (counting slaves) held a ratio of over 7:3 in favor of the Union. However, the Confederate population had extremely high moral and frequently called for Union surrender, a demand which many in the Union sought as well.

[ATTACH]38924[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled3.jpg
Untitled4.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Thu May 19, 2016 3:30 pm

Cardinal Ape wrote:Really bloody and interesting... :thumbsup:

I'd like to request a peek at the objectives page, please. Is there still a 60NM difference?


[The NM difference is now 85 (149-64). I have no idea what to do about it except start winning battles, and I don't want to change my playing style (aggressive, audacious, all-theater, if I allow myself three words but one protoglyph); I think this way of playing is the most fun. At this point, casualties in game are very similar than the actual total deaths from the whole war. I can't seem to find a list of casualties in the war by year, I'd love to be able to compare. The assumption in the game is, I believe, that casualties include wounded. I don't remember if they include attrition. I have a lot of attrition because I don't slow down enough in the winter. A note about NM, if I turtled for 6 months (12 turns), I could expect the NM difference to decline by about 20 points (I get zero, one, or two points of national resilience per year, and Straight Arrow probably loses about the same) and the front lines should stay the same (I think I have most of the initiative in the war and am dictating behavior more or less). My goal over the next 6 months is to push the Confederacy out of all of Kentucky and most of Tennessee and Texas. I can imagine a situation where I encircle Richmond, but I'm not sure I can do it. If west Tennessee falls sooner than later, northern Arkansas will fall as well. If Richmond is encircled and/or Texas crumbles quickly, I might open a new front in the Gulf.]
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Fri May 20, 2016 4:13 pm

On September 7, 1863, Hancock's corps caught up with the Confederate rear retreating from northern Virginia towards Richmond in Culpepper. Beauregard was leading the confederate force which consisted of 23,000 in three divisions under Early, Hoke, and Ruggles. Hancock was leading 4 divisions under Carter, Sedgewick, Warren, and Corcoran. Carter's division led the initial attack against Early and Hoke's divisions. General Dodge's corps from Manassas and General Hooker's corps from near Charlottesville joined in the battle, as did General Keye's corps from nearby Page County and the remainder of McDowell's Army near Hooker by Charlottesville, bring the Union force up to 85,000 men with additional divisions under Porter, Butterfield, Meagher, Howe, Barlow, Newton, Reynolds, Ricketts, Birney, and Richardson. Porter, Meagher, and Newton performed especially well, as did Hooker and Keyes at the corps level, while Dodge's corps, especially John Newton, performed less well.

[ATTACH]38926[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Sat May 21, 2016 10:23 pm

After its victory at Culpepper, McDowell and Hooker followed Beauregard's retreating army into Albermarle County, Virginia where they ran into another of the great disasters of the war in a force of about 50,000 largely in a corps under Longstreet, who was not engaged in the previous battle. The fight opened on September 25 and saw McDowells force of 80,000 lose 24,000 men, while Beauregard lost 10,000. Fitzjohn Porter on the Union side and William Pender on the Confederate performed especially well in this first bloodbath which saw the Union divisions under Sedgewick and Carter completely destroyed.

[ATTACH]38927[/ATTACH]

The next day, Confederate reinforcements arrived and the battle began again with McDowell's remaining 65,500 facing against Bearegard's reinforced Army now consisting of 41,000. The Union lost another 23,000 men while the Confederacy lost 11,000. Union Divisions under Ricketts and Reynolds were destroyed.

[ATTACH]38928[/ATTACH]

This enormous loss of life and loss of battle was balanced somewhat by the continued march of General Grant on General Joe Johnston's Army in western Tennessee. Grant took Fort Pillow the second day of the battle in Albermarle, Sepember 26, losing 8000 men to the Confederacy's loss of 12,000 in a battle seeing 83,000 Union soldiers against 34,000 Confederates. All of the divisions under Grant's immediate supervision performed admirably, Sherman, McClernand, Willich, Wadsworth, Buford, Schurz, as did Mitchell's cavalry division in Gilbert's corps.

[ATTACH]38929[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled3.jpg
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Sun May 22, 2016 4:45 pm

On October 2, 1862, Nathaniel Lyon's Army of the Southwest finally gathered the courage to attack General Magruder's force at Fort Smith, south of Fayetteville, Arkansas. The attack came after a fleet of six ironclads under Admiral Porter had reached the area and could proved water-based artillery support to augment Lyon's infantry heavy columns under Generals Wallace, Prentiss, Gillmore, and Davis. The battle saw 2,000 Confederate casualties of a force of nearly 9,000 and 6,000 Union casualties from a force of 30,000. The loss was not unexpected, and Lyon was asked to follow up with another battle.

[ATTACH]38930[/ATTACH]

Across the Mississippi, General Grant continued his march towards Memphis, meeting a force of 15,000 under General Polk outside Covington, Tennessee with infantry divisions under Generals Smith and Shelby. Grant's 78,000 lost about 8,000, while Polk's 15,000 lost 11,000. In this battle, and Grant's previous battles, retreating Confederate forces have faced heavy losses of nearly 2,000 men [~100 hits], further increasing the impact of these battles.

[ATTACH]38931[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

User avatar
tripax
AGEod Veteran
Posts: 777
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 9:58 pm

Mon May 23, 2016 11:53 am

On October 16, Lyon's force in Fort Smith was unable to break Magruder and Watie's force, losing 5,600 men, and more importantly, General Davis, whose death ended the attack.

[ATTACH]38932[/ATTACH]

On October 24, Grant marched east of Memphis to Hardeman County and opened battle against General Joe Johnston. Grant's army was not supported by his attendant corps, and his forces numbered only 50,000 and faced Johnston's 35,000. Losses were about 6,000 on both sides. While Johnston held the field, Grant remained in the area, and a large corps under General Thomas had been sent for from Central Tennessee and was likely to arrive in the area in early November.

[ATTACH]38933[/ATTACH]
Attachments
Untitled2.jpg
Untitled.jpg
Across the South, we have a deep appreciation of history -- we haven’t always had a deep appreciation of each other’s history. - Reverend Clementa Pinckney

Return to “CW2 AARs”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 8 guests