Chapter One: Lee's Greatest Victory Part One
A cropping of the famous painting,
The Gods Amongst Generals, which is currently hanging in the Confederate White House. The painting depicts General Lee riding with his senior subordinates Generals Thomas, Jackson, Longstreet, A.P. Hill, D.H. Hill, and Stuart, while speaking with General Jackson.
Despite it not being Lee's most important or decisive victory, Chancellorsville is still referred to by historians as his greatest victory due it being the battle in which he faced his greatest numerical disadvantage in terms of soldiers. It would also set into motion the chain of events that would ultimately lead to Confederate independence. The stage was set for the battle in the aftermath of Battle of Fredericksburg, and the subsequent Mud March, which brought Union morale to an all time low. Seeing the need for change, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln would accept General Ambrose Burnside's offer to resign from the command of the Army of the Potomac on January 26, 1863. Burnside's replacement would Major General Joseph Hooker.
Major General Joseph Hooker, Commander of the Army of the Potomac
Hooker had first risen to prominence serving as a division commander at the Battle of Williamsburg during the Peninsula Campaign, where he earned his nickname "Fighting Joe Hooker" through a clerical error. Rising through the ranks, and serving with some distinction, Hooker would serve as commander of Burnside's Center Grand Division during the Battle of Fredericksburg. Following that debacle, Hooker would be one several officer who connived to get Burnside relieved of command, with the hope he would receive Burnside's role as commander of Army of the Potomac. With Burnside's resignation, Hooker would assume that role, and promptly start working on reforming the army, including improving rations, changes to camp sanitation, hospital reforms, an improved furlough system, better drills, and more officer training, all of which improved the morale of his men. He also consolidated the army's cavalry units into one corps, at the head of which he placed General George Stoneman.
General George Stoneman, 1st commander of the Cavalry Corps, AotP
Unfortunately for Hooker, many of the senior officers of the Army of the Potomac had left the army following Fredericksburg, leaving him many posts to fill. Hooker would abandon Burnside's grand divisions system, and return to the traditional corps system. The commanders of the I, II, and XII Corps remained the same from Fredericksburg, while the open posts for command of the III, V, VI, and XI Corps were filled by Generals Daniel E. Sickles, George G. Meade, John Sedgwick, and Oliver O. Howard respectfully. With his army reformed, Hooker began his movements against Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
From left to right: Daniel Sickles, George Meade, John Sedgwick, and Oliver Howard.
After several plans, Hooker finally settled on one involving double envelopment. Stoneman and the cavalry corps would launch a deep raid into Virginia, hoping to draw Lee’s attention to themselves. Meanwhile, the V, XI, XII, and two divisions of the II under Henry W. Slocum would stealthily cross the Rappahannock River, and attack Lee from the West, meanwhile the I and VI under John Sedgwick would cross the Rappahannock and seize Fredericksburg, which would threaten the Confederate right. All the while, the Confederates would be distracted by Hooker’s remaining forces, the III Corpsand the II Corps’ remaining division. Hooker planned that this maneuver would force Lee to either retreat, at which point he would vigorously pursued, or attack the Army of the Potomac on ground unfavorable to himself.
Hooker's plan for his campaign
Hooker could not have decided to strike at a more opportune time. Lee had dispatched two divisions from his I Corps, Longstreet's and Pender's, under the command James Longstreet, to face the threat the Union IX Corps was creating on the Virginia peninsula, and to test James Longstreet at independent command. This left him with only six infantry divisions and his Cavalry Corps to face off against Hooker's advances. Hooker set his plan into motion, and at first, it went off unabated, with Lee completely unaware of what was happening. Lee only became aware of the threat when the movements of the enemy were detected J.E.B. Stuart and his Cavalry Corps. Realizing the peril he was in, Lee had to devise a plan quickly.
James Ewell Brown "J.E.B." Stuart, commander of the Cavalry Corps, AoNV
Lee would violate one of war's basic principles, never divide your force in the face of a superior enemy, with his strategy. Lee would leave I Corps commander General George H. Thomas and one of his divisions under Richard Anderson to defend Fredericksburg, while he and and II Corps commander, Stonewall Jackson maneuvered with the rest of the army to try and drive the force under Hooker and Slocum back. With his plan decided on, Lee would move the planned forces out of Fredericksburg, and start marching towards the Union forces under Hooker.
The three senior CSA officers at the Chancellorsville battle: Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, and George H. Thomas
The Battle of Chancellorsville would begin on March 1, 1863 with Lee's and Hooker's main forces colliding in their movements. Initially, the Confederacy was able to force the Union back, but they managed to regroup, and regain their lost ground. Despite their offensive success, Hooker would put on stop to the movements, as he hoped for a defensive battle, and feared an offensive one might bring about another Fredericksburg. He also believed that their maneuvers were sufficient enough to force Lee to make an offensive action, which was Hooker's goal. When Hooker's subordinates were informed of Hooker's orders to halt, several were incensed, but the orders were followed, and the day's fighting came to an end with the Union forces digging in to their position.
Lee and Jackson would discuss the next day's actions in the now famous scene of the two of them sitting on two boxes. Jackson assumed the Union forces would withdraw, while Lee's belief was that Hooker had invested too much into the action to withdraw now. It was decided that if Hooker was still in position the next day, the Confederates would attack. The plan for attack was developed when Stuart's cavalry brought the information that the Union right flank, the XI Corps under Oliver Howard, was in the air with no cavalry guarding it, as they were all raiding deep into Virginia, leaving it vulnerable to a flanking movement. To successfully reach this flank, Lee would have to march his entire force across the Union front without them noticing. Luckily for Lee, a newly constructed road through the forest which would shield his movements from the Union lines was identified by Jackson's cartographer, Jedediah Hotchkiss. With this determined, Lee ordered Jackson to move his command across the whole Union front using the road, and to attack the exposed Union flank. With this order, Jackson set off into the most risky maneuver of the war.
A depiction of the famous meeting between Lee and Jackson