The Spotsylvania Campaign
The Spotsylvania Campaign marked a crucial period in the confrontation between Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee in Virginia. Waged over a two-week period in mid-May 1864, it included some of the most savage fighting of the Civil War and left indelible marks on all involved

Spotsylvania Court House
Ni River, Harris Farm
Civil War Virginia


American Civil War
May 8-21, 1864


The Wilderness Campaign
Military Campaigns of the Civil War

In 1864, in the vast Virginia scrub forest known as the Wilderness, Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee first met in battle. The Wilderness campaign of May 5-6 initiated an epic confrontation between these two Civil War commanders

After the Wilderness, Grant's and Meade's advance on Richmond by the left flank was stalled at Spotsylvania Court House on May 8. This two-week battle was a series of combats along the Spotsylvania front.

The Union attack against the Bloody Angle at dawn, May 12-13, captured nearly a division of Lee's army and came near to cutting the Confederate army in half. Confederate counterattacks plugged the gap, and fighting continued unabated for nearly 20 hours in what may well have been the most ferociously sustained combat of the Civil War.

On May 19, a Confederate attempt to turn the Union right flank at Harris Farm was beaten back with severe casualties.

Union generals Sedgwick (VI Corps commander) and Rice were killed. Confederate generals General Johnson and Stuart were captured, Daniel and Perrin mortally wounded.

On May 21, Grant disengaged and continued his advance on Richmond.

Result(s): Inconclusive (Grant continued his offensive.)

Other Names: Combats at Laurel Hill and Corbin's Bridge (May 8); Ni River (May 9); Laurel Hill, Po River, and Bloody Angle (May 10); Salient or Bloody Angle (May 12-13); Piney Branch Church (May 15); Harrison House (May 18); Harris Farm (May 19)

Location: Spotsylvania County

Campaign: Grant's Overland Campaign (May-June 1864) next battle in campaign   previous battle in campaign

Date(s): May 8-21, 1864

Principal Commanders: Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant and Major General George G. Meade [US]; General Robert E. Lee [CS]

Forces Engaged: 152,000 total (US 100,000; CS 52,000)

Estimated Casualties: 30,000 total (US 18,000; CS 12,000)


In the Footsteps of Grant and Lee: The Wilderness Through Cold Harbor
For forty days, the armies fought a grinding campaign from the Rapidan River to the James River that helped decide the course of the Civil War. Several of the war's bloodiest engagements occurred in this brief period: the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, the North Anna River, Totopotomoy Creek, Bethesda Church, and Cold Harbor

Fredericksburg Virginia Area Civil War Battles

Click for full size Map

Lee's Miserables: Life in the Army of Northern Virginia from the Wilderness to Appomattox
The words of the soldiers themselves provide a view of the army's experiences in camp, on the march, in combat, and under siege�from the battles in the Wilderness to the final retreat to Appomattox. It sheds new light on such questions as the state of morale in the army, the causes of desertion, ties between the army and the home front
Civil War Replica Musket
Civil War Musket
Wood & Steel Frontier Rifle Designed After The Original Rifle



Civil War Revolver Pistol
Civil War Model 1851 Naval Pistol
Virginia State Battle Map 1864
State Battle Maps
Confederate Commanders
Ships and Naval Battles
Civil War Submarines
Appomattox Courthouse
President Abraham Lincoln
Kids Zone Battle of Gettysburg
American Civil War Exhibits
Civil War Summary
Civil War Campaigns
Reenactors Supplies
Civil War soldier toys 102 pieces
Civil War Soldier 102 Piece Playset
 
  • 25 Union and 25 Confederate Soldier Figures, 18 Horses, 10 Cannon
  • 2 Covered Wagons, 2 Tents, 2 Canoes, 2 Flags, 16 Fences
  • Size: Figures Stand up to 2-1/8 inches tall
  • Scale: 1/32nd, Wagons and Horses slightly smaller
 

American Civil War Book Titles
Kindle Available
Continuos Fight

One Continuous Fight: The Retreat from Gettysburg and the Pursuit of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia
The first detailed military history of Lee's retreat and the Union effort to catch and destroy the wounded Army of Northern Virginia Complimented with 18 original maps, dozens of photos, and a complete driving tour with GPS coordinates of the entire retreat
Lee Retreat
Lee's Last Retreat
The Flight to Appomattox

Lee's troops were more numerous and far less faithful to their cause than has been suggested. Lee himself made mistakes in this campaign, and defeat wrung from him an unusual display of faultfinding

Bloody Roads South: The Wilderness to Cold Harbor, May-June 1864
This chronicles the great 1864 Overland Campaign, forty days that marked the end of the Civil War. In detail the battles in Virginia's Wilderness to the combat at Spotsylvania the trap laid by Lee at the North Anna River, to the killing ground of Cold Harbor
Kindle Available
Cold Harbor

Cold Harbor Grant and Lee
May 26-June 3, 1864

A chronicle of the bloody fighting in 1864 as Ulysses Grant headed south and Robert E. Lee tried to prevent him from success. From the Wilderness to Spotsylvania Court House to the North Anna River to Cold Harbor.

The Wilderness Campaign
Military Campaigns of the Civil War

In 1864, in the vast Virginia scrub forest known as the Wilderness, Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee first met in battle. The Wilderness campaign of May 5-6 initiated an epic confrontation between these two Civil War commanders
Victory
Victory Without Triumph
The Wilderness, May 6th & 7th, 1864

John Priest meticulously details the vicious infantry fighting along the Plank Road, Longstreet's counterstrike against the II Corps, the cavalry operations of both armies near Todd's Tavern, and John B. Gordon's daring assault against the Army of the Potomac's right flank.
Spotsylvania
The Spotsylvania Campaign
The Spotsylvania Campaign marked a crucial period in the confrontation between Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee in Virginia. Waged over a two-week period in mid-May 1864, it included some of the most savage fighting of the Civil War and left indelible marks on all involved
Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness May 5-6, 1864
Fought in a tangled forest fringing the south bank of the Rapidan River, the Battle of the Wilderness marked the initial engagement in the climactic months of the Civil War in Virginia, and the first encounter between Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee
Young Reader Titles
Underground Railroad
Allen Jay and the Underground Railroad
Allen Jay and the Underground Railroad is the retelling of a man's recollections of his first experience helping an escaped slave. The book brings the underground railroad down to the level primary students can comprehend. This book makes for wonderful discussions regarding overcoming one's fears, going against the norm and doing what you believe to be morally correct.
Kindle Available

The Glory Cloak: A Novel of Louisa May Alcott and Clara Barton
From childhood, Susan Gray and her cousin Louisa May Alcott have shared a safe, insular world of outdoor adventures and grand amateur theater -- a world that begins to evaporate with the outbreak of the Civil War. Frustrated with sewing uniforms and wrapping bandages, the two women journey to Washington, D.C.'s Union Hospital to volunteer as nurses.

Clara Barton Founder of the American Red Cross
Young Clara Barton is shy and lonely in her early days at boarding school. She is snubbed by the other girls because she doesn't know how to talk to them. But when she gets an opportunity to assist the local doctor, her shyness disappears, and Clara begins to discover her true calling as a nurse.
Kindle Available

Civil War Days: Discover the Past with Exciting Projects, Games, Activities, and Recipes
Dozens of projects and activities that will take you back to the days of the American Civil War Travel back to 1862 and spend a year with the Wheelers, an African American family in New York City, and the Parkhursts, a white family in Charleston, South Carolina, Eleven-year-old Emily Parkhurst and twelve-year-old Timothy Wheeler are eager to share the fun, adventure, and hard work of their daily lives. Along the way, they'll show you how to play the games they play and make the toys and crafts they make.

Civil War History Documentary DVD Movie Titles
Bad Blood Civil War Misouri and Kansas
Bad Blood: The Border War That Triggered the Civil War
In the years leading up to the Civil War, a bloody conflict between slaveholders and abolitionists focused the nation's eyes on the state of Missouri and the territory of Kansas. Told through the actual words of slave owners, free-staters, border ruffians, and politicians, Bad Blood presents the complex morality, differing values, and life-and-death decisions faced by those who lived on the Missouri-Kansas border

Blue Vs. Gray - Killing Fields
Relive the most vicious fighting of the Civil War, in which General Ulysses S. Grant forcibly reversed the tide of the conflict by paying with the blood of thousands. It was a desperate time for the Union

The Civil War in Virginia
Virginia was the arena where North and South fought many of their bloodiest battles. the program gives a full account of the events that took place describing in detail the history of the American Civil War in Virginia

The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns
Here is the saga of celebrated generals and ordinary soldiers, a heroic and transcendent president and a country that had to divide itself in two in order to become one

Sources:
U.S. National Park Service
U.S. Library of Congress.

Fredericksburg Virginia Current Weather and Information


Search
AmericanCivilWar.com
 
Enter the keywords you are looking for and the site will be searched and all occurrences of your request will be displayed. You can also enter a date format, April 19,1862 or September 1864.
Books
Civil War
Womens Subjects
Young Readers
Military History

DVDs
Confederate Store
Civil War Games
Music CDs
Reenactors