REORGANIZATION AND REST FOR BOTH ARMIES.
The Confederates appoint Seven Lieutenant-Generals--The Army of
Northern Virginia organized in Corps--General McClellan relieved, and
General Burnside appointed Commander of the Army of the Potomac--A
Lift for the South--McClellan was growing--Burnside's "Three Grand
Divisions"--The Campaign of the Rappahannock--Getting Ready for
Fredericksburg--Longstreet occupies Fredericksburg--The Town called to
surrender by General Sumner--Exodus of the Inhabitants under a Threat
to shell the Town.
Under an act not long before passed by the Confederate Congress
authorizing the appointment of seven lieutenant-generals, the authorities
at Richmond about this time sent commissions to Lieutenant-Generals
Longstreet, Polk, Holmes, Hardee, E. K. Smith, Jackson, and Pemberton, and
made appointments of a number of major-generals. Under these appointments
General Lee organized the Army of Northern Virginia into corps
substantially as it subsequently fought the battle of Fredericksburg.[108]
The Confederate army rested along the lines between the Potomac and
Winchester till late in October. On the 8th, General Stuart was ordered
across to ride around the Union army, then resting about Sharpsburg and
Harper's Ferry. His ride caused some excitement among the Union troops,
and he got safely to the south side with the loss of a few men slightly
wounded, on the 12th. On the 26th, General McClellan marched south and
crossed the Potomac east of the Blue Ridge. Jackson was assigned the duty
of guarding the passes. I marched south, corresponding with the march of
the Army of the Potomac. A division crossed at Ashby's Gap to
Upperville to look for the head of McClellan's army. He bore farther
eastward and marched for Warrenton, where he halted on the 5th of
November. The division was withdrawn from Upperville and marched for
Culpeper Court-House, arriving at that point at the same time as
McClellan's at Warrenton,--W. H. F. Lee's cavalry the day before me. Soon
after the return to Culpeper Court-House, Evans's brigade was relieved of
duty with the First Corps and ordered south. Hood had a brush with a
cavalry force at Manassas Gap, and part of McLaws's division a similar
experience at the east end of Chester Gap.
[Illustration: LIEUTENANT-GENERAL JAMES LONGSTREET (1862).]
I reached Culpeper Court-House with the divisions of McLaws, R. H.
Anderson, and Pickett. Hood's division was ordered behind Robertson River,
and Ransom to Madison Court-House, General Jackson with the Second Corps
remaining in the Shenandoah Valley, except one division at Chester Gap of
the Blue Ridge.
The Washington authorities issued orders on the 5th of November relieving
General McClellan of, and assigning General Burnside to, command of the
Army of the Potomac. On the 9th the army was put under General Burnside,
in due form.
When informed of the change, General Lee expressed regret, as he thought
that McClellan could be relied upon to conform to the strictest rules of
science in the conduct of war. He had been McClellan's preceptor, they had
served together in the engineer corps, and our chief thought that he
thoroughly understood the displaced commander. The change was a good lift
for the South, however; McClellan was growing, was likely to exhibit far
greater powers than he had yet shown, and could not have given us
opportunity to recover the morale lost at Sharpsburg, as did Burnside and
Hooker.
General Burnside, soon after assuming command, and while waiting at
Warrenton, made a radical change in the organization of the army by
consolidating the corps into three "Grand Divisions" as follows:
THE RIGHT GRAND DIVISION, GENERAL SUMNER COMMANDING.--Second Army
Corps, General D. W. Couch; Ninth Army Corps, General O. B. Wilcox.
CENTRE GRAND DIVISION, GENERAL JOSEPH HOOKER COMMANDING.--Third Army
Corps, General George Stoneman; Fifth Army Corps, General Daniel
Butterfield.
LEFT GRAND DIVISION, GENERAL W. B. FRANKLIN COMMANDING.--First Army
Corps, General J. F. Reynolds; Sixth Army Corps, General W. F. Smith.
CAVALRY DIVISION.--General Alfred Pleasonton.
Artillery, siege, and field batteries, 370 guns, General Henry J.
Hunt, Chief.
At the time of the change of commanders the Confederates were looking for
a Federal move north of Culpeper Court-House, and were surveying the
ground behind Robertson River for a point of concentration of the two
wings to meet that move.
General Burnside, however, promptly planned operations on other lines. He
submitted to President Lincoln his proposition to display some force in
the direction of Gordonsville as a diversion, while with his main army he
would march south, cross the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg, and reach by
a surprise march ground nearer Richmond than the holdings of the
Confederates. This was approved by the President with the suggestion that
its success depended upon prompt execution.
On the 15th light began to break upon the Confederates, revealing a move
south from Warrenton, but it was not regarded as a radical change from the
Orange and Alexandria Railroad line of advance. A battery of artillery was
sent with a regiment of infantry to reinforce the Confederate outpost at
Fredericksburg under Colonel Ball.
On the 17th information came that the Right Grand Division under General
Sumner had marched south, leaving the railroad, and General W. H. F.
Lee's cavalry was ordered to Fredericksburg.
The next morning I marched with two divisions, McLaws's and Ransom's, the
former for Fredericksburg, the latter towards the North Anna. The same
day, General Lee ordered a forced reconnoissance by his cavalry to
Warrenton, found that the Union army was all on the march towards
Fredericksburg, and ordered my other divisions to follow on the 19th.
At the first disclosure he was inclined to move for a position behind the
North Anna, as at that time the position behind Fredericksburg appeared a
little awkward for the Confederates, but, taking into careful
consideration the position of the Union army on the Stafford side, the
former appeared the less faulty of the two. Defence behind the Anna would
have been stronger, but the advantage of the enemy's attack would also
have been enhanced there. Then, too, anticipation of the effect of
surprising the enemy in their intended surprise had some influence in
favor of Fredericksburg.
The Burnside march was somewhat of the Horace Greeley "On-to-Richmond"
_nolens-volens_ style, which, if allowed to run on long enough, sometimes
gains headway that is troublesome.
General Sumner reached Falmouth on the 17th, and proposed to cross, but
his advance was met and forced back by Colonel Ball's command.
I rode with the leading division for Fredericksburg, and was on the
heights on the 19th. My head-quarters were there when General Sumner
called upon the civil authorities to surrender the city by the following
communication:
"HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC,
"November 21, 1862.
"MAYOR AND COMMON COUNCIL OF FREDERICKSBURG:
"GENTLEMEN,--Under cover of the houses of your city shots have been
fired upon the troops of my command. Your mills and manufactories are
furnishing provisions and the material for clothing for armed bodies
in rebellion against the government of the United States. Your
railroads and other means of transportation are removing supplies to
the depots of such troops. This condition of things must terminate,
and, by direction of General Burnside, I accordingly demand the
surrender of the city into my hands, as the representative of the
government of the United States, at or before five o'clock this
afternoon.
"Failing an affirmative reply to this demand by the hour indicated,
sixteen hours will be permitted to elapse for the removal from the
city of women and children, the sick and wounded and aged, etc., which
period having expired, I shall proceed to shell the town. Upon
obtaining possession of the city, every necessary means will be taken
to preserve order and secure the protective operation of the laws and
policy of the United States government.
"I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
"E. V. SUMNER,
"_Bvt. Maj.-Gen. U. S. Army, commanding Right Grand
Division_."[109]
The officers who received the call, by consent of General Patrick, who
delivered it, referred the paper to my head-quarters. I asked the civil
authorities to reply that the city would not be used for the purposes
complained of, but that neither the town nor the south side of the river
could be occupied by the Union army except by force of arms.
General Sumner ordered two batteries into position commanding the town,
but in a few hours received the following reply from the mayor:
"MAYOR'S OFFICE,
"FREDERICKSBURG, November 21, 1862.
"BREVET MAJOR-GENERAL E. V. SUMNER,
"_Commanding U. S. Army_:
"SIR,--I have received, at 4.40 o'clock this afternoon, your
communication of this date. In it you state that, under cover of the
houses of this town, shots have been fired upon the troops of your
command; that our mills and manufactories are furnishing provisions
and the material for clothing for armed bodies in rebellion against
the government of the United States; that our railroads and other
means of transportation are removing supplies to the depots of such
troops; that this condition of things must terminate; that, by command
of Major-General Burnside, you demand the surrender of this town into
your hands, as the representative of the government of the United
States, at or before five o'clock this afternoon; that, failing an
affirmative reply to this demand by the time indicated, sixteen hours
will be permitted to elapse for the removal from the town of the women
and children, the sick, wounded, and aged, which period having
elapsed, you will proceed to shell the town.
"In reply I have to say that this communication did not reach me in
time to convene the Council for its consideration, and to furnish a
reply by the hour indicated (five P.M.). It was sent to me through the
hands of the commanding officer of the Confederate States near this
town, to whom it was first delivered, by consent of General Patrick,
who bore it from you, as I am informed, and I am authorized by the
commander of the Confederate army to say that there was no delay in
passing it through his hands to me.
"In regard to the matters complained of by you, the firing of shot
upon your troops occurred upon the northern suburbs of the town, and
was the act of the military officer commanding the Confederate forces
near here, for which matter (neither) the citizens nor civil
authorities of this town are responsible. In regard to the other
matters of complaint, I am authorized by the latter officer to say
that the condition of things therein complained of shall no longer
exist; that your troops shall not be fired on from this town; that the
mills and manufactories here will not furnish any further supplies of
provisions or material for clothing for the Confederate troops, nor
will the railroads or other means of transportation here convey
supplies from the town to the depots of said troops.
"Outside of the town the civil authorities of Fredericksburg have no
control, but I am assured by the military authorities of the
Confederate army near here that nothing will be done by them to
infringe the conditions herein named as to matters within the town.
But the latter authorities inform us that, while their troops will not
occupy the town, they will not permit yours to do so.
"You must be aware that there will not be more than three or four
hours of daylight within the sixteen hours given by you for the
removal of the sick and wounded, the women and children, the aged and
infirm, from this place; and I have to inform you that, while there is
no railroad transportation accessible to the town, because of the
interruption thereof by your batteries, all other means of
transportation within the town are so limited as to render the removal
of the classes of persons spoken of within the time indicated as an
utter impossibility.
"I have convened the Council, which will remain in session awaiting
any further communications you may have to make.
"Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
"M. SLAUGHTER,
"_Mayor_."
To this General Sumner responded the same day,--
"MAYOR AND COMMON COUNCIL OF FREDERICKSBURG, VA.:
"Your letter of this afternoon is at hand, and, in consideration of
your pledges that the acts complained of shall cease, and that your
town shall not be occupied by any of the enemy's forces, and your
assertion that a lack of transportation renders it impossible to
remove the women, children, sick, wounded, and aged, I am authorized
to say to you that our batteries will not open upon your town at the
hour designated.
"General Patrick will meet a committee or representative from your
town to-morrow morning, at nine o'clock, at the Lacy House.
"Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
"E. V. SUMNER,
"_Brevet Major-General, U. S. Army, Commanding Division_."
As the inference from the correspondence was that the shelling was only
postponed, the people were advised to move with their valuables to some
place of safety as soon as possible. Without complaint, those who could,
packed their precious effects and moved beyond reach of the threatened
storm, but many preferred to remain and encounter the dangers rather than
to leave their homes and valuables. The fortitude with which they bore
their trials quickened the minds of the soldiers who were there to defend
them. One train leaving with women and children was fired upon, making
some confusion and dismay among them, but the two or three shells did no
other mischief, and the firing ceased.