The casualties were astounding, a stouinstounding to soldiers, generals and those left back home. Amidst the staggering losses at cole harbor, for every soldier killed, wounded or captured, there was a family. Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons, daughters that also felt the loss. The loss of the men that fell at cole harbor in the spring of 1864 reverb rasreverberated thr kmunlts a communities across the north and south. The battlegrounds left indelible kbag impacts on the living left behind. So, too, were the believes of the men who fought that bloody spring. Indeed, in spite of so many lost lives, those believes and ideas about nation, government and home became even more deeply enslie enshrined in the hearts and minds of those left to fight on tonight to reflect upon and learn from today. Writing soon after the war with a perspective on hindsight. Sally putnam came to believe that in its own unique way, cole harbor had been a landmark event in the 1866 Campaign Across Central Virginia. She wrote, the battle of cold harbor forever removed the impression of general lees army and ended the attempt to take richmond from the north side. The barefooted, ragged, illfed rebel army which had been under fire for more than a month had achieved a succession of victories unparalleled in the history of modern warfare. However, putnam also noted the resolution of the union army and its leader, saying the most striking feature in the character of this distinguished federal army seems to be quiet determination and indomitable perseverance and energy. Under similar disappointment, another would have had his courage so shaken that he would gladly have foregone an undertaking that promised so little fulfillment and success. He had received, from the battle of the wilderness to that of cold harbor, repeated and powerful repulses. His losses in men were unparalleled in the whole history of the struggle, but his perseverance was undisturbed. That quiet determination of Ulysses Grant so evident to a noncombatant in richmond fought on in the army. The rank and file gained renewed energy from recognizing grants tenacity of purpose. The reflection on the men was perfectly explained by a fellow officer named adams. He wrote that the army of the potomac had literally marched in blood and agony from the rabbit end to the james. All this fighting has been unsuccessful fighting. Hard, brutal, barren pounding, yet we have a great fighter in grant. He takes ahold of his work as one having confidence in himself and not the least afraid of his adversary. He is bold and takes great risk, thus inspiring confidence in his army. One can see that grant believes in incessant fighting and marching as producing necessary results, not only on his own army but on the enemy. If his army is fought and worked out and exhausted and needs rest, it is not only likely that the enemy, with his smaller numbers, is even more so. And so the moment of greater exhaustion becomes that of the greatest effort. The battlefields are quiet and even alluring today. It is a notion that the men who fought here believed in something truly worth suffering and do you go for that draws us to this place. For each of us as we leave here this evening, we depart with the sacred responsibility to remember those who fell here and to ponder each for ourselves how we can properly honor those sacrifices and the legacy of what happened here. To them, we owe a great debt. Two years ago, we concluded each of our seven days battle commemorations with taps which we called a salute to the soldiers. We will do so again tonight. It is moving. It is deeply appropriate at this place and at this time. It is for them. Ladies and gentlemen, that ends our formal program tonight. I want to thank you all for being with us. It doesnt end the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of cold harbor. There are a few more programs to occur, and i believe that the church has been so kind to display a few more of our 16 colored pages of Upcoming Events and programs, so please take them with you, and well certainly be here to answer any questions, and thank you again for making the switch from cold harbor to fairmount, and we are so grateful to the folks at the church for all theyve done for us this last week. Again, thanks so much. [applause] our special American History programming in prime time continues tuesday night at 8 00 eastern when we look at the battle of fort stevens, when Confederate Forces under general early turned offenses before turning back in 1864. We go to the monocacn, two events that threatened the na s nations capitol. And at 9 55, with david floyd, the civil war defenses. At 10 25 p. M. , well hear if city park officials on the role of d. C. s civil war 40s and park forts and parks, how theyve been preserved for the last 50 years. All of that this month on cspan3. Heres more to add to your reading list. Cspan3s sundays at eight. I knew there was a risk in the bohemian, but i decided to take it. It stopped me from being bored, stopped other people from being boring to a certain extent. It made the evening go on longer to prolong the conversation, tone hans the momento enhance the moment. If i was asked if i would do it again, the answer is yes, i would quit earlier, possibly, to go ahead with the whole thing. Its not easy for my children to hear. I sound irresponsible to say i would do it all again to you. At the same time, it would be hypocritical to say i would never touch the stuff. Because i did know. Everyone knows. The soviet union and the soviet system in europe contained the seeds of its own destruction. Many of the problems we saw at the end begin at the very beginning. I spoke already about the attempt to control all institutions and control all parts of the economy and political life and social life. One of the problems is when you do that, when you try to control everything, then you create opposition and potential dissidence everywhere. If you tell all artists they have to paint the same way and one artist says, no, i dont want to paint that way, i want to paint another way, you have made him into a political dissident. If you want to subsidize housing in this country, and we want to talk about it and the populist agrees its something we want to subsidize, put it on the Balance Sheet and make it clear and make it evident to everyone aware of how much its costing. But when you deliberate through these thirdparty enterprises, fannie mae and freddie mac, when you deliberate through a Public Company with private shareholders and executives who can extract a lot of that subsidy for themselves, that is not a very good way of subsidizing home ownership. Christopher hitchens, Anne Applebaum and Gretchen Morgensen in sundays at eight now available at your favorite bookstore. Officials from the park service commemorate the beginning of the Overland Campaign which took place in may and june of 1964. The ceremony contains keynote remarks by James Robertson who explains the strategy of ulysses s. Grant against the confederates and how the campaign impacted the war as a whole. This event took place in spotsylvania, virginia, in fred lixburg and spotsylvania Military Park. Its just under an hour. As the armies of grant and lee marched in may of 1864, more than the outcome of battles, the tally of victory or defeat depended on their efforts. From the new york herald, april 13, 1864. Upon the campaign were about to engage, there depends the greatest issues upon which men ever went into battle. We fight for the principles of free government and for the existence of a nation whose institutions are the hope of the downtrodden people of every land. Our success in this Campaign Must ensure the integrity of the United States by the final overthrow of the rebellion. Success will give a new life to our country and a new faith to the stability of free governments to the world. It will also determine the next presidency as certainly as if the votes were counted. But if we fail in this campaign, that failure will be the greatest disaster in modern history. Upon general grant, there now concentrates the deepest interest with which the world ever watched the actions of a single soldier. He is the foremost man in the greatest contest of the age. When the nation and the world wanted to know how the civil war was going, they looked to virginia. That spring, robert e. Lee and his army shown clearly as the confederacys greatest hope. Ulysses s. Grant had come east to manage the armies in virginia, but ulysses s. Grant had never met robert e. Lee in battle. At charlottesville, a charlottesville newspaper editor wrote in april, the conflict has, in a sense, narrowed down to virginia and to this campaign. Uncertainty reined in new York Financial markets. Gold inched upward towards 200 an ounce. The looming Union President ial election gave confederates hope. From the richmond examiner, april 6, 1864. There is a pleasing prospect of collapse and ruin, both financial and political, for the yankee nation in this very year. It is due and overdue. But we must not forget to bring an account to a complete and final liquidation. We have to do our part, and our part is one crushing and crowning victory. And so the armies came. Welcome to all of you. Were very glad youre here. My name is john hennessy. Im Senior Leader in spotsylvania. We welcome you to the assess i sesquicentennial of the park here. Mike kacaldwell is here this morning. Superintendent lucy lawless at fredricksburg and spotsylvania park, frank oreilly, one of the historians here at fredricksburg. And our musician today is ray scott. If ever a single place reflect how this war came to be, this place is it. By the time the armies came to grapple over this piece of spotsylvania farmland in may of 1864, the stakes were so large, the previous investment so big that neither side would let go. This war was no longer a conflict about succession or even union. It was also about freedom, the extent and nature of the American Government and the future of the United States striving for an identity and strength on the word stage. Ulysses s. Grant came to virginia in 1864 with a relentless determination matched only by the common soldiers he commanded. The man who had the most invested and the most to lose by the effort. Robert e. Lee, by 1864, bore the weight of all confederate aspirations with an army no less determined than grants but increasingly unable to fulfill the political, social, cultural and economic hopes of a nation. Today we begin telling this story. We hope you will join us again and again over the coming days and weeks. John ashley is a student from Prospect Heights middle school in orange, virginia. Hes one of nearly 400 seventh graders from Orange County Public Schools participating in the journey through Hallowed Grounds of the student, by the student, for the Student Service learning project this year. The awardwinning project of the student, by the student, for the student, which john will tell you about, is in its sixth year and has been partnering with nps areas throughout the 150th observance from gettysburg to Harpers Ferry and in 2014 spotsylvania Military Park. John ashley, who will also lead us in the pledge of allegiance today, is joined by jesse coin, the director of programs of the journey of Hallowed Ground. John . Can i ask that we all stand and remove our hats for the pledge of allegiance . I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america. And to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Dilapidation and decay marked the course of everything on lord hill. People were gradually falling into ruins. An air of suffocation came on. The wind has a particular howling sound as if ghosts and witches were reining over. What supplies us with a womans unionist account of the civil war in 1864. She is my topic for the journey through Hallowed Grounds of the student, by the student and for the student project. In this project students script, film and edit many movies or podcast about the civil war in this region. This project has not only taught me the historical facts of the civil war but the all so often untold event that must be dug out of primary sources. These are things not simply found in a textbook because they cannot be put into words but are definitely stories to be shared. Vodcasts from this years project will focus on john w. Patterson, a colonel who lost his life on the first day of fighting, may 5, and sent his family into ruins. Burke, an africanamerican who joined the fight against slavery. The use of pontoon bridges in crossing the river and the constitutionality of succession. These experiences and stories which take history out of the textbooks and turn them into something that is alive would not be found by me or any students without the of the student, by the student and for the student project. For that reason, i would like to thank the journey of Hallowed Ground group, the fredricksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park for expanding my knowledge and the knowledge of all those viewers of these vodcasts. I am sure they will thank you, too. [applause] how many of you are descendants of participants in this battle . A pretty broad number. We hope youll announce yourselves as you go on our programs. One of the things weve learned over time is that other members of the audience like to rub elbows with dna that has historical relevance. So we hope you will announce yourself as we go. We are pleased today to have join us today the regional director of the northeast region of the National Parks service, Mike Caldwell. To most of the world, director doesnt make your blood stir, but think about his job for a moment. In the National Parks service, Mike Caldwell is responsible for some of the most famous, cultural and National Treasures on the face of the earth from the bridge it conquered to Independence Hall to thomas he had edisons laboratories to gettysburg, and of course fredricksburg and spotsylvania as well. Hes served nearly 25 years in the National Parks service, a career built largely on historical parks such as valley forge and new bedford, waling. They demand a spirited and incredible work force, but by far is the role as advocate of the parks as community and within the government. Mike caldwell is a native of alexandria now residing near philadelphia. We are glad to have him with us here today. Mike . [applause] thank you, john. First, i think we should give another round of applause for john ashley. That was phenomenal. [applause] im here representing the secretary of the interior, sally jewell, director john jarvis of the National Parks service on behalf of the entire department of the interior and the National Parks service, i welcome you to these events as we commemorate the 150th anniversary of the start of the Overland Campaign. We begin this morning with what certainly is the most expansive commemoration of the sesquicentennial of the civil war, continuing all the way to the battle of the crater to the end of july. For civil war enthusiasts, which i see many in the audience, i saw you on the way down i95 as well in many of the rest areas. For many of the civil war enthusiasts, the National Parks service will have many events in the coming months and the couple years ahead. They will honor the stories of the soldiers to be sure, but also the places and the larger stories that reveal the full reach and human impact of the civil war in the 1864 Overland Campaign. This effort is not ours alone in the National Parks service. It takes many partners to make things like this happen. Communities along the road from richmond and petersburg, communities and partners have risen up to help us celebrate the civil war sesquicentennial. The friends of the wilderness battlefield, the city of richmond and the American Civil War center at treteger, petersburg, fredricksburg, the Central Virginias battlefield trust. All these and many more have stepped up to help americans connect with their shared history. Id like to give a round of applause to all the partners that have helped make this happen. [applause] no place in america suffered the repeated affliction of war like Spotsylvania County did. Fought battles, the place of armies for most of two careers, it was a transformative event thatuc posed unrest for residen and brought freedom for 600 slaves who lived here. Abraham lincoln, in the midst of the civil war, right about the time thatc the seeds of petersburg began, he signed a bill giving yosemite to the state of california, really starting what we now know as the National Parks system. And here we are today in part of that National Parks system. Today spotsylvania is part of the same system as yosemite, as yellowstone, as many of the areas that we fondly have either visited or we share in their preservation. And in the midst of the civil war, president lirncoln had the f foresight to start to preserve these special places we still savor today. As part of the National Parks system, places like gettysburg and spotsylvania will forever be a part of our shared identity. Thousands of visitors from around the world visit these sites and other civil war sites year after year so that we will never, ever forget what happened here. And why are we constantly drawn to remember . Joshua chamberlain, who many of you know as a college professor, a soldier, a colonel and then a general, after the war became a great advocate for the preservation of special places like we are on today. He explained, perhaps better than anyone else, his own connection to the great fields of the civil war. He said, in great deeds something abides. On great field, something stays. So think about that. Something stays. Understanding this is no academic exercise that requires no great study, it only requires your presence like that of today. It requires a place to remember. It requires your minds eye when the words of those who were here, like we heard when we kicked off the ceremony today. As you come to these places to celebrate this commemoration or even if you are just out here on your own, you know what Joshua Chamberlain was referring to. You understand what he is referring to. In the northeast region, as john was highlighting, we go from maine to virginia. We care for many natural and cultural resources, including many key Historic Resources that make up our collective history as a nation. They tell our nation it is an area where we were born and it is where our country came of age in the northeast. The nature of our business is that we cannot manage these places alone. Thank you for keeping these National Treasures vivid and viable in the changing world that we live in. That so many of you are here this morning and that so many thousands of you will be in the coming days and weeks that follow in the footsteps of history and that you visit places like this speaks well to your commitment to the National Parks system. On behalf of secretary jewell and director jarvis, i offer profound thanks to all of you to care enough to join us today as we commemorate the nations remembrance of the 1864 Overland Campaign, and id like to send out a special thank you to lucy lawless and her staff as well as the Many Park Service volunteers here who are here every day of the year so that we will never forget. Thank you. [applause] from hometowns like litchfield, connecticut and madison, mississippi they came. Sole yediers and those they lef behind at home sensed that the Spring Campaign of 1864 in virginia would be unlike any that had preceded it. From the newark, new jersey sentinel of freedom may 3rd, 1864. The impending tempest. The quiet that prevails in our army was justly felt to be the hush that foreruns the tempest. The war would soon powur out wih unprecedented violence. The magnitude thats now been shaped created great feeling of deep so lem nity of thoughts and minds. None are solid in intellect or dull in feeling as to be affected by the tremendous issues that are now at stake and the terrific tragedy that is about to be enacted. Years after the war, a soldier from georgia bid his fellow soldiers to remember the beginning of the Overland Campaign. Dont you remember the long roll . Do you remember how brigade after brigade filed into the road . Do you remember the march from orange courthouse to the wilderness when, while passing over some elevated point, you could look three or four miles in front and see the long line of confederates with their guns glittering in the sunlight and the same to be seen by looking behind you . Do you remember how that inspiring scene made us think we could whip the world . We are a remembering people. In this tumultuous world of trauma and turmoil, we insist not on forgetting but remembering. It may seem odd to some of us that we do this. But again and again and again, over weeks and decades and centuries, we remember. We are a remembering people. On 9 11, we remember. On patriots day, we remember. Pearl harbor day, we remember. Memorial day, we remember. We remember those who perished, certainly. We pray for those injured and those left behind. Their lives and families changed forever. But we also recall those who, by their acts, demonstrate the fundamental goodness of people. Those who aid the injured. Those who rush to protect our people and our nation. Those who, caught in the midst of horror, show courage enough to act not solely in their own interests but in the interest of others. We are a remembering people, because in some way, in many ways, we know that remembering, though sometimes painful, heals us. As a people, we should remember far more often and forget far less. Today, this week, this spring, we come together on these virginia battlefields to remember. We do this for many of the same reasons we pause every 9 11, though our personal connection to these civil war stories is separated by generations. We pay respect, we convey honor, we seek understanding. But we do more than that. This spring, on the 150th anniversary of the 1864 Overland Campaign, our National Parks service asks us to remember not just as individuals but as a nation to reflect on not just the acts of participants, acts both noble and harsh, but to reflect together on our nations winding, complicated road forward to this day. Let us recognize that the civil war was not just an accumulation of milestones, dates, places but a moving, massive, national transformation. We learn, we understand, and i hope we come to value our nation as a result of this shared experience. We do these not merely as spectators, for though we may not realize it, we come here today and the weeks ahead possess a responsibility. There is a connective thread between those who lived here, fought here, suffered and died and went on from here, and us. Our ancestors did with the hope, even expectation, that we take their struggle forward. We are a remembering people. In setting aside these hallowed fields, congress and the National Parks service asked us to remember an essential and ongoing part of our national story. Over the next days and weeks, our rangers will walk many miles and fields with you, stand at places famous and some forgotten. We will share the words and stories of those who were here, soldiers and citizens alike, stories sometimes painful, stories often complicated, stories transcendent, all demonstrating the best of our nation. Our rangers will evoke and perhaps even provoke. We will do this all, i hope, mindful that our acts of remembrance help us render our forebearers hopes and expectations fulfilled. It is a debt repaid, and we repay mindful that our acts of remembering help build a more perfect union. Thank you for remembering with us. Thank you for coming. [applause] before these were battlefields, these were home places. Farms, communities, like thousands of others across america. War transformed them. Armies churning across the landscape ruined much and affected everything. Slaves ran to freedom, civilians remaining behind suffered a front loss and destruction that added bitterness to an already bitter war. From sally todd may 15, 1864, whose house was caught in the fighting near todds tavern about six miles north of here. Mother was awfully frightened, but i did not think we would be killed. I was afraid the house would take fire, but thank god our lives were spared. The yankees were the meanest devils on earth. They killed all of our hogs, even the little pigs, and the cow as it was too poor to eat. But they said they were success cows, took all our food. Our fields are nothing but the main road. Pulled all our panelings from around the garden and displayed destruction generally. But if we can only whip them and gain our independence, i am willing to give up all. Yes, everything. In the spring of 1864, the first United States colored troops arrived at the front in virginia. More than 3,000 men, some of them former slaves in orange, culpeper, spotsylvania and caroline counties. Though faced with the prospect of reenslavement or death should they be captured, and though they entered an army hardly predisposed to embrace them, they and their white officers still came. On may 15, 1864, about four miles north of here, the 23rd usc uscts, including several soldiers from Spotsylvania County, engaged in first combat with lees army. Much more was to come, including success in the initial attacks on petersburg in june 1864. After that experience, one of the armys white soldiers wrote, a few more fights like that and they will have established their manhood if not their brotherhood to the satisfaction of even the most prejudiced. And so they would. What happened on these fields reverberated across america, to towns weve hardly heard of or hardly remember today or maybe never even visited, to living rooms and home places and communities across the nation. And that is the double wound of war. Not only the physical wounds on the field but the pain that follows every death and every wound among the family and community from which it came. Part of our commemoration of the 1864 Overland Campaign is an effort called reverberations where on may 24th, we will be sending staff to communities across the nation and join in those communities to talk about how what happened here reverb rated there. On the back of your programs that hopefully youll be able to get on the way out of your event here, youll see a description of it. You can join us on line. It will be live streeamed. You can join us at the fredricksburg cemetary, but we will connect these events to the community in which they were so important 150 years ago. For historians of my generation, dr. James i. Robertson, bud, has been a giant. He is distinguished from many other members of academia with a tremendous improvement until history. He writes so you can read it and understand it. He speaks in the way that made his classes the most Popular History classes in Virginia Tech and maybe even the whole world during his tenure at that university. All of that is borne of his passion and understanding of history. If you work in a park that tells part of jacksons story, one of my little worries this morning is that our keynote speaker would get here on time and be here, and then i remembered that he wrote a biography of jackson and he was actually here before i was, as it shouldnt surprise you. But if you work in a park that tells any story of the army in Northern Virginia, its a refrain heard often when we talk about questions or matters of history. What is robertson saying . We dont always use doctor when were in the back room, but what is robertson saying . I would suggest that you there is not a greater compliment that can be paid to a historian than that. So it will be for many decades to come. This anniversary business is not new to dr. James i. Robertson. Just 31 years old, president kennedy appointed him as executive director of the nations beleagured commission of the centennial for the civil war, which he quickly righted. More recently, hes been a key member of virginias commission for the civil war sesquicentennial, bringing smart, scholarly guideness to the nation so far. He strode proudly through one of the greatest careers of teaching and writing that any of us will ever see. He was an alumni of history in Virginia Tech for 18 years. He has written numerous books, including one of the greatest biographies of stonewall jackson. Today as our keynote speaker, he will speak to us about the 1864 Overland Campaign. We are very honored to have with us today dr. James i. Robertson. [applause] thank you, john, very much, and please know that im deeply humbled by the invitation to be the keynote speaker on this awesome occasion in history and in commemoration. I also would like to extend greetings from the virginias civil war ses kwurquicentennial william howell. This is the time to take renewed pride in the heritage of your state. If youre not from virginia, we adopt you now. Stay long, spend much and enjoy yourselves here in the old dominion. 1864 was the critical year of the civil war. 36 months of bloody fighting had brought a steady erosion of territory in the western half of the confederacy. However, in the east, where the war would be won or lost, the principal armies had fallen to a stalemate. Virginia was the birth place of a nation whose government had been crafted largely from spacemen from the old dominion. Now virginia was scarred and overrun by thousands of soldiers fighting to the death for domination. As winter melted into spring in 1864, the simple question was, which would give out first . Northern or Southern Forces . The union potomac was on what was the largest in the civil war, a 10mile square area marked by filth, dead horses and bu buzzards circling overhead. And robert e. Lees army of West Virginia was in worse shape but still dangerous. Each side waited for the inevitable assumption of battle. But 1864 would be different because of the entrance on the scene of one man, ulysses sam grant. Forced from the army in 1863 because of excessive drinking, grant spent eight years in one failed venture after another. In 1861, his father secured him a colonels commission, and according to legend, the father bid him farewell with these comforting words son, youve got a good job now. Dont mess it up. Certainly this commission was not based on good looks. To one observer, grant was, quote, an ordinary, scrubby looking man with a slightly seedy look. Neither a conversationalist nor a mixer, he was a man that always seemed to be alone. Nevertheless, while other Union Commanders were failing, grant had climbed steadily up the military ladder with resounding victories stretching from fort henry in 1862 through vicksburg and northridge in 1863. He was clearly the man of the hour when lincoln ordered him east to take command of all federal forces. But somewhere near 500,000 combatready soldiers, grant would have authority over the largest host any american officer had ever led. The new Lieutenant General wasted little time in making his strategic intentions known. In the past, grant asserted, union armies had, quote, acted independently and without concert like a balky team of mules, no two pulling together. This led confederates to shift men from one to the other to lead the most pressing danger. They seemed content to maneuver. But that was not the road to victory, grant announced. The north had far superior numbers and material. It was time to switch games, to stop playing ches srks and to s playing checkers. Several union armies would take the offensive simultaneously under grants new plan. The main army, the army of the potomac, would move against lee. A second force would head southward up the Shenandoah Valley. A third would cross the mountains into southWest Virginia and cut the vital virginia and tennessee railroad. A fourth army would venture to richmond. And another one from chattanooga to atlanta. Grant himself chose to travel with general George Meades army of the potomac, and he did so for a number of reasons. His presence would shield, for example, a weapon from congressional affiliates. Congress was always interested in what the army of the potomac chs doing. Like most congresses, it had no action of its own. When sherman heard this, sherman who had a lower opinion of congress and newspapers, sherman wrote to grant, i hope you will make it a Death Penalty for any congressman who enters your camp. For diplomatic reasons, he did not do that. The other reason grant went with that army was its commander. George meade was seven years older than grant. He was a dedicated soldier but overly cautious. His army had done nothing for the last 10 months. Meade had a violent temper which he couldnt control, and when unleashed, said one officer, it sounded to one like cutting an iron ball with a hand saw. Grant also knew that he had been appointed to initiate a long and hopefully successful campaign. Thanks to the advent of the telegraph, grant could oversee all military theaters as easily in the field as he could from a desk in washington. As for the actions to grant, front and side of the army of the potomac, they were varied. Captain Oliver Wendell holmes, jr. Stated there was a little jealousy, a little dislike, a little envy, a little want of confidence. All, however, are willing to give him a full chance. For if he succeeds, the war is over. Now, grants 1864 strategy followed the same pattern he had always followed. He would devise and try something. If it failed, he would try something else. But his determination never waivered. He would hammer unrelentingly at the enemy, applying pressure until opposition collapsed. And displaying preparations, i think it is interesting to note that there were no parades, no grand reviews as mcclellan and hooker had always enjoyed. Grant instead preferred to ride casually down the lines, looking intently into the faces of the soldiers who were going to be fighting for him. And giving the impression that it was far more important for him to see the men than for them to see him. As for those veteran soldiers, all they wanted was a competent, aggressive leader. Grant kept his distance his silence. In april a newspaperman asked the general how long it would take him to get to richmond. Grant spat at the man, a long time and then replayed well i will agree to be there in four days that is if general lee becomes a party to the agreement. And then grant added the trip undoubtedly will be prolonged. Across the rappahannock, lee waited. Us unabashed aggressiveness and willingness to take risks to maximize the striking power of his small and ill equipped army. Yet after two years of campaigning, we tend to overlook a vital factor about lee. His health was terminal. Manpower was dwindling to critical levels, there was nothing he could do about it. He had problems of his own that included spaz modic diarrhea, rheumatism, mental fatigue, a year earlier he had suffered unquestionably a major heart attack for which he received no medical aid. The field of cardiology lay in the future. Yet to his men, he was as pure a patriot as george washington. As april became may a young soldier in virginia made a prophesy in a letter home. I hope we will be able to give them a good thrashing for on this fight depends greatly our future safety. On wednesday, may 4th, the big federal push southward began. The lead elements of some 100,000 soldiers crossed the rappahannock on two bridges and plunged immediately into a wooded darkness known as the wilderness. 12 miles long, six miles wide, it was a thick mass of second growth timber, dense underbrush, few clearings, little streams and never saw daylight and created unexpected ravines and marshes. Visibility in the wilderness was measured in feet. It was the last place in virginia to pick for a major battle. Now grants hope was to march rapidly through the jungle and get into open country to confront lee. Yet one of robert lees distinguishing characteristics was an unwillingness to fight where his opponent wanted to fight. Early in the afternoon of may 4th, the blue columns halted in the woods to allow the long wagon trains to catch up with the infantry. Lees army only half the size of grants could not compete in a standup fight. A superior Union Artillery was nullified because of the thick tangle of wilderness. Union soldiers had to add advance along rows no wider than 20 feet and hemmed in on both sides by a big woods. This offered lee a momentary advantage. And he took it. Grants army had been marching only two hours when the confederates attack along two parallel lanes perpendicular to the union advance. Mass confusion followed. As yanks scrambled into that impenetrable underbrush. Now the Park Service Rangers here who are some of gods given gifts to this country give excellent tours and eliminate my going into detail. Sufficient face it to say, the larger the battle grew, the more invisible it became to everyone. Thick woods strapped the gun smoke. Unbroken thickets offered no field of fire. Man came under heavy fire before they saw the enemy. When determined battle lines from the noise in a certain direction. Several battles, in fact were raging on a single piece of ground. Soon flashing gun power set woods afire. And untold numbers of wounded men north and south were cremated because they could not get away. Burning trees only thickened the gun smoke and brought with them a nauseous atmosphere. Night came and the tempo of violence slowed but never stopped. Firing went up and down the lines before returning the full fury and daylight on may 6th. Federals came close to breaking lees position that second day but the arrival of general James Longstreets fresh corps brought a southern attack. Both sides were disorganized. Longstreet, in fact, was shot by his own men and more hours of death passed before grants men fell back to the road down which they had been traveling in the beginning. Tactically speaking grant had experienced as bad a defeat as hooker had received on the same ground a year earlier. The union army had suffered 17,600 casualties in two days. Confederate losses were less than half that number. Now this is where i digress a bit from pure military historians. When casualties are mentioned, and every civil war student thinks of aggregate numbers and moves on to a more interesting aspect on the battle, totally overlooked in this approach is the Human Element in combat. Let me take one example. In the two days of the wilderness the vermont brigade all legends from vermont suffered 191 killed, and 947 wounded. Over a third of its strength. Look again at that number of injured. 947. Two days after the battle surgeon William Sloan of the 2nd vermont told a friend i am very tired. I have amputated 100 limbs today. Now, if the surgeon was not exaggerating, and no reason exists to believe that he was, then he was cutting off an arm or a leg every ten minutes during a 17hour period. A modern day orthopedist would not even consider working at 10 of that speed. And further, one can only speculate on how many of those 100 patients fell victim to sepsis and other failed diseases. Well the heavy losses and stunning defeat of the wilderness, of course, once again it was time for the union army to retreat, attend to its wounds, and come back at some future time and do it again. But he didnt see it that way at all. For him two days of vicious fighting were but a momentary setback. Nothing had occurred to alter his original intent. He had every aim to fulfill the promise he had made to lincoln. Quote, whatever happens, there will be no turning back. The defeat of lees army was still the major objective despite woods full of gun smoke, dead men and dying men, and the woods of the wilderness. Hence on the night of may 7th the union army resumed its march heading south. Around when the column turned toward richman, a yank noted how our spirits rose that night we were happy. This was unquestionably one of the grand moments of the American Civil War. The wilderness was not going to be another manassas or chancellorsville, with the union army tucking its tail between its legs and going back to washington in search of a new commander. This time there was to be no turning back. No collapse of morale. No finger pointing no clamor for a new army commander. The union army was absolving its losses and utilizing its strength as a determined general led it southward. For the next 11 months, save for a brief time in june the two armies were never out of contact. It was a pounding, unrelenting campaign. The one type of war with which robert lee could not cope. He could interfere with grants plans, but he was in no position to impose plans of his own. Fighting of some degree occurred every day from may to the following april. Tens of thousands of soldiers were killed or crippled in the processomqc Union Resources and persistence would shatter confederate resistance and spirit until it all came to a merciful end at appomattox. But it is not an exaggeration to say that the wilderness was the first sign of the sunset of the confederacy. A few miles north of here on a little clearing at the site of where the 1863 battle occurred, lost amid all the commercialism is a monument. That monument is to the 23rd new jersey. The bronze plaque on the front of the stone obelisk contains the expected phrase, to the memory of our heroic comrades who gave their lives for their countrys union on the battlefield. Okay. But walk around to the side of that stone marker. Theres another identical plaque there. And on it are the words to the brave alabama boys, our opponents on the field of battle, whose memory we honor. Think about that. For a moment. England never constructed a memorial to french soldiers after the battle of waterloo. The germans have never dedicated a marker to polish suffering at warsaw. But we are americans. We are americans. We see things. And we do things. A little different than other people. Because underneath it all we are brothers all. Members of a country like the world has never seen before. And so it is right and fitting that we gather together this morning here on ground made holy by the blood of patriots. We remember, because we cannot forget. What happened at the wilderness was a stepping stone in the evolution of a word one rarely hears anymore, and that word is union. It was for union that each side fought 150 years ago. It is for union that our dedication must always be. Without union, we have no nation. Only with it can we collectively hope for the future. Although i spent over a half century in university classrooms, i know that history is not everyones favorite subject. Indeed, one occasionally, my goodness, encounters the misguided who want to change the past in order to make it conform to a pleasant day agenda. Its called political correctness. Its nonsense. You cannot alter the past. You can only learn from it. And believe me, history is the best teacher any of you will ever have. So we have to look back to see where were going, and there is no other guide. So today we look back at the wilderness. We look back with all with reverence and installation. What those men in the north and south gave we all share. We must treasure those sacrifices always as being among our richest possessions. May god continue to bless this land we all call our home. Thank you. [ applause ] [ applause ] the incredible violence of 1864 reflected the immense stakes, and the men in both armies recognized that connection. Before 1864, soldiers might have been under fire for eight hours during an entire year. During the Overland Campaign, they were sometimes under fire for eight hours or more in a single day. On may 12th, 1864, walter battle of the fourth North Carolina fought just a few hundred yards from where you sit today. For nearly 20 hours. He recorded he fired away 120 rounds of ammunition himself, three cartridge boxes full, slogging through trenches filled with water, wounded and dead men. Friday morning, may 13th, about an hour before day, we evacuated the works. I dont suppose theres any man that can express the relief we felt after getting out of such a place. He remembered fighting for those 22 hours without a morsel of food or a drop of water. You can form some idea of what our feelings would have been, putting all these prizations together. Had there been no danger impending, but add to all of this the thought that the next minute may be your last, which is another thing altogether. Theres not a man in this brigade who will ever forget it. For days, weeks, it continued. From the wilderness to spotsylvania, to apot my creek, cold harbor, a Union Surgeon exclaimed at the end of may 1864, oh, why will not the confederacy burst up. The experience left soldiers bewildered. From a letter of a member of the first United States sharp shooters, george a. Martin, may 15th, 1864. People say its monday. I never knew it was sunday yesterday, until about sunset. The days have got so mixed up, that i cant keep the run. Some days have two nights. And some no night at all. The sun rises in the southwest. I am so mixed up at that. The toil and stress begot exhaustion and inexpressible sadness. Chaplain Francis Perkins of the 10th massachusetts, may 15th, 1864. You have been expecting doubtless some accounts of the movements occurring during this campaign. But never did i feel so utterly adverse to writing. Never did it seem so almost impossible to connect and express any thought as now. All my energies of thought and emotion are used up by the actual passing events. And to recall the past is positively painful. Our brave fellows, they have melted away, like smoke. [ bagpipes playing ] all that had been wagered in this war treasure lives. There was no turning back. For the armies there were no turning points, just crossroads. Literal and symbolic. In the wilderness, at the spots imvain yeah courthouse. Grant chose the road south toward richmond, toward petersburg. It was a tide rather than a moment. Lee could not stop it. Still, the confederates remained fiercely determined. The rebellion dies very hard one ar tillerman told his hometown newspaper. Newspapers across the south noted grants army at cold harbor stood almost precisely where mcclellan stood in 1862, but had suffered horrendous casualties in getting to the same place. They maintain great hope lee would triumph. Certain that lee and his men would somehow inflict a fatal blow to the norths willingness to fight. In the union army that june, soldiers saw the spires of richmond just eight miles away. Union soldiers, too, gained hope from that. But recognized, too, how hard those last eight miles would be. A pennsylvania soldier wrote of the moment, in the prospects, theres a magic influence in the expression as it passes from lip to lip. Eight miles from richmond, boys. Only eight miles from richmond. What treasure, what a restored peaceful happy in the United Country and the a free government can pay for the precious blood that must be shed in the inexpressible sufferings that must be endured before this short distance can be . Accomplished. That pennsylvanian could not likely have imagined just how painful the answer to that question would be. We hope that you will join us, the staff here at fredericksburg and spotsylvania and petersberg. One that reverberated across america, touching families and communities across the land. It is a sad but difficult story to be sure, full of bitterness and pain, loss and sacrifice. But the hardship is also a measure of the commitment and the determination of those who are here. And we hope as you walk these fields and woods, home places, and crossroads, in the coming days and weeks, that you will constantly ask yourself this question. Why . Why did these men consent to such hardship . Why did they do what they did . The answers to these questions are on these fields. And in the words of those who were here. We hope you will join us in our collective quest for answers, for their questions that are essential to the health of our nation. We thank you for coming. [ applause ] tonight American History tvs look at the civil war. Forces probed the defenses of the capital city before deciding to turn back. Watch as o the National Park service commemorate the 150th anniversary of the battle of fort stevens. Well also tour the battlefields as well as visit several in the nations capital. Thats here on cspan 3. Next, on the civil war, author gordon rhea discusses the significance of the battle of c cold har bar, which took place in virginia 150 years ago in may and june of 1864. We took a look at the strategies of grant and robert e. Lee. As well as the challenges they faced during the battle. This hourlong event took place at the Cold Harbor Battlefield in mechanicsville, virginia. Well, thank you very much, bob. I appreciate it. And as i told the folks i talked with this morning, its an honor for me to be here. Theres Something Special about the battle field here at cold harbor. I came about my interest in the American Civil War, im sure very much like most of you did. I got it from my father. My dad was born in 1901 in a little town on the tennessee alabama board. It was just 35 years after the end of the civil war. Most of those old men sitting around the Grocery Store were veterans. He grew up listening to their tall tales and talking to them about their battles. I was born in 1945. And when i grew up, when all of my friends were hearing fairy tales and stories from their parents, my dad was reading me books with names like lees lieutenants, stuff like that. So we visited all the battlefields. We visited obviously gettysburg, chancellorsville. We didnt make any trips to cold harbor, though, because there really wasnt all that much here. We didnt go to the north anna battlefield because it didnt even exist. The Overland Campaign, which is the campaign that brings grant and lee to where we are now, really wasnt the focus of that much American Military history. All eyes seemed to be on the earlier battles in the war. What id like to do is take a couple of minutes to orient you to help you understand why it is the armies ended up down here at cold harbor, and then ill take a little bit more detailed view of that battle itself. You can understand what happened here and why its so special. So those of you who heard me talk this morning, if you can put up with me for four or five minutes while i repeat a little bit of background to get everybody on the same page, then ill move on to some more detailed information. But id like to think back to the spring of 1864, the war had been going on for some three years. Massive casualties and losses. Tremendous disaffection in the north with the war. It looked like it would go on forever. Abraham lincoln, of course, is up for reelection. Its important to have battlefield victories for the north and its important to win battles in virginia. Virginia is still the preserve of robert e. Lee and the storied army of Northern Virginia. So lincoln brings east his best general, thats going to be ulysses s. Grant, the general who won all the battles in the west. And he gives grant a basically a twopart requirement. First, to bring organization, to bring continuity to the union war effort. And secondly, to defeat the army of Northern Virginia. And grant goes about making it possible to carry out that charge with a vengeance. First he puts together a program, unlike any that the war has yet seen. He realized that up to this point, battles would last a couple of days, and then the armies would pull apart for months. Grant would not let that happen anymore. The union armies were to fight them until they were destroyed. He also realized that the old goal of capturing territory didnt make sense anymore. Henceforth, the goal would be the confederate armies, the goal would be to destroy them, and only by doing that could the rebellion be brought to a close. Finally, grant realized that the armies in the eastern and western theaters had to move together, so the confederates couldnt shift forces from one theater to the other. In the spring of 1864 is the opening campaigns in the east, grant riding with the army of the potomac, and in the west under the direction of grants close friend and subordinate general sherman, and these will be battles that will run day after day after day with the goal of bringing the confederate armies to their knees. In the eastern theater, in our parlance here today would be virginia. Grant comes up with a program to destroy lees army of Northern Virginia. And his plan is this. He will take the union army of the potomac, the main federal force, move it directly against lee. He will outnumber lees forces about two to one. 120,000 federal troops to about 65,000 confederate troops. At the same time, he will have an army move down the Shenandoah Valley southward, cutting off lees supplies from that quarter, and hell have another army move up the james river, attacking richmond and then moving into lees rear. So there will be a threepronged attack against the army of Northern Virginia, basically replicating that amassing of armies that grant sees for the entire nation. Lee finds himself in a tough situation. The army of Northern Virginia is quartered just south of the rapadan river here in virginia. The massive army of the potomac is just to the north of him, just on the other side of the river. Lee is the kind of general that likes to take the initiative, but he cant. Hes massively outnumbered. Hes also aware of that army in the Shenandoah Valley and the army forming below richmond and realizes he may have to shift reinforcements from one to another. Lee basically takes a waiting game. What is grant going to do. Grant is going to move one way or the other. Lee is uncertain. So he forfeits the initiative to his opponent. This is unlike the lee that we usually see. But in this instance he has no choice. He sends his cavalry out past each ends of his lines sort of to act as a trip wire to let him know where the federals are coming from and then waits. The army was commanded by general George Gordon lee, the hero of gettysburg, mead at this point was in a hot seat. He failed to destroy lees army at gettysburg. He was being investigated by congress. We all know how bad that can be. And so mead was in a bad situation. Grant visited him and was impressed by mead, because what mead told grant was that he would step down willingly and let grant bring some of his own people from the west to run the army of the potomac. Grant decided to keep mead on. He needed somebody with meads knowledge of that army in order to run it in detail. And that, of course, is knowledge that grant didnt have. So what grant decides to do is travel with the army of the potomac, look over meads shoulder, make sure they were fighting the way he wanted them to. But at the same time, not interfere with their operations. As i mentioned this morning, grant will keep that promise for about one day, as the armies move into the wilderness. I talked this morning generally about the relationship between the commanders of these armies. Id like to talk a little bit now also about some of the subordinate commanders. Here on the battle field of cold harbor theyre going to play a big park. Grant and mead have a very bad relationship. Initially mead will be hopeful it will work out, but these are two very different kinds of generals. Grant likes to do the unexpected. Is willing to take risks. Mead is much more cautious. Socially theyre very different people, and their age comes from different social strata. They write home and tell their wives basically that the relationship is deteriorating. After a few days of fighting, mead basically writes home and tells his wife that he would resign from his position if he could, but honor requires him to stay on. There will be a breakdown in the union command relationship. Of course, robert e. Lee will have no such problems. He will be the head of the army of Northern Virginia and everybody knew it. Who were the subordinate commanders that each of they was generals were going to have underneath them . Well, the union army will have four army corps, four infantry corps and one cavalry corps. The unions second corps will be led by hancock. Im sure youre all familiar with him. He will not perform well against grant, though, because hes been badly injured. He was shot at gettysburg, had a wound in his thigh. He will spend a lot of the campaigns against lee here in virginia in an ambulance. The unions fifth corps will be under a gentleman by the name of warren. General warren is an unusual character, a young man. He had been an engineer, had fathomed Little Round Top at gettysburg. Hes something of an odd duck. As a matter of fact, some of his cohorts would laugh at him. Im sure we all know people like that. Thats general warren. General warren also thought a lot of himself, and as youll see at this campaign, often thought his plans were better than those of his superiors. The unions sixth corps will be in the hands of general sedgwick. He will be shot down by a South Carolina sharpshooter at the battle of spotsylvania courthouse. The sixth corps will be beheaded by Ambrose Wright. Horacio Ambrose Wright is a general that most of you probably have not heard about. And he comes to the sixth corps without much background. The union army will also have within it general ambrose burnside, who will be commanding the ninth army corps. Burnside is the general who headed the army of the potomac during the battle at fredericksburg. Grant is now bringing him back to join the army of the potomac. Because of burnsides former position, grant decides that burnside cant serve underneath mead, and instead will report directly to grant who will coordinate him with general mead. You can see of the command confusion thats going to take place, and some of that will become evident here at cold harbor. The Union Cavalry, most of the commanders that you historians would have been familiar with are now gone. John buford has died. General kill patrick has been exiled to the west. What grant decides to do is bring one of his generals from the west, general Phil Sheridan, eastward and put him in charge of the cavalry of the potomac. General grant will be selecting the cavalry commander who will be reporting to general mead. A very awkward command relationship. And a command relationship that wont work, because each of these are extraordinarily strongwilled men. I suspect Phil Sheridans appearance might have had to do with problems as well. Writers tell us as the campaign opens, Phil Sheridan was about 55 tall, weighed about 115 pounds. Bowlegged, with a pointy head, looked like his black hair had been painted on. Abraham lincoln who had a good way with words explained that Phil Sheridan didnt have enough neck to hang him by. And also, noted that he was the only man he knew who could scratch his ankles without bending over. This is a new commander of the Union Cavalry for the army of the potomac. As well see, well see a lot of sheridan here at cold harbor. A fascinating figure. But also a lot of problems, particularly for general mead. What about robert e. Lee and his force . The people here at cold harbor . Well, lee had three Infantry Army corps, and one cavalry corps. Robert e. Lees first corps begins the campaign under longstreet. But longstreet will be badly wa wounded after the second day of fighting grant. And he will be replaced by general Richard Heron anderson, a South Carolinan. A man who liked to smoke mirchon pipes. Well see a lot of him at cold harbor. The confederate second corps is under Richard Stoddard ewell. He will be replaced by early, a former prosecutor, strongwilled erasible guy. Well see how early performs here at cold harbor. The confederate third corps commanded by Ambrose Powell hill of virginia, out of culpepper county, a. P. Hill, though, had been quite ill. Hes now commanding the larger remnant of stonewall jacksons old confederate first corps, as well as his former light division. A. P. Hill will do very poorly. Theres one thing about a. P. Hill that most people havent really focused on that i think would make an interesting story. Being a storyteller and historian, i would like to write a book about it one day. A. P. Hill had the unusual talent of dating women who later. L5nii married Union Generals. And its hard to figure out how he was able to figure this out ahead of time. I know most of you are familiar with the fact that he went out with this marcy, who, of course, married george mcclellan. What you might not know is he also went out with a young lady from baltimore, her name was emily chase, and just before the battle of gettysburg, she married general warren. Now, warren and h up against each other at a battle called bristol station in the fall of 1863. And this was a few months after warren had married emily chase. When i was digging through some of warrens archives up in new york, i came across a copy of a letter that warren had sent across the line to hill, after that battle. Warren had defeated hill. And he sent a note across the line that said, general a. P. Hill, i have defeated your army corps, and i have married your old sweetheart. So this will give you an idea of the state of affairs as were approaching the battles here at cold harbor. This thing is getting pretty personal. Well, what brings the armies here to cold harbor . The union plan of campaign is a plan of maneuvers. Grants plan is to swing downriver from lee. Lee is just below this rapid ann river. Grants going to swing the army of the potomac downriver, across, and then come back at lee. Basically turning his flank. On may the 3rd, during that night, and into the Early Morning of may 4th, this union juggernaut crosses downriver from lee in Central Virginia and comes at him from below, stops in an area called the wilderness of spotsylvania. The union forces stop there in order to get supplies, their supply wagons catch up, and also because they dont think lee can catch them in the wilderness. Lee, however, realizes that he has to hold that line up at the rapadan river, 50 miles north of richmond. He feels he has to hold that line, otherwise he would be driven back to the confederate capital, and find in the entrenchments and would be unable to maneuver. So lees goal is to maintain his flexibility and his maneuverability. What lee does is to attack grant in the wilderness. He divides his army into three parts, launches a threepronged attack. The battle is brutal. It goes on for some two days. Something like 11,000 confederates are killed, wounded and captured. Something like 18,000 Union Soldiers are killed, wounded and captured. 30,000 americans in all. The wilderness catches on fire. Some of the most brutal scenes of the war up to that point take place. But grant at the end of those two days finds himself stymied. Lee is in a powerful position in the wilderness and grant cannot break through. What does grant do . He maneuvers. He decides he will pull the army of the potomac out of the wilderness, swing south about ten miles to a place called spotsylvania courthouse. This will put him between lees army and richmond. And as lee figures lee will have to come out from the wilderness and fight him on open ground. This is a tactical maneuver aimed at pulling lee out from his entrenchments. The army of the potomac starts to shift south. Up to this point, whatever Union Generals had been trounced as bad as lee, had defeated grant in the wilderness, they always retreated. But grant moved south. Lee gets a finger in his army in front of grant, blocks him at spotsylvania courthouse. There is brutal fighting in places like the mule shoe, the bloody angle, that goes on for over a week in spotsylvania courthouse, almost ten days. Finally grant realizes he cant break through there. Grant maneuvers again. He pulls the union army out from spotsylvania courthouse. Sends a finger of it out on a big looping march, hoping to endice lee to come out so he can pounce on him. That doesnt work. Theres a race to the north and a river. The next defensible position, about 25 miles north of richmond. The Confederate Forces take up position below the north anna. Grant is able to get his army across the river. Lee throws his army up into a wedgeshaped formation with the tip of it touching the south bank of the north anna. He realizes it by doing this. Each wing of this wedge is on high ground. A very defensible position. The union army comes across and is basically split across the head of the union wedge, part of the union force is on this side, part on that side. Lee realizes at that point he could strike either half of this divided union army with his force and have parity of numbers. But hes unable to do so, because at this point lee falls ill, has a bad diarrhea. His subordinate command has fallen apart. According to his aides, hes there at the North Anna River, line in his tent saying we must strike them a blow. We must not let them pass. We must strike them a blow. But he cannot strike that blow. Grant finally realizes the quandary, the trap that he has fallen into. Throws up earth works. Then we see the two armies sort of cheek by jowl, as one of the union aides put it, like two school boys facing each other across earth works. The confederates in a wedgeshaped formation, and the union army in a wedgeshaped formation, larger than the confederate one facing inward. They stay there for two days. Grant comes up with another idea. Maneuver, of course. What he wants to do now is to pull out from the North Anna River, do it overnight, before lee understands whats happening. And then swing down the River Systems to the east. This would take him below the north anna. Where the north anna joins with other rivers, to the pamunkey. He will aim for the pamunkey crossing. That will put him only 17 miles from richmond. It will put him downriver from lee and he can make a sharp dash to the confederate capital, and finally get the victory hes been attempting to get. Well, this move goes off like clockwork. The night of may 26th, grant pulls his army under cover of darkness, bands playing, across the North Anna River onto the north side and heads off to the pamunkey crossings. Lee has no idea whats going on until the next morning. Then discovers the federals are gone. The union force makes its march, crosses at hanovertown, and part of it crossing at nelsons bridge. And now finds itself on the south side of the pamunkey ready to march toward richmond. A dramatic thing happens now with the cavalry. Lee is now getting reports where grant is showing up but he needs to send out a force to find out where the federals are. Jeff stewart, the confederate cavalry commander, has been killed. Sheridan has headed south during these fights at spotsylvania courthouse, had drawn stewart after him. And stewart had been mortally wounded at the battle of Yellow Tavern on may the 11th. So lee puts in charge at least temporarily of his cavalry corps a South Carolina general, wade hampton, who will distinguish himself mightily. Still commanding this large of a body of troops. What lee decides to do is send a force to find where the federals are. And grant and mead decide to send a force to reconnoiter to find out where the confederates on. On may 28th with the union army pouring across the pamunkey river, they go out in the direction of lee, lee has now pulled out from the north anna, and sends his Cavalry Force under wade hampton toward where he thinks the federals might be. The two of them, of course, encounter each other at haws shop near salem church. This is a place that the haws shop area, of course, in recent times has been renamed after bob creek, who introduced me here, and its now called studley. Theres a massive cavalry fight that occupies most of may 28th. Its a dramatic and different kind of cavalry fight. The confederates commanded by wade hampton, basically get off of their horses, throw up field works, and fight dismounted. A series of attacks are launched by general sheridan. He is unable to break through. The union army is now gathering near him. But he doesnt want help from Union Infantry, he wants to win this battle alone. This cavalry fight goes on all day, until toward the end of the day, George Armstrong custer is able to break the impasse, overruns portions of hamptons line and the confederates fall back. As nightfall comes across hanover county, its clear that the federals have driven Wade Hamptons cavalry back. Who won this battle of haws shop . If you count winning battles as who occupies the field, clearly Phil Sheridan had done that. But if you gauge who won or lost by whose goals were achieved, clearly wade hampton had won. Hampton has still screened the army of Northern Virginia. Sheridan had no idea where lees main force was. And at the same time, hampton had discovered where grants army was. In scooping up union prisoners, he had also picked up some Union Infantry and was able to learn grants location. So the battle of haws shop will really be the first meaningful engagement in the battle of mead up to our fight here at cold harbor. Well, lee decides to take up a strong defensive line during that same day, may 28th, and early the next day. If you take a look at the pamunkey river, and look at richmond, the next defensible line below the pamunkey is the tatamoney creek. Its a marshy, highbanked, small stream that runs just below the pamunkey. Lee decides to take up a line there. During the last part of may 28th, all night and into the next day, the Confederate Army in Northern Virginia moves into place. Well, what happens on may 29th . Grant has now pulled his cavalry, Phil Sheridans men, back to the rear so they can guard the burgeoning depot called white house landing. What the Union Generals decide to do is reconnoiter in force, basically send out the whole union army to look for lee. So horacio wrights sixth corps moves down the main road at lee station, gets down near the creek, and then swings sort of upriver. The unions second corps, hancocks boys come on down and set up position near the modern day shelton house, which was there at the time. And the other union corps form in the rear, with general warren starting to shift down yet further downstream on the creek. So the 29th is a day of reconnoitering. Big thoughts are in the mind of both the union and confederate commanders with respect to reinforcements. Grant has learned that his two supporting armies, the one in the Shenandoah Valley and the one on richmond have just been defeated. Im told by my virginia friends up in the Shenandoah Valley was defeated by a handful of vmi cadets. That might be a slight exaggeration, but they definitely were defeated. Butler moving up the james river was defeated by general beauregard. Grant realizes now that his supporting armies are not going to get their job done, and decides he can draw reinforcements from them. He asks general butler, who is handling the army of the james, to send him baldy smiths 18th corps. So around the 28th of may, baldy smith starts toward the cold harbor area, basically coming in at white house landing. Hes going to be coming by boat. Its quite an operation. Baldy smith is going to take his 18th corps from an area called city point. In the ber muda hunter area near petersburg. Come down the james river, swing around, come up the york, into the pamunkey, and finally land by boat up at white house landing. Thats going to take a few days. Baldys men wont arrive until the 30th of may. Lee also is looking for reinforcements. General breckenridge, who had defeated seagal in the Shenandoah Valley is now freed up and is pouring down here in direction, who reaches the army of Northern Virginia and takes up a position on the creek. Lee also positions im sorry, petitions richmond for reinforcements from that area. Now general butler is out of the picture, that should free up confederate troops there. The decision is made to send him general hokes division. So during the 29th, these various reinforcements will be moving into this area. May 30th is a big day as we move toward cold harbor. If you take a look at the map, heres the pamunkey river. Below it is the creek. And then theres two roads just below the creek. One of them is called shady grove road. Thats near palgreen church. Down below that is another road called old church road. What lee decides to do on the 30th of may is to launch an offensive. He realizes that part of the union army, the union 5th corps, has now crossed the creek, and is on his side of the creek. This is lees chance to catch an undetached part of the army of the potomac. And wipe it out. Basically warren is sitting down there by himself. So lee gives this job to the new head of his 2nd core, juneel hurley. He plans his second confederate corps with andersons first corps. Anderson is going to attack down the shady grove road, which is where warrens men are, and at the same time early will drop down to that old church road, and attack in the same direction, and then swing north into the underbelly of warrens soldiers. So this is going to be a twopronged attack. Well, things start off pretty well. Jubel early and his men go charging down the old church road, manage to drive the federals who are back down in that area, mainly pennsylvanians, from the pennsylvania reserves, and heavy artillerists, back to bethesda church. Then decide to charge north into the underbelly of warrens main force. Where, though, is anderson. Anderson, it turns out, has not stepped off. He sent one division out under general picket. Pickets decided that warren is too strongly entrenched and has sort of backed up and stopped. Without this kind of support, earlys attack is futile. It is a slaughter, headed by willis. Virtually massacred by warrens men. By Union Artillery replacements. Its been a massive defeat for the army of Northern Virginia. General warren, of course, is delighted. Lee is quite upset. A fight breaks out between early and anderson. Each writing letters to each other explaining how this defeat had been the fault of the other. What does that all add up to . Well, what it adds up to is this. Grant now realizes, and mead now realizes that this army of Northern Virginia has lost its punch. Old cold harbor is a place where several roads came together. Roads from white house landing, the union supply depot. Roads that ran to richmond. And of course, roads that ran down this way from the armies. Lee knew that the 18th corps under baldy smith was coming this way. The cavalryman who had helped guard this has made this excursion through cold harbor, asked for reinforcements. Theyre sent reinforcements in the form of fitshugh lees cavalry division. Lee, again, urges that hoke and his men from richmond hurry up. The cavalry commander realize the importance of taking cold harbor intersection. General custer talks it through with his commander, general torbert and they launch an attack against Old Cold Harbor. Fitshugh lee is ultimately routed along with a group of North Carolina boys. Almost exactly 24 hours. And 150 years ago. To this moment, if we were here at the spot where we are right now, wed have union cavalries at Old Cold Harbor. Forming pretty much where we are. Sunrise on june 1. The head of anderson first corps starts to march down into this area. It reaches an area known as the Allison House. Youll see it on the old maps. Anderson decides that hes going to launch a twopronged reconnaissance toward Old Cold Harbor, hopefully take the place. Georgia boys forming more to the south, martins north carolinians down below that and johnson ccens, we would be in the confederate line. During the darkness of tonight, there would be the tramp of soldiers on either side infantry pouring here into Old Cold Harbor. Sunrise on june 1. The head of andersons first corps starts to march down into this area and reached an area known as the Allison House. Youll see is it on the old maps. Anderson is going to launch a twopronged recognizance and hope. Fully take the place. He wants to have him move down this cold harbor road. He will follow a path from the Allison House over toward Old Cold Harbor via church. Andersons foray is going to be a disaster and its going to be a disaster because of changes made in the confederate command structure. A couple of days earlier, lawrence kits had come through richmond. He had brought with him a new regiment. It was called the 20th South Carolina. And it was huge. Had about 800 people in it. It was called by the other soldiers the 20th South Carolina corps, because it was so big. Confederates werent used to seeing regiments of this size. Lawrence kits had no experience whatsoever fighting the virginia style. He had a lot of political clout, though. And was put in charge of the brigade that had formerly been headed by general kershaw, and hannigan. That brigade was given the command to reconnoiter toward Old Cold Harbor. Well, it was a disaster. Kits marches forward. Hes actually riding his horse. Soldiers said he looked like a knight of old. Custers men are there. Of course, with their sevenshot their eyes light up. They wait until the confederate courses get close and open fire. Its a massacre. Kit is badly injured. He will die shortly. His forces are routed. Anderson falls back. Ultimately takes up a position to the north of where hokes men are. Its marked on all the Parks Service map as bloody run. It would certainly earn that name. Anderson is supposed to be coordinating the efforts here. He has a confederate brigade plug that gap for a bit. As horatio writes, federals form south to the road. Tacks them on to the south end of the confederate line so this ravine is now undefended. Its a weak spot in the confederate position what happens on the union side, the six corps under Horatio Wright fills the area down below us. Directly across is member from general eustices brigade and general upton, one of the best commanders. He master minded a spectacular result at the courthouse. Near them are baldy smiths man recently arrived from richmond who will fill in north of this big ravine and stream i was talking about. Uptons force is interesting. These men were called heavy artillerists. The most confederates they had seen were prisoners. Upton had been reenforced with one of those regiments, the second heaviest artillery commanded by colonel kellogg. He was interested having his men improve themselves and volunteer to lead in the front line. Upton will form his brigade in four lines. The first three lines will be the heavy artillerists. The last lines made up of the remains of the regiments. 6 00 the order for the charge comes out and union force comes streaming forward. Uptons men pour into these fields. Many of you walked across on some of the tours. They take heavy losses. Upton himself crouches behind trees and according to some accounts was firing muskets. Its unusual to see a Brigadier General up this close to the fighting. Kellogg is killed. Many of his men are shot down. A group of six soldiers started to work their way down to this stream. They discover its undefended. Now the confederate line is broken. Massive fighting takes place back and forth. By nightfall the union forces managed breakthroughs and are pressed on the opposite sides. What does it add up to . Something like 2, 00 casualties on that assault at the end of the day. Something like 1,000 confederate casualties. In union head quarters, this was viewed as a massive victory. Its clear the fight is out of lees army. If there had been only a few more hours of daylight, more troops, the Confederate Army could have been brought to its knees. That would have been the end to the army at north virginia. They pour more troops, abandoning the line of the creek. General hancock is ordered to march his second corps and tack on to the lower end of the line getting ready for a massive assault. Big assault to take place on these lines are expanding. The entire battle is shifting reinforce his lines. Finally, richmond was only seven or eight miles to the rear. So if he could break through the confederate works, he could take richmond. The Confederate Army would have to fall back on the river and theres no better situation than to have the enemy with a river to his back. So this looked like a perfect time to launch an assault. Politically it was a good time as well. The nominating convention in baltimore was going to convene in the next week or so. What better presence for president Abraham Lincoln than the final demise of the army. The soldiers with the army of the potomac had fought in these fields during the seven days campaign, and of course, they knew that the this was no place to be with the fevers, and the disease, and the suffering of summer. So grant decides now is the time to make an attack. Now is the time to break through the army of Northern Virginia. Lets do it the next day. Well, it didnt happen the next day. As often happens in these things, plans went awry. General hancocks men marched slower than expected. There were problems with guides and directions and roads that didnt quite pan out the way the leaders thought they would. Hancocks men werent into position until near the end. Day. Same problem with other soldiers marching down into this area. So grant decided he would launch this big attack the next day, june 3rd, at first light. Well, that was all that robert e. Lee needed to prepare. By now, the Confederate Forces were in place. They were able to dig in. And they built here at cold harbor some of the most effective earth works that they built during the entire war. They had time to not only sight their line along high ground. They dug the entrenchments. They threw dirt up in front of the entrenchments that they had built. They cleared fields with fire. They learned in the previous battles how to throw obstacles in front of the earth works to slow an attacking force. Some of lees engineers went in front of the lines, and actually were able to drive stakes into the ground at places to mark off the yardage so the artillery would know exactly how to set the fuses on their shells. Basically making this cold harbor line into an impenetrable p bastion. Grant, however, was still determined to make the attack. His judgment, this was the time, this was the place. There was no other place. And if he didnt attack now, there would be a stalemate. He sent out orders to gem mead. And general mead sent out orders to his corps commander. Unfortunately, relations between mead and grant had deteriorated at this point badly. Mead viewed grant as having very little military talent. Viewed him as a man who threw men against earth works, with often very little purpose. This was not his style of warfare. Grant, i might say, was also becoming very disaffected with mead whom he considered too cautious. At this stage of the war the men werent even traveling together. They rode separately and took their headquarters up in separate places. This was a dysfunctional family. It one the soldiers who will pay for this disfunction. Mead does very little to prepare for the assault. There are little orders set out how the attack is to take place. Very little reconnoitering. Many stories have come down about cold harbor. One of the stories that im sure most of you have heard is union troops who were attacking these earth works for the past several weeks knew that they were probably going to get killed. And men would write their names on paper and pin it to their jackets, so that their bodies could be identified. I doubt that that really happened here at cold harbor. Ive checked through the contemporary sources, the letters from the men, and none of them mentioned that. The only place that that story is mentioned is by horace porter, who is one of grants aides and he wrote it in a me
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