Confederate General Robert E. Lee was concerned about the strength of the Union army that General George B. McClellan had amassed so close to Richmond. Lee believed that McClellan's left wing was strong and too strong to attack. He decided to build a strong line of fortifications to hopefully prevent a Union army advance against Richmond. Lee believed that this entrenchment was strong enough to allow him to take the bulk of his army to the north bank of the Chickahominy River and threaten McClellan's communications with the York River. As secure communications, especially when an army is far from home, are essential, Lee believed McClellan would be forced to retreat or engage in battle outside of his own fortifications. At the same time, Lee had ordered Stonewall Jackson to use stealth and advance his forces from the Shenandoah Valley and prepare for an offensive to drive McClellan into a massive retreat eastward along the same route he used to advance close to Richmond. The Confederate offensive would be a turning point in the Union's Peninsula campaign.
Battle of Richmond happened on 1862-08-29.
On July 13, 1862 Robert E. Lee is in Richmond and faces a serious problem. Union General McClellan still has 85,000 troops at Harrison's Landing, Virginia. Lee also must contend with the 45,000 Union troops under General John Pope that seems to be moving south to Richmond.
Summer of 1862
Confederate President Jefferson Davis was alarmed in late February of 1862 about the Union's progress in taking Roanoke Island and its victories in North Carolina. To ease this situation, Davis and General Joseph Johnston agreed that Johnston's army need to be larger and it needed to move south to better protect Richmond.
Ed Ford was born April 10, 1862, in Richmond, VA, USA.
Robert E. Lee
Union forces under the command of Union General George B. McClellan were advancing towards Richmond in late June of 1862. General Lee sought to stop this advance and protect Richmond. On June 26, 1862, Lee attempted to destroy the Union's right flank and also cut off their supply lines. This attempt failed. However, now Richmond lay in danger. lee took a huge risk and commanded 50,000 Rebel soldiers to attack at Gaine's Mill, leaving only a small force to protect Richmond. Lee succeeded.
CSS Richmond was created in 1862-07.
Battle of Richmond happened on 1862-08-29.
Richmond, Virginia
August 29-30 1862
McClellan's
There was no Battle of Richmond. In the spring of 1862, the Union armies were almost in the suburbs of Richmond, from where they were promptly dislodged by Robert E. Lee. The siege of Petersburg (where the Confederates were defending Richmond) ended in March 1865, when Lee tried to escape to the West. The remaining Confederates fled the capital, burning many bales of cotton as they went.
On March 25, 1862, Jefferson Davis and General Robert E. Lee knew they had a liability on the peninsula leading to Richmond. Confederate General Joseph Johnston was ordered to bring 30,000 troops to Richmond if he did not expect an attack along the Rappahannock River. Johnston's response to Lee was that dividing his forces was not a good idea. He believed that he should form a concentration of troops.
His goal was to capture Richmond, the Confederate capital.
to capture Richmond the confederate capital
Robert E. Lee believed that he had a chance to destroy the Army of Virginia in mid- August of 1862. He realized that this might endanger the safety of Richmond. Despite that he took a risk that helped force John Pope's Army of Virginia to retreat. Lee decided to send a portion of his army north to meet Pope's army. He left behind a small force to protect an attack from McClellan on the Peninsula.