The Overland campaign in the US Civil War began with a series of battles called the Wilderness and ending with Cold Harbor. This was in the Spring of 1864 and involved six weeks of fighting that was unprecedented in American history. The campaign involved three field armies with troops numbering approximately 200,000. The campaign resulted with Union forces suffering 64,000 casualties and 36,000 for the Confederates. The campaign was initiated by the new Union General in Chief US Grant, with the intent to march as directly as possible to the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. Under Grant, Union General Meade's Army of the Potomac pursued a relentless drive across sixty miles of Virginia territory. This operation forced Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia to engage Meade or retreat back to the defensive fortifications of Richmond. Lee's ability to keep his army in front of Meade's forces, allowed for other Confederate forces to block Union troops under the command of General Butler, the Army of James, from assaulting Richmond. At the Battle of Cold Harbor Federal forces battled to within ten miles of Richmond by early June. Cold Harbor was Lee's last important victory. The aforementioned casualties suffered by Grant were roundly criticized, as the losses were due to the particular tactics of Grant and supported by President Lincoln. It was said that Grant had little regard for his soldiers and placed them in positions which caused great losses. Lee's losses were in defense. Nevertheless they were costly as well.
There was constant movement on both the Union and Confederate sides in the Overland campaign. As a consequence of this, wagons with food supplies could not always keep up with the armies they had to feed. The result was that undernourishment was a battle fatigue problem.
As events turned out, neither General Grant nor his commanders could accurately gauge the difficulties the Overland campaign would meet. Grant's forces were far greater in numbers and overall strength, however, no one predicted the extensive use of field fortifications that Lee's engineers had constructed. This became a huge problem for the Union and the idea, that if the Overland campaign plans were executed, the war would be almost over.
During the Winter before the Overland campaign, Union Secretary of War, Edwin M. Stanton was facing a manpower shortage. He understood that soldiers recruited in 1861 for three year enlistments, would soon retire. To help correct this he began a reenlistment campaign appealing to the soldiers' sense of pride in the Union.
On May 4, 1864, US Grant crossed the Rapidan River with 120,000 troops. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia had 65,000 troops.
US Civil War General William Hopkins Morris graduated from West Point in 1851. He was ranked 27th in his graduating class of cadets that numbered 42.Morris served in the Peninsula campaign that included the Siege of Yorktown. He also served at Gettysburg and the Overland Campaign. There he was wounded and never returned to combat.
For the most part, it was normal for armies to march to battle locations in daylight. When in the Overland campaign, it became necessary for armies to march under the cover of darkness. This was new to most soldiers and caused many problems if a battle was to occur the day after a long night march.
The Seven Days Battles of the Peninsula campaign - followed by Second Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg. In Grant's Overland Campaign, the battles were The Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Coldharbour and the Siege of Petersburg.
The battle of Perryville, fought October 8, 1862 was the bloodiest battle fought in Kentucky during the US Civil War. There were over 7000 men killed, wounded or missing from both sides. It was fought during the Confederate Overland Campaign of 1862.
Union General Charles Griffin was part of eleven US Civil War campaigns and battles. Griffin was in the following battles:1. First Battle of Bull Run; 2. Peninsula campaign; 3. Second Bull Run; 4. Antietam; 5. Fredericksburg; 6. Chancellorsville; 7. Gettysburg; 8. Overland campaign; 9. Siege of Petersburg; 10. Battle of Five Forks; and 11. Appomattox campaign.
The Civil War. The North was the Union and the South, the confederacy.
The so-called Overland campaign would finally have US Grant fight against Robert E. Lee. In the Spring of 1864, the campaign began with the Wilderness battle and ran forward to the Battle of Cold Harbor. It involved about six weeks of pitched battles that cost the Union 64,000 casualties and 36,000 on the Confederate side. Nearly 200,00 soldiers were involved, and this period of the war had been unprecedented in US history. That's a large remark based on all the previous battles that at their time in the US Civil War were also unprecedented.Perhaps the best worst word ( unfairly for a man charged with winning ) used against Grant at this time was the term "butcher". Even Mary Todd Lincoln is said to have used that word to describe Grant.
During the Overland campaign, grant's chief engineer Cyrus B. Comstock, received severe criticism from General John Rawlings. Rawlings was Grant's chief of staff during the Overland campaign. He blamed Comstock for the series of often ill- prepared attacks on fortified Confederate positions in the Overland campaign.