# Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road

The Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road (also known as the Second Battle of Fair Oaks) was fought on October 27–28, 1864, in Henrico County, Virginia, as part of the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign of the American Civil War.
In combination with movements against the Boydton Plank Road at Petersburg, Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler attacked the Richmond defenses along Darbytown Road with the X Corps. The XVIII Corps marched north to Fair Oaks where it was soundly repulsed by Maj. Gen. Charles W. Field's Confederate division. Confederate forces counterattacked, taking some 600 prisoners. The Richmond defenses remained intact. Of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's offensives north of the James River, this was repulsed most easily. The Medal of Honor was awarded to First Lieutenant William Rufus Shafter for his actions. Union casualties were 1,603, Confederates fewer than 100.

## Order of battle
### Union

The following Union Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road. It is compiled from the official tabulation of casualties, so includes only units which sustained casualties.

#### Army of the James

MG Benjamin F. Butler

##### X Corps

BG Alfred H. Terry
| Division | Brigade | Regiments and Others |
| First Division  BG Adelbert Ames | First Brigade  Col Alvin C. Voris | 39th Illinois 62nd Ohio 67th Ohio 85th Pennsylvania (detachment) |
| First Division  BG Adelbert Ames | Second Brigade  Col Joseph C. Abbott | 6th Connecticut 7th Connecticut 3rd New Hampshire 7th New Hampshire 16th New York Heavy Artillery (7 companies) |
| First Division  BG Adelbert Ames | Third Brigade  Col Harris M. Plaisted | 10th Connecticut 11th Maine 24th Massachusetts 100th New York |
| Second Division  BG Robert S. Foster | First Brigade  Col Newton Martin Curtis | 3rd New York 112th New York 117th New York 142nd New York |
| Second Division  BG Robert S. Foster | Second Brigade  Col Galusha Pennypacker | 47th New York 76th Pennsylvania 97th Pennsylvania 203rd Pennsylvania |
| Second Division  BG Robert S. Foster | Third Brigade  Col Louis Bell | 13th Indiana (3 companies) 9th Maine 115th New York |
| Third Division  BG Joseph R. Hawley | First Brigade  Col James Shaw Jr. | 7th U.S. Colored Troops 9th U.S. Colored Troops 41st U.S. Colored Troops (Company A) |
| Third Division  BG Joseph R. Hawley | Second Brigade  Col Ulysses Doubleday | 29th Connecticut 8th U.S. Colored Troops 45th U.S. Colored Troops (6 companies) |
| Third Division  BG Joseph R. Hawley | Artillery Brigade  Ltc Richard Jackson | 1st U.S., Batteries C & D |

##### XVIII Corps

MG Godfrey Weitzel
| Division | Brigade | Regiments and Others |
| First Division  BG Gilman Marston | First Brigade  Ltc John B. Raulston | 13th New Hampshire 81st New York 98th New York 139th New York |
| First Division  BG Gilman Marston | Second Brigade  Col Edgar M. Cullen | 5th Maryland 10th New Hampshire 92nd New York (detachment) 96th New York 118th New York |
| First Division  BG Gilman Marston | Third Brigade  Ltc Joab N. Patterson | 21st Connecticut 40th Massachusetts 2nd New Hampshire 58th Pennsylvania 188th Pennsylvania |
| First Division  BG Gilman Marston | Unattached | Sharpshooters Pioneers 8th Connecticut: Col John E. Ward |
| Second Division  BG Charles A. Heckman | First Brigade [not engaged] | |
| Second Division  BG Charles A. Heckman | Second Brigade  Col Edward H. Ripley | 8th Maine 9th Vermont |
| Second Division  BG Charles A. Heckman | Third Brigade  Col Harrison S. Fairchild | 89th New York 148th New York 2nd Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, Company G 19th Wisconsin |
| Third Division | First Brigade  Col John H. Holman  Ltc Abial G. Chamberlain | 1st U.S. Colored Troops 22nd U.S. Colored Troops 37th U.S. Colored Troops |
| Third Division | Second Brigade  Col Alonzo G. Draper | 5th U.S. Colored Troops 36th U.S. Colored Troops 38th U.S. Colored Troops |
| Third Division | Unattached | 2nd U.S. Colored Cavalry (dismounted) |
| Artillery Division | | New York Light Artillery, 16th Battery 1st Pennsylvania Light Artillery, Battery A |
| Cavalry Division  Col Robert M. West | First Brigade  Col George W. Lewis | 3rd New York 5th Pennsylvania |
| Cavalry Division  Col Robert M. West | Second Brigade  Col Samuel P. Spear | 1st District of Columbia (Battalion) 11th Pennsylvania |
| Cavalry Division  Col Robert M. West | Third Brigade  Col Andrew W. Evans | 1st Maryland 1st New York Mounted Rifles |
| Cavalry Division  Col Robert M. West | Artillery Brigade | Wisconsin Light, 4th Battery 1st U.S., Battery B |

### Confederate

The following Confederate army units and commanders fought at the battle.

#### Army of Northern Virginia
##### First Corps

LTG James Longstreet
| Division | Brigade | Regiments and Others |
| Field's Division   MG Charles W. Field | Anderson's Brigade   BG George T. Anderson | 7th Georgia 8th Georgia 9th Georgia 11th Georgia 59th Georgia |
| Field's Division   MG Charles W. Field | Law's Brigade   Col William F. Perry | 4th Alabama 15th Alabama 44th Alabama 47th Alabama 48th Alabama |
| Field's Division   MG Charles W. Field | Gregg's Brigade   Col Frederick S. Bass | 3rd Arkansas 1st Texas 4th Texas 5th Texas |
| Field's Division   MG Charles W. Field | Benning's Brigade   Col Dudley M. Du Bose | 2nd Georgia 15th Georgia 17th Georgia 20th Georgia |
| Field's Division   MG Charles W. Field | Bratton's Brigade   BG John Bratton | 1st South Carolina 5th South Carolina 6th South Carolina 2nd South Carolina Rifles |

##### Fourth Corps

| Division | Brigade | Regiments and Others |
| Hoke's Division   MG Robert F. Hoke | Hagood's Brigade   BG Johnson Hagood | 7th South Carolina (battalion) 11th South Carolina 21st South Carolina 25th South Carolina 27th South Carolina |
| Hoke's Division   MG Robert F. Hoke | Colquitt's Brigade   BG Alfred H. Colquitt | 6th Georgia 19th Georgia 23rd Georgia 27th Georgia 28th Georgia |
| Hoke's Division   MG Robert F. Hoke | Clingman's Brigade   BG Thomas L. Clingman | 8th North Carolina 31st North Carolina 51st North Carolina 61st North Carolina |
| Hoke's Division   MG Robert F. Hoke | Kirkland's Brigade   BG William Whedbee Kirkland | 17th North Carolina 42nd North Carolina 66th North Carolina |

##### Cavalry Corps

| Division | Brigade | Regiments and Others |
| W. H. F. Lee's Division   MG W. H. F. Lee | Barringer's Brigade   BG Rufus Barringer | 1st North Carolina Cavalry 2nd North Carolina Cavalry 3rd North Carolina Cavalry 5th North Carolina Cavalry |
| W. H. F. Lee's Division   MG W. H. F. Lee | Beale's Brigade   BG Richard L. T. Beale | 9th Virginia Cavalry 10th Virginia Cavalry 13th Virginia Cavalry |
| W. H. F. Lee's Division   MG W. H. F. Lee | Dearing's Brigade   BG James Dearing | 8th Georgia Cavalry 4th North Carolina Cavalry 16th North Carolina Cavalry |
| Butler's Division   MG Matthew Butler | Butler's Brigade   Col Hugh Kerr Aiken | 4th South Carolina Cavalry 5th South Carolina Cavalry 6th South Carolina Cavalry |
| Butler's Division   MG Matthew Butler | Young's Brigade   Col J.F. Waring | 10th Georgia Cavalry Cobb's (Georgia) Legion Phillip's (Georgia) Legion Jeff. Davis (Mississippi) Legion |
| | Horse Artillery   Maj R. Preston Chew | Hart's (South Carolina) Battery Graham's (Virginia) Battery McGregor's (Virginia) Battery |

### Abbreviations used
#### Military rank

* Gen = General
* LTG = Lieutenant General
* MG = Major General
* BG = Brigadier General
* Col = Colonel
* Ltc = Lieutenant Colonel
* Maj = Major

#### Other

* (w) = wounded
* (mw) = mortally wounded
* (k) = killed in action
* (c) = captured