Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1863-05-16
The Peninsular Campaign in Virginia.
{MARcH-JULY, 1861
by THE PRINCE DE JOINvILLE.

v.
The direct toward march was continued,
and notwithstanding the almost incessant
rains which ruined the roads, we soon reach
ed the banks ofthe Chickahominy, at Bottom
bridge, ten miles from Richmond, and where
the York River railroad, which the army fol-
lowed all the way from the White House,
crossed the river on bridge which the enc.
my had destroyed. We were now at the
very gates Of Richmond. Till then the cam
pasn had been, if not brilliant. at least fertile
in results Yorktown. one Of the most impor-
tant military positions Of the enemy, had fall
len. Norfolk, the magnificent arsenal from
Which the South drew the greater part of its
military stores, had been abandoned, and its
evacuation had brought on the destruction of
the formidable Merrimac. Finally, General
Mcclellan had succeeded in pitching his
camp. without accident. in front Of the capital
of the seeded States and of their chief army.
The confederates could fall back 10 further
without loosing all their prestige in the eyes
of their partisans and of the whole world.
They had therefore to accept there decisive
battle. In the circumstances in which We
were placed it was no small merit to have
driven our adversary to such a necessity. l
am aware that this battle ought to have been
won, and that it was not but the RESPONSE
biliy of this failure by no means belongs al
together to the army and TO its leader. Who
were the men who, by driving them into an
untmDly campaign, had thus revealed to the
enemy tho secret of operations not yet ripe
for execution Was General Mcclellan rr-
sponsible for the want Of unity of purpose and
action which had trammrlcd the movements
of the Federal armies ever since the Govern
mrnt had deprived him of the supreme com.
,nand of all these armies Finally. was Nc.
Clrllan responsible for the systematic rcduc.
ton of his iorcrs which, in face of the con.
crntraion of the encmy's forces, had deprived
him successfully. since the opening Of the
campaign, of Blrnker's divisions, given to
Frmnnt, and of two-thirls of McDowelrs
corps. wihontany compensation without send
ing him single man to fll the gaps made
bv cannon and disease Notwithstanding all
Ties difficulties. he la Il succeeded in leading
his army to Richmond; but hc had not th.
means of striking the great blow which would
probably have ended the war. In an enemy's
country covered with woods, where very little
can br seen or known, an army is constantly
subject to surprises. What seems a simple
reconnaissance may be in fact serious and
general attack. A large force is needed to
guard against these surprises, and n still
larger force to secure line of communication
which camno. be broken without danger. Evi
IDENTIFY rriniorcrmrrts were needed. Could
they be got Could the Federals respond
by powerful concentration to that which the
explorations of aeronauts and the daily testi
mony of desertrrs proved tob be going OH among
the enemy! This was tho first question
which we asked ourselves.
General Wool from Norfolk, and General
Burnside from North Carolina, could send a
few troops ; but this was a small matter
while $4,000 men were collected in the neigh
borhood of Washington. About half OF these
were making head against Jackson in the
valley of the Shenandoah. The rest were
under Mcdowell at Fredericksburg, only sixty
miles north of Richmond. They had rebuil,
the railroad bridge over the ltappahannock
Following this railroad, they could have
joined McCrllan's army in three or four days
They would have left nothing exposed by
leaving fredericksburg; there was no enemy
in that region. Their stay there was so no
toriously useless to the Federal cause that i,
was subject of ridcule for the confederate
papers, which called them "the fifth wheel Of
The coach" 1t was known at the same time
in the army of the Potomac that General Nc.
Dowell ardrntly desired to give the liz to
these jc'rs by giving to the Union cause al
the dtcsiv" moment cooperation which
could have insured victory. Accordingly
when General Mcclellan arrived before Rich.
mond his first thought was to learn what he
had to expect from that quarter. No official
notice, either from F" ashington or from Nc.
Dowell himself, had informed Mcclellan of his
presence at Fredericksburg, though only six.
ty miles distant but public ru,nor SO persis-
trntly represented Mcdowell as advancing ia
join him, and such a movement was SO plainly
required by circumstances, that it was re-.
solved to try to open communications with
him.
On the night of the Goth, be sent out Gen
eral Porter with division Of infantry and
several squadrons Of cavalry, in fearful
storm. to Hanover Court House, a village abou,
twenty miles north Of Richmond, where the
railroad from Fredericksburg crosses the Pa.
munkey, Portrr's troops moved rapidly. and
about the middle Of the day arrived nsa,
Hanover Court. House. which they found
guarded by General Brauch's division
They drove them back by vigorous assault,
and took cannon. Assaulted in their turn by
confsdsrates troops who were concealed in thr
woods, aud had purposely let them pass
hey turned on these aud dispersed them
In this brilliant fight. which cost the FEEDER.
ais only four hundred men, General Porter
took one cannon, five hundred prisoners. and
two bridges. on~ on the fredericksburg road,
the other on the road to Gord0nsville. The
advance guard Of Mcdowell was near Bow.