From Manassas to Appomattox. Memoirs of the civil war in America ... Illustrated, etc

Front matter

FROM Manassas to Appomattox MEMOIES OF THE CIVIL WAR IJST AMEEICA BY JAMES LONGSTREET, LIEUTENANT-GENEEAL CONFEDERATE AKMY ILLUSTRATED WITH PLATES, MAPS, PORTRAITS, AND ENGRAVINGS SPECIALLY PREPARED FOR THIS WORK PHILADELPHIA J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY 1896 TONDQN; 1», HENRIETTA ST., CO VENT GAIvj. Copyright, 1895, BY J. B. Lippincott Company. AU Rights reserved. ELECTROTYPEO AND Pfi,NTED BY J. B. UpMNCOTT COMPANY, PhIU,DEIP„,a, U.S.A. THIS WORK IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED TO THE OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS OF THE FIRST CORPS OF THE ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA TO THE LIVING AND THE DEAD Hn Vtllemors of THEIR BRAVE DEEDS, THEIR TOILS, THEIR TRIBULATIONS, AND THEIR TRIUMPHS V

Preface

. Immediately after the surrender of the Confederate armies engaged in the war between the States, General Lee undertook to write of the campaigns of the Army of Northern Virginia while under his command, and asked such assistance as I could give in supplying reports, de spatches, and letters of his, the originals of which had been lost or destroyed. Under the impression that they could not be put to better use, such as were then in hand were packed and sent him. He gave up the work, and after a few years his death made it impossible that the world should ever receive the complete story of the Confederate campaigns in Virginia from the noble mind that pro jected and controlled them. Possibly, had I not expected our commander to write the history of those campaigns, I should have written it myself a decade or so earlier than I have done.

But, personally, I am not sorry that I write of the war thirty years after its close, instead of ten or twenty. While I am so constituted, temperamentally, that I could view then almost exactly as I do now the great struggle in which I bore a part, I do not know that others, in any considerable number, might have so regarded it at the earlier periods to which I refer. I believe that now, more fully than then, the public is ready to receive, in the spirit in which it is written, the story which I present. It is not my purpose to philosophize upon the war, but I cannot refrain from expressing my profound thankful- VI PKEFACE. ness that Providence has spared me to such time as I can see the asperities of the great conflict softened, its passions entering upon the sleep of oblivion, only its nobler — if less immediate — results springing into virile and vast life.

I believe there is to-day, because of the war, a broader and deeper patriotism in all Americans ; that patriotism throbs the heart and pulses the being as ardently of the South Carolinian as of the Massachusetts Puritan ; that the Lib erty Bell, even now, as I write, on its Southern pilgrimage, will be as reverently received and as devotedly loved in Atlanta and Charleston as in Philadelphia and Boston. And to stimulate and evolve this noble sentiment all the more, what we need is the resumption of fraternity, the hearty restoration and cordial cultivation of neighborly, brotherly relations, faith in Jehovah, and respect for each other ; and God grant that the happy vision that de lighted the soul of the sweet singer of Israel may rest like a benediction upon the North and the South, upon the Blue and the Gray.

The spirit in which this work has been conceived, and in which I have conscientiously labored to carry it out, is one of sincerity and fairness. As an actor in, and an eye witness of, the events of 1861-65, I have endeavored to perform my humble share of duty in passing the mate rials of history to those who may give them place in the records of the nation, — not of the South nor of the North, — but in the history of the United Nation. It is with such magnified view of the responsibility of saying the truth that I have written. I yield to no one as a champion of the Southern soldier wherever he may have fought and in whatever army, and I do not think I shall be charged more now than in war-time with " underestimating the enemy." Honor to all! If I speak with some particularity of the First Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia, it must be ascribed in part to the affection of a commander, and in

PREFACE.

. VII part to my desire to relieve its brave officers and men in the ranks from unjust aspersions. After General Lee's death, various writers on the Southern cause combined with one accord to hold the First Corps and its commander responsible for all adversity that befell the army. I being under the political ban, and the political passions and prejudices of the times running high, they had no difficulty in spreading their misrepresentations South and North until some people, through their mere reiteration, came to accept them as facts. I simply present the facts concerning the First Corps in all fulness and fairness, attested by indisputable authorities, that the public may judge between it and its detractors. In the accounts of battles and movements, the official War Records supply in a measure the place of lost papers, and afford a great mass of most trustworthy statistics.

I am under obligations to General E. P. Alexander, Gen eral G. M. Sorrel, Colonel Osman Latrobe, Colonel J. W. Fairfax, Colonel T. J. Goree, Colonel Erasmus Taylor, and Colonel J. C. Haskell for many interesting sugges tions. To Major George B. Davis and Mr. L. J. Perry, of the War Records office, I am under obligations for invaluable assistance ; as also to Mr. Alfred Matthews, of Philadel phia, for material aid in revising the manuscript of these memoirs. The Authok. CONTENTS.

Chapter I. The Ante-bellum Life Op The Author

Birth— Ancestry— School-Boy Days— Appointment as Cadet at the™ United States Military Academy— Graduates of Historic Classes —Assignment as Brevet Lieutenant— Gay Life of Garrison at Jefferson Barracks— Lieutenant Grant's Courtship— Annexation of Texas— Army of Observation— Army of Occupation— Camp Life in Texas— March to the Rio Grande— Mexican War .... 13

Chapter II. From New Mexico To Manassas

The War-Cloud— The Journey Northward— Appointed Brigadier- General — Report to General Beauregard— Assigned to Command at the Scene of the First Conflict— Personnel of the Confronting Forces— Description of the Field of Manassas, or Bull Run — Beauregard and McDowell of the same West Point Class— Battle of Blackburn's Ford— Early's Mistake— Under Fire of Friend and Foe 29

Chapter III. Battle Of Manassas, Or Bull Run

Commanders on both Sides generally Veterans of the Mexican War— General Irvin McDowell's Preconceived Plan— Johnston reinforces Beauregard and approves his Plans — General Bernard E. Bee — Analysis of the Fight— Superb Work of the Federal Artillery — Christening of "Stonewall Jackson" — McDowell's Gallant Effort to recover Lost Power — Before he was shorn of his Artillery he was the Samson of the Field — The Rout — Criticism of McDowell — Tyler's Reconnoissance— Ability of the Commanding Generals tested 42

Chapter IV. The Confederates Hovering Around Washington

An Early War-Time Amenity — The Author invited to dine with the Enemy— " Stove-pipe Batteries"— J. E. B. Stuart, the Famous Cavalryman — His Bold Dash on the Federals at Lewinsville — Major-General G. W. Smith associated with Johnston and Beauregard in a Council — Longstreet promoted Major- General— Fierce Struggle at Ball's Bluff— Dranesville a Success CONTENTS. X PAGE 103 for the Union Arms — McClellan given the Sobriquet of "The Young Napoleon" 59

Chapter V. Round About Richmond

The Defences of the Confederate Capital — Army of Northern Virginia at Centreville — Aggressive Action — Council with the President and Secretary of War — Mr. Davis's High Opinion of McClellan — Operations on the Peninsula — Engagements about Yorktown and Williamsburg— Severe Toil added to the Soldiers' Usual Labors by a Saturated Soil 64

Chapter VI. The Battle Of Williamsburg

The Attack on Fort Magruder — Hancock occupies Two Redoubts — The Slaughter in Early's Brigade — The Fifth North Carolina Regiment and Twenty-Fourth Virginia mercilessly exposed — A Hard-Fought Engagement — A Confederate Victory — Mc- Clellan not on the Field the Greater Part of the Day — Hancock called "The Superb" by McClellan — Johnston pays High Tribute to Longstreet 72

Chapter VII. Seven Pines, Or Fair Oaks

A New Line of Defence — Positions of the Confronting Armies — Fitz-John Porter — Terrific Storm on the Eve of Battle— General Johnston's Orders to Longstreet, Smith, and Huger— Lack of Co-operation on the Confederate Side, and Ensuing Confusion—Fatalities among Confederate Officers— Kearny's Action —Serious Wounding of General Johnston at the Close of the Battle — Summary and Analysis of Losses 81

Chapter VIII

SEQUELÆ OF SEVEN PINES. The Forces under Command of G. W. Smith after Johnston was wounded— The Battle of the 1st— Longstreet requests Reinforcements and a Diversion— Council held— McLaws alone sustains Longstreet's Opposition to retiring— Severe Fighting— Pickett's Brave Stand— General Lee assigned to Command— He orders the withdrawal of the Army— Criticism of General Smith— Confederates should not have lost the Battle— Keyes's Corroboration

Chapter IX. Robert

E. LEE IN COMMAND. The Great General's Assignment not at first assuring to the Army Able as an Engineer but limited as to Field Service — He makes CONTENTS. XI PAGE 120 153 the Acquaintance of his Lieutenants — Calls a Council— Gains Confidence by saying Nothing — "A Little Humor now and then" — Lee Plans a Simultaneous Attack on McClellan's Front and Rear — J. E. B. Stuart's Daring Reconnoissance around the Union Army 112

Chapter X. Fighting Along The Chickahominy

Retreat — Lee's Bold Initiative — Lee aud his Lieutenants planning Battle — The Confederates' Loss at Mechanicsville — Gaines's Mill— A. P. Hill's Fight— Longstreet's Reserve Division put in — McClellan's Change of Base — Savage Station — Longstreet engages McClellan's Main Force at Frayser's Farm (or Glendale)— President Davis on the Field — Testimony of Federal Generals — Fierce Bayonet Charges — "Greek meets Greek" — Capture of General McCall — McClellan's Masterly Retreat . .

Chapter XI. Battle Of Malvern Hill

Last Stand in the Great Retreat — Strength of McClellan's Position — The Confederates make Poor Use of their Artillery — A Mistake and Defeat for Lee's Army— The Campaign as a Whole a Great Success, but it should have been far greater— McClellan's Retreat showed him well equipped in the Science of War— Review of the Campaign— Jackson's and Magruder's Misunderstanding—Moral Effect of the Gunboats on the James River — " There should be a Gunboat in Every Family" 141

Chapter XII. Halleck And Pope In Federal Command

Centres of Activity gravitate towards Orange and Culpeper Counties—Pope's Unsoldierly Preliminary Orders— Jackson's and Pope's Encounter at Cedar Mountain— Confidence in and Esteem for General Lee— The Confederate Commander's Plans for cutting off Pope miscarry— Capture of Captain Fitzhugh with Important Orders— Longstreet puts General Toombs under Arrest— General Pope withdraws

Chapter XIII. Making Ready For Manassas Again

General Lee modifies his Order of March— Continuous Skirmishing—Cavalry Commander Stuart gets into General Pope's Head-quarters and captures his Personal Equipment— His Uniform Coat and Hat shown along the Confederate Lines- Jackson's Superb Flank Movement — Confederates capture Trains, Supplies, Munitions, and Prisoners— Hooker and CONTENTS. PAGK Ewell at Bristoe Station — Jackson first on the Old Field of Bull Run — Longstreet's Command joins passing Thoroughfare Gap — Pope practically throws Responsibility for Aggressive Action on McDowell— Preliminary Fighting— General Pope surprised by Jackson— Pope's Orders to Fitz-John Porter 163

Chapter XIV Second Battle Of Manassas

(BULL RUN). Battle opened by the Federals on Jackson's Right, followed by Kearny — Longstreet's Reconnoissance — Stuart, the Cavalry Leader, sleeps on the Field of Battle — Pope thought at the Close of the 29th that the Confederates were retreating — Second Day — Fitz-Jobn Porter struck in Flank — Longstreet takes a Hand in the Fight late in the Day — Lee under Fire — The Federal Retreat to Centreville — That Point turned — Pope again dislodged — " Stonewall" Jackson's Appearance and Peculiarities — Killing of " Fighting Phil" Kearny — Losses — Review of the Campaign 180

Chapter XV. The Maryland Campaign

General Lee continues Aggressive Work — From Foraged Fields of Virginia into a Bounteous Land— Longstreet objected to the Movement on Harper's Ferry — Lee thinks the Occasion Timely for Proposal of Peace and Independence— Confederates singing through the Streets of Fredericktown— McClellan's Movements—Cautious Marches — Lee's Lost Order handed to the Federal Chief at Frederick 199

Chapter XVI

"THE LOST ORDER"— SOUTH MOUNTAIN. How the Federals found the Despatch— With every Advantage McClellau "made haste slowly"— Lee turns back to meet him at South Mountain— Longstreet preferred that the Stand should be made at Sharpsburg— The Battle at the Pass— Many killed— General Garland of the Confederate and General Reno of the Union Side— A Future President among the Wounded— Estimate of Forces engaged 212

Chapter XVII. Preliminaries Of The Great Battle

Confederates retreat from South Mountain— Federals follow aud harass them— Franklin and Cobb at Crampton's Pass— A Spirited Action— Fighting around Harper's Ferry— Its Capitulation—The Confederates take Eleven Thousand Prisoners- Jackson rejoins Lee— Description of the Field of Antietam— Xlll PAGE CONTENTS. McClellan posts his Corps— Lee's Lines advantageously placed —Hooker's Advance on the Eve of Battle should have been resisted 227

Chapter XVIII. Battle Of Sharpsburg, Or Antietam

Bloodiest Single Day of the War— Comparison of Casualties- Hooker opens the Fight against Jackson's Centre — Many Officers among the Fallen early in the Day — McLaws and Walker in time to meet Sumner's Advance under Sedgwick— Around Dunker Chapel— Richardson's Splendid Advance against the Confederate Centre the Signal of the Bursting of another Storm — Longstreet's and D. H. Hill's Troops stood before it— Fall of General G. B. Anderson — General Richardson mortally wounded — Aggressive Spirit of his Command broken — Wonderful Cannon-shot — General D. H. Hill's Third Horse killed under him 239

Chapter XIX. Battle Of Sharpsburg, Or Antietam

(CONTINUED). Closing Events of the Great Struggle — Burnside crosses the Bridge he made famous — Toombs made Gallant Defence, but was outnumbered and dislodged — The Confederate Brigades from Harper's Ferry under A. P. Hill in Time for the Final Crisis — Burnside's Advance arrested by them — The Battle against Burnside " appeared to spring from the Earth" — "Lee's old War Horse" — The Killing of a Kinsman at the Bridge seriously affects General D. R. Jones — The Sharp Fight at Shepherdstown — Confederates retreat — Casualties of the Battle — Confederate Losses in the Campaign — Neither McClellan's Plan nor Execution was strong 256

Chapter XX. Review Of The Maryland Campaign

Confederate Expectations — General Lee's Salutatory to the People of Maryland — The "Lost Despatch" — McClellan's Movements — Turn in the Tide of War— A Miracle great as the throwing down of the Walls of Jericho— In Contempt of the Enemy the Confederate Army was dispersed — Harper's Ferry a " Man- Trap" — It diverted the Army from the Main Issue— Lee and McClellan compared and contrasted — Tribute to the Confederate Private Soldier 279

Chapter XXI. Reorganization And Rest For Both Armies

The Confederates appoint Seven Lieutenant-Generals— The Army of Northern Virginia organized in Corps— General McClellan CONTENTS. PAGE relieved, and General Burnside appointed Commander of the Army of the Potomac— A Lift for the South— McClellan was growing— Burnside's " Three Grand Divisions"— The Campaign of the Rappahannock— Getting Ready for Fredericksburg — Longstreet occupies Fredericksburg — The Town called to sur render by General Sumner — Exodus of the Inhabitants under a Threat to shell the Town 290

Chapter XXII. Battle Of Fredericksburg

Description of the Field — Marye's Heights — Position of the Troops of Longstreet's Command — General Jackson called down from Orange Court-House, and Preparations made for a Determined Stand— Signal Guns at Three o'clock in the Morning announce the Long-Expected Battle — Burnside's Bridge-Builders thrice driven back from their Work — The Crossing finally made by Boats — Federals under Hot Fire enter Fredericksburg — How they obtained their Foothold on the West Bank of the Rappahannock — Gallant Officers and Men — Ninety-seven killed or wounded in the Space of Fifty Yards — General Burnside's Plan of Battle— Strength of the Contending Forces 297

Chapter XXIII. Battle Of Fredericksburg

(CONTINUED). The Battle-field veiled by a Heavy Fog— Terrific Fighting of the 13th of December— Forlorn Hope of the Federals— General Meade's Division of Franklin's Command makes the First Advance— General French leads against the Confederate Left- Hancock follows— General Cobb killed— The Sunken Road and Stone Wall below Marye's Hill— Desperate Advances and Determined Repulses— Humphreys's Heroic Assault— The Stoue Wall "a Sheet of Flame"— General Jackson loses his Opportunity to advance— The Charge of Meade's Divisions compared with that of Pickett, Pettigrew, and Trimble's Columns at Gettysburg— Forty Per Cent, killed in charging Lines here, and Sixty Per Cent, at Gettysburg— Total Losses— Peace to be declared because Gold had gone to 200— Organization of the Army of Northern Virginia 30g

Chapter XXIV. Preparing For The Spring Of

'63. Burnside's Abortive Moves— The " Mud March"— General Hooker supersedes Burnside— The Confederates strengthen their Position for the Winter— Longstreet ordered to Petersburg— Secretary of War Seddon and the Author talk of General Grant and the Confederate Situation on the Mississippi and in the West— Longstreet makes a Radical Proposition for Confederate Con- CONTENTS. XV PAGE 334 centration in Tennessee, thus to compel Grant to abandon Vicksburg— The Skilful Use of Interior Lines the Only Way of equalizing the Contest— Battle of Chancellorsville, Lee's Bril liant Achievement— Criticism— Death of "Stonewall" Jackson — The Resolve to march Northward — The Army reorganized in Three Corps— Ewell and A. P. Hill appointed Lieutenant- Generals 322

Chapter XXV. Invasion Of Pennsylvania

Plan of the Confederate March North — General Lee hoped to draw Troops from the South and develop Important Results North of the Potomac — He wanted Beauregard sent to support the Movement — The Authorities in Richmond failed to comprehend—The Value of the "Interior Lines" not appreciated — Spirited Cavalry Fight at Brandy Station between Stuart's and Pleasonton's Commands — Engagement of Ewell and Milroy at Winchester — The Question of Authority for the Cavalry Movements — Lieutenant-Colonel Fremantle of the Coldstream Guards, British Army, as a Guest and Observer — The Confederate Advance reaches Pennsylvania Soil — General Lee issues Orders for a March on Harrisburg— Municipal Authorities of York and Gettysburg surrender to General John B. Gordon . .

Chapter XXVI. Gettysburg

— FIRST DAY. Information of Federal Force and Positions brought by the S< out Harrison — General Lee declines to credit it — General Longstreet suggests a Change of Direction in Conformance with the Revelation — General Meade had succeeded Hooker ;n Command Five Days before Battle — Positions on the Eve of the First Day — Confederate Cavalry " not in sight" — "The E; es of the Army" sadly needed — A Description of the Famous Battle-field — Generals Ewell and A. P. Hill engage the Federals- Death of General John F. Reynolds— The Fight on Seminary Ridge — General Hancock in Federal Command on the Field — Concerning the Absent Cavalry and Information given by the Scout— Conditions at the Close of the First Day's Fight .... 346

Chapter XXVII

GETTYSBURG— SECOND DAY. The Confederate Commander reviews the Field and decides on Plan of Battle— Positions on the Morning of July 2— Night March of the Federal Sixth Corps— It was excelled by Law's Brigade of Confederates — The Battle was opened after Mid-day—General Hood appeals for Permission to turn the Federal Left — Failure to make the Flanking Movement by the Confed- CONTENTS. XVI PAGE erate Right was a Serious Mistake— Hood, in his usual Gallant Style, led his Troops forward among the Rocks— Desperate Charges against an Earnest Adversary— Hood wounded—Gen eral Law succeeds him in command of the Division—" Little Round Top" an Important Point— "The Citadel of the Field" — It was a Fight of Seventeen Thousand Confederates against twice their Number— Quiet along the Lines of other Confeder ate Commands—" A Man on the Left who didn't care to make the Battle win" — Evidence against the Alleged Order for " Battle at Sunrise"— The " Order" to Ewell was Discretionary — Lee had lost his Balance 362

Chapter XXVIII. Gettysburg

— THIRD DAY. The Stroke of Arms that shook the Continent— Longstreet opposed the Attack as planned and made— The Confederate Column of Assault — It was weak in Numbers but strong in Spirit — Tre- ■ mendous Artillery Combat begins the Day's Fighting — Charge of Generals Pickets, Trimble, and Pettigrew — Armistead falls by the Side of the Federal Guns — The Federal Cavalry Charge of General Farnsworth — The Commander falls with Five Mortal Wounds — Could the Assaulting Column have been safely augmented from Longstreet's Right? — Testimony as to that Point — Where rested the Responsibility for Disaster? — Criticism of the Battle as a Whole — Cemetery Hill stronger than Ma/ye's Hill at Fredericksburg — Controverted Points— Casualties of the Three Days' Fight — Organization of the Forces engaged 385

Chapter XXIX. The Wave Rolls Back

Confederates retreat from Gettysburg— The Federals pursue— Crossing the Potomac under Difficulties— Kilpatrick's Cavalry Dash on Pettigrew's Command— General Lee thought to rest his Army in the Valley of Virginia, but Meade followed too fast- Engagements that harassed the Retreat— General Lee wished to be relieved of Command, but President Davis would not consent to the Appointment of Joseph E. Johnston or General Beauregard 42g

Chapter XXX. Longstreet Moves To Georgia

The Author reverts to the Perils and Opportunities in the West- Proposes to the Secretary of War to reinforce against Rosecrans from the Army of Northern Virginia— Makes Plan known to General Lee— The Move finally effected— Difficulties of Transportation—A Roundabout Route— General Longstreet nar- CONTENTS. XVU PAGE rowly escapes capture when seeking Bragg's Head-quarters— General Bragg assigns Longstreet to Command of the Left- Instructions for the Battle of Chickamauga— The Armies in Position— Federals in Command of Generals Rosecrans, Critten den, McCook, aud George H. Thomas 433

Chapter XXXI. Battle Of Chickamauga

Tactical Features— The Battle opened by Direct Attack on the Federals in the Early Morning of September 20— Repeated and Determined Front Assaults— Brigadiers Helm killed and Adams wounded— The Union Commands lay behind Defences —Hood's Brigades surged through the Forest against the Covered Infantry and Artillery— Hood wounded— Longstreet suggests a Plan for Progressive Action — Halting Tactics at High *Tide of Success— The Confederate Left fought a Separate Battle — General Thomas retreats— First Confederate Victory in the West, and one of the Bloodiest Battles of the War- Forces engaged — Losses 445

Chapter XXXII. Failure To Follow Success

Longstreet differs with General Bragg as to Movements of Pursuit — The Confederates on Lookout Mountain — Federals gain Comfortable Positions around it — Superior Officers of Bragg's Command call for his Removal — Bragg seeks Scapegoats— President Davis visits the Army — Tests the Temper of the Officers towards Bragg — He offers the Command to Longstreet — He declines — His Reasons — General Bragg ignores Signal-Service Reports and is surprised — General Joe Hooker's Advance — Night Attack on Lookout Mountain — Colonel Bratton's Clever Work — Review of the Western Movement and Combination — It should have been effected in May instead of September — Inference as to Results had the First Proposition been promptly acted upon 461

Chapter XXXIII. The East Tennessee Campaign

General Bragg's Infatuation — General Grant in Command of the Federal Forces— Longstreet ordered into East Tennessee— His Plans for the Campaign— Poorly supported by his Superior- Foraging for Daily Rations— General Burnside's Forces — Advance upon Knoxville — Affairs at Lenoir's and Campbell's Stations— Engagement near Knoxville an Artillery Combat- Reprehensible Conduct of Officers— Allegement that One was actuated by Jealousy — Federals retire behind their Works — Laying the Confederate Lines about Knoxville CONTENTS. PAGE

Chapter XXXIV Besieging Knoxville

Closing on the Enemy's Lines— A Gallant Dash — The Federal Positions — Fort Loudon, later called Fort Sanders — Assault of the Fort carefully planned — General McLaws advises Delay — The Order reiterated and emphasized — Gallant Effort by the Brigades of Generals Wofford, Humphreys, and Bryan at the Appointed Time — A Recall ordered, because carrying the Works was reported impossible— General Longstreet is ordered by the President to General Bragg's Relief— Losses during the Assault and the Campaign 497

Chapter XXXV Cut Off From East And West

Impracticability of joining General Bragg— Wintering in East Tennessee — General Longstreet given Discretionary Authority over the Department by President Davis — Short Rations — Minor Movements of Hide-and-Seek in the Mountains — Longstreet's Position was of Strategic Importance — That Fact fully appreciated by President Lincoln, Secretary Stanton, and Generals Halleck and Grant — " Drive Longstreet out of East Tennessee and keep him out" — Generals Robertson and McLaws — The Charges against them and Action taken— Honorable Mention for Courage aud Endurance — The Army finally fares sumptuously on the Fat Lands of the French Broad 509

Chapter XXXVI. Strategic Importance Of The Field

Longstreet again considers Relief from Service— General Grant at Knoxville— Shoeless Soldiers leave Bloody Trails on Frozen Roads— A Confederate Advance— Affair at Dandridge— Federals retreat— Succession of Small Engagements— General Grant urges General Foster's Army to the Offensive— General Foster relieved— General Schofield in Command of Federals- General Grant's Orders— General Halleck's Estimate of East Tennessee as a Strategic Field— Affair of Cavalry— Advance towards Knoxville— Longstreet's Command called back to Defensive for Want of Cavalry 524

Chapter XXXVII. Last Days In Tennessee

Longstreet's Army at Bull's Gap— U. S. Grant made Lieutenant- General— Richmond Authorities awake to the Gravity of the Situation— Longstreet's Proposition for Campaign— Approved by General Lee— Richmond Authorities fail to adopt it— General PAGE CONTENTS. Bragg's Plan— A Memorable and Unpleasant Council at the Capital— Orders from President Davis— The Case of General Law— Longstreet ordered to the Army of Northern Virginia- Resolutions of Thanks from Confederate Congress 542

Chapter Xxxviii. Battle Of The Wilderness

Campaign of 1864— General Grant in the Field— Strength of the Armies— Their Positions— Description of the Wilderness— The Battle opened— A Brisk Day's Fighting— Longstreet's Command faces Hancock's on the Morning of the Second Day— An Effective Flank Movement— General Wadsworth mortally wounded— General Jenkins falls under Fire of Friends, and Longstreet is seriously wounded— Carried from the Field on a Litter— Tribute to General Jenkins— Criticism and Controversy 551

Chapter XXXIX. Again In Front Of Richmond

Longstreet absent on Leave, nursing his Wounds — Hears of the Death of Cavalry Leader J. E. B. Stuart — Returns to Virginia — Assigned to Command on the North Side of James River — Affair on the Williamsburg Road — Lee's Apprehension of Grant's March into Richmond— Closing Scenes of the Campaign of 1864 about the Confederate Capital — General Benjamin F. Butler's Move against Fort Fisher — Remote Effects on the Situation in Virginia 572

Chapter XL. Talk Of Peace

Second Federal Move against Fort Fisher and Wilmington Harbor —Confederate Disaffection— Act of Congress appointing a Supreme Commander of the Armies — Montgomery Blair's Peace Conference — Longstreet has a Meeting with General Ord, Commander of the Army of the James — Military Convention proposed — Correspondence between General Grant and General Lee — Longstreet's Suggestions for Measures in the Critical Juncture near the Close of the War 582

Chapter XLI. Battle Of Five Forks

Various Affairs of the Closing Campaign— The Massing of Grant's Forces— Sortie against Fort Steadman— Captured but quickly retaken— General Grant's Move around the Confederate Right —General Lee anticipates with Aggressive Work— Sheridan CONTENTS. XX PAGE makes Battle with his Whole Force at Five Forks— Desperate Situation of the Confederates— Disparity of Numbers — Splendid Stand and Battle of Generals Pickett and Ransom — Colonel Pegram mortally wounded — W. H. F. Lee, the " Noble Son of a Noble Sire"— Corse's Division— Pickett's Generalship— Casualties 590

Chapter XLII. Petersburg

The Fierce Concerted Assault by the Federals — Death of A. P. Hill — General Lee announces to Richmond Authorities that he must retreat — Reception of the News by President Davis at Church Service — Federals take Forts Gregg and Whitworth — The Retreat harassed by Continuous Fighting — Longstreet saves High Bridge, a Vital Point — Ewell and Others compelled to surrender — General Mahone's Account of Interesting Scenes —Magnitude of the Disaster — "Is the Army dissolving?" — General Reed mortally wounded — Panic occurs, but Order is restored — General Gregg and Part of his Cavalry Command captured by Rosser and Mumford G03

CHAPTER XLII

I. APPOMATTOX. Some of General Lee's Officers say to him that "Further Resistance is Hopeless" — Longstreet does not approve — General Grant calls for Surrender — " Not yet" — The Confederate Chieftain asks Terms — His Response to his Officers as represented by General Pendleton — Correspondence of Generals Lee and Grant — Morning of April 9 — General Lee rides to meet the Federal Commander, while Longstreet forms the Last Line of Battle — Longstreet endeavors to recall his Chief, hearing of a Break where the Confederate Troops could pass — Custer demands Surrender of Longstreet— Reminded of Irregularity, and that he was "in the Enemy's Lines" — Meeting with General Grant— Capitulation— Last Scenes •. . 618

Chapter XLIV. Post-bellum Pendant

Old Friends and their Kindness— General Grant— His Characteristic Letter of Introduction to President Johnson— In Business in New Orleans— Political Unfriendliness— Cause of Criticism of Military Career— Appointed Surveyor of Customs— The Old Nurse 632

Appendix

. Letters of General Robert E. Lee and General Longstreet LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE General James Longstreet (1895) Frontispiece Colonel John B. Richardson 37 Colonel T. J. Goree 47 General J. E. B. Stuart 60 General R. E. Lee 112 General Thomas J. Jackson 166 Battle at Thoroughfare Gap 174 Defeat of the Federal Troops by Longstreet's Corps (Second Manassas) . . 188 Geneial Lafayette McLaws 231 Colonel John W. Fairfax 250 The Battle of Antietam (Burnside's Bridge) 263 General James Longstreet (1862) 290 The Battle of Fredericksburg (from the Battery on Lee's Hill) 308 Colonel Osmun Latrobe 316 Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Lyon Fremantle 343 The Confederate Scout Harrison 346 Gettysburg (Second Day's Battle) 374 General E. P. Alexander 388 General George E. Pickett 392 William Blake 408 Retreat from Gettysburg (Accident during the Night-Crossing of the Potomac on a Pontoon Bridge) 430 Colonel R. J. Moses 451 Battle of Chickamauga (Confederates Flanking the Union Forces) .... 454 The Assault on Fort Sanders, Knoxville 506 General G. M. Sorrel 518 The Wounding of General Longstreet (Battle of the Wilderness) .... 564 Colonel Erasmus Taylor 572 General Charles W. Field 577 The Last Line of Battle (Appomattox) 624 Fac-simile of Letter from General R. E. Lee LIST OF MAPS.

PAGE First Battle of Bull Run . 42 Battle of Seven Pines 96 Battle of Mechanicsville 124 Battle of Malvern Hill 142 Battle of Slaughter Mountain 156 Second Battle of Bull Run (Opening) 186 Second Battle of Bull Run (Nightfall) 196 Battle of Sharpsburg 242 Battle of Fredericksburg 298 Strategic Map of the Theatre of War, May, 1863 328 Battle of Gettysburg 362 Position of Confederate First Corps, Gettysburg, Third Day 399 Battle of Chickamauga 446 Confederates around Chattanooga 462 Siege of Knoxville 498 Battle of the Wilderness 556 Battle of Five Forks