THE CIVIL WAR: Lore of the Battle of Cold Harbor lives on
Some battles take on a life of their own and come to have meaning far and beyond the mere facts which outline the combat. Outstanding bravery, either by an individual or by a whole combat unit, will always be recognized. Combat in difficult terrain or temperature (think desert and jungle warfare as well as air combat at extreme altitudes and extreme temperatures) will show how mere men can overcome obstacles which seem insurmountable.
Combat that results in staggering losses (as in our own battles at Iwo Jima as well as the Battle of the Bulge) are always examples of the mission-comes-first concept and professionalism of American fighting units.
Such exceptional recognition must also be given to the Civil War Battle of Cold Harbor. By the spring of 1864, the war, which had begun April 12, 1861, when the Confederate States of America had seceded, declared their independence from the Union and had fired on Ft. Sumter, had dragged on for three years, and President Lincoln feared the waning of Northern enthusiasm for a war that seemed never-ending.
He knew he had a fighting general in Ulysses Grant and had named him commander of all Union armies on the previous March. Gen. Grant had joined Gen. George Meade, latest commander of the Army of the Potomac, in his drive to end the war. The campaign was called the Virginia Campaign of 1864, and in short order, the Armies of the two nations had fought three brutal battles, all in Virginia and all in May.
These were:
n The Wilderness, the first week in May.
n Spotsylvania, just a few days later.
n The Battle of Drewry's Bluff, fought May 10-12.
Casualties in these three battles staggered the home fronts in both nations. People sadly had become used to large casualty figures, but Union losses of about 39,000 killed, wounded or missing and Confederates losses of about half that number made families in both nations question the war itself. In the South, at this point in the war, they were scraping the barrel for soldiers. In many communities, no men of military age were left to fill the ranks.
Gen. Lee seemed to have a premonition about this battle. He was just recovering from an illness, but he insisted that Confederate military hospitals provide as many men as possible.
"Have every man capable of performing his duties as a soldier returned to his command," Lee ordered.
President Jefferson Davis, as commander-in-chief, did his part: He ordered soldiers from as far away as Florida to the defense of Richmond. (This certainly was the basis for the command during the Battle of the Bulge, just before Christmas 1944 during World War II - when all rear-echelon personnel were taken out of mess duty, mail depots, laundries, bands, those on light-duty and other noncombat positions, given rifles and sent to the front to try to stop the German attack. The Bulge was the largest American land battle in the European Theater.
The Battle Of Cold Harbor - News
Such exceptional recognition must also be given to the Civil War Battle of Cold Harbor. By the spring of 1864, the war, which had begun April 12, 1861, when the Confederate States of America had seceded, declared their independence from the Union and
Grant on the cover and a quote from him related to the battle of Cold Harbor, I could not resist - I am an avid student of the Civil War. However, what really caught my attention was a contemporary article within this magazine, titled "Doomsday.
Grant pushed them ever harder as they participated in the Battle of Cold Harbor from May 31 to June 12. The 11th saw action during the assault and the long siege operations against Petersburg. In the interim they battled at and then took part in the
Gray was killed at New Bern, North Carolina; Lafayette Carver died in the battle of Cold Harbor; Vinal survived the war and lived until the 1930s, when he was Vinalhaven's oldest surviving Civil War veteran. Yet in a sense, these three represent the
On June 3, 1864, Union forces attacked Confederate troops at the Battle of Cold Harbor in Hanover County, Virginia, during the Civil War. Interested in a follow-up to this article? Great, we'll send you an email as soon as a follow-up is published!
The Battle of Cold Harbor » Charlottesville Podcasting Network
On Wednesday, April 20th—to a packed crowd—NPS Historian Ed Sanders delivered a fantastic talk on one of the war’s most vicious battles. Fought between May 31st & June 12th, 1864—and featuring hopeless Federal assaults on June 3rd—the Battle of Cold Harbor was the last combat of U. S. Grant’s aggressive Overland Campaign. At Cold Harbor R. E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, dug in along a line stretching six miles, inflicted 6,000 casualties while suffering very few. It was a bloodletting that future President U. S. Grant lived to regret.
On Wednesday, April 27nd, Rick Britton will conduct an afternoon tour of the Cold Harbor Battlefield (just outside of Richmond). We’ll start off the day by taking in the new Civil War exhibit at the Virginia Historical Society. Then we’ll enjoy lunch at the Tobacco Company. Bus tour departs at 9:00 am and returns at about 5:00 pm. There is a fee for the tour. Call 974-6538 for more info!
This is the first of a six part series for 2011. You can listen to all six parts of this series here .
The Battle Of Cold Harbor - Bookshelf
The battle of Cold Harbor, Civil War series
The Civil War Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant
Chapter XL ADVANCE ON COLD HARBOR — AN ANECDOTE OF THE WAR — BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR — CORRESPONDENCE WITH LEE — RETROSPECTIVE. On the 31st Sheridan advanced ...Not War But Murder, Cold Harbor 1864
Chronicles the bloody Battle of Cold Harbor, revealing Northern flaws and politics that led to Grant's worst defeat, private truces among soldiers, and the ...Campaigns of the Army of the Potomac, a critical history of operations in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, from the commencement to the close of the war
THE BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR. The Chickahominy may be regarded as a wet ditch in front of the outer fortifications of Richmond. It was therefore absolutely ...The story of the Twenty-first Regiment, Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, during the Civil War. 1861-1865
THE BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR' ADDRESS DELIVERED AT THE REGIMENTAL REUNION, MAY 1 6, 1 882, BV CAPTAIN W. S HUBBELL. The fascination of war is mainly in the ...Everyday Information Directory
Battle of Cold Harbor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
( The first troops of Hoke's division arrived at Old Cold Harbor on May ... In fact, some accounts refer to the 1862 battle as the First Battle of Cold Harbor, and ...
Cold Harbor: Definition from Answers.com
Cold Harbor A locality in eastern Virginia east-northeast of Richmond. Confederate forces defeated Union troops here in two Civil War battles (1862
Battle Summary: Cold Harbor, VA
Cold Harbor Civil War battle summary ... Abandoning the well-defended approaches to Richmond, Grant sought to shift his army quickly south of the river to threaten Petersburg. ...
The Battle of Cold Harbor Summary & Facts | Civilwar.org
The Civil War Trust's Battle of Cold Harbor page includes history articles, battle maps, helpful weblinks, and recommended books for this 1864 Civil ...
Battle of Cold Harbor
Battle of Cold Harbor, General Ulysses S. Grant Army of the Potomac, General Robert E. Lee Army of Northern Virginia Grant's Overland Campaign Confederate ...