The Campaign of Chancellorsville

by Theodore Ayrault Dodge

Gibbon's division had been ordered by Butterfield to cross to Fredericksburg, and second Sedgwick's movement on the right. Gibbon states that he was delayed by the opposition of the enemy to his laying the bridge opposite the Lacy house, but this was not considerable. He appears to have used reasonable diligence, though he did not get his bridge thrown until daylight. Then he may have been somewhat tardy in getting his twenty-five hundred men across. And, by the time he got his bridge thrown, Sedgwick had possession of the town.

It was seven A.M. when Gibbon had crossed the river with his division, and filed into position on Sedgwick's right. Gibbon had meanwhile reported in person to Sedgwick, who ordered him to attempt to turn the enemy's left at Marye's, while Howe should open a similar movement on his right at Hazel Run. Gens. Warren and Gibbon at once rode forward to make a reconnoissance, but could discover no particular force of the enemy in our front. Just here are two canals skirting the slope of the hill, and parallel to the river, which supply power to the factories in the town. The generals passed the first canal, and found the bridge across it intact. The planks of the second canal-bridge had been removed, but the structure itself was still sound.

Gibbon at once ordered these planks to be replaced from the nearest houses. But, before this order could be carried out, Warren states that he saw the enemy marching his infantry into the breastworks on the hill, followed by a battery. This was Hays, coming to Barksdale's relief. But the breastworks contained a fair complement before.

Gibbon's attempt was rendered nugatory by the bridge over the second canal being commanded from the heights, the guns on which opened upon our columns with shrapnel, while the gunners were completely protected by their epaulements. And a further attempt by Gibbon to cross the canal by the bridge near Falmouth, was anticipated by the enemy extending his line to our right.

Gen. Warren states that Gen. Gibbon "made a very considerable demonstration, and acted very handsomely with the small force he had,—not more than two thousand men. But so much time was taken, that the enemy got more troops in front of him than he could master."

Gen. Howe had been simultaneously directed to move on the left of Hazel Run, and turn the enemy's right; but he found the works in his front beset, and the character of the stream between him and Newton precluded any movement of his division to the right.

By the time, then, that Sedgwick had full possession of the town, and Gibbon and Howe had returned from their abortive attempt to turn the enemy's flanks, the sun was some two hours high. As the works could not be captured by surprise, Sedgwick was reduced to the alternative of assaulting them in regular form.

It is not improbable that an earlier attack by Gibbon on Marye's heights, might have carried them with little loss, and with so much less expense of time that Sedgwick could have pushed beyond Salem Church, without being seriously impeded by troops sent against him by Gen. Lee.

And, as the allegation of all-but criminal delay on the part of Gen. Sedgwick is one of the cardinal points of Hooker's self-defence on the score of this campaign, we must examine this charge carefully.

Sedgwick asserts with truth, that all despatches to him assumed that he had but a handful of men in his front, and that the conclusions as to what he could accomplish, were founded upon utterly mistaken premises. Himself was well aware that the enemy extended beyond both his right and left, and the corps knew by experience the nature of the intrenchments on the heights.