Compare And Contrast The Battle Of Cold Harbor Vs Gaines Mill

The American Civil War has become a point of controversy and argument when discussing key events in shaping America. The arguments that arise when discussing the war tend to focus on whether the Confederate was constitutionally justified in seceding, or whether the North had the right to prevent the secession. However, when discussing the America Civil War and the idea of separation, it is important to be mindful that separation did not simply end at the state level. Letters written by Jesse Rolston, Jr. and Jedediah Hotchkiss portray two significantly different attitudes toward the war, despite the fact that the writers both fought for the Confederate States and give accounts of the same battle, one of which ended in the Confederate’s favor. When examining the documents, both writers express different viewpoints on life on and off the battlefield. This significant difference represents a division amongst the Confederate army.

The American Civil War was extremely important to the time period. The outcome of the war decided what would be America’s foundation – equality or slavery. Robert E. Lee fought for the south, while Ulysses S. Grant fought for the north. Despite his fighting platform being in the defense of slavery, Robert E. Lee’s military genius cannot be ignored. Grant as well had his strengths and weaknesses, but in very different parts of his life than that of Lee. Bill Offer, a history professor at Panola Community College, said, “History may never see two men so different than that of Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant.” Although he lost the war, I believe that Robert E. Lee proved to be the better general because he was more qualified, he followed

The Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries (August 28-29, 1861) was the first combined operation of the Union Army and Navy in the American Civil War, resulting in Union domination of the strategically important North Carolina Sounds.

By 1864 the Union troops were closing in on the Confederacy. Major ports and cities had been taken over. North Carolina and the port at Wilmington were becoming major targets for the Union army and in November, 1864 a plan was put into place to move Union troops for the first assault on Fort Fisher. In a letter written by Richard Delafield, general and chief engineer for the U.S. Army, Delafield discusses the plan for the destruction and the capture of Fort Fisher and Fort Caswell. Fort Caswell was located on Oak Island, south of Fort Fisher, but also protecting the entrance to the Cape Fear River. Delafield’s letter details the strategy for the destruction of Fort Fisher:

The Battle of Philippi was fought on June 3, 1861 in what is now western Virginia. It was known as “the first land battle of the Civil War” or “the first inland battle of the Civil War.” “A minor affair that lasted less than 20 minutes and resulted in no fatalities, it would barely be a footnote of the American Civil War except that it marked the first inland clash between significant numbers of troops.”(http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-philippi). The town Philippi, consisted of less than 500 people,who had little military training. The real town that was meant to be attacked was Grafton. General Robert E. Lee, who was commander of all military forces in Virginia, sent Col. George Porterfield to organize the troops assembling at Grafton and hold the rail lines. He finally received very few reinforcements and about 1,000 rusty muskets, and at least 1,500 percussion caps meant for shotguns. Since he was unable to hold Grafton, Porterfield and the troops left to Philippi. “At the governor’s suggestion, Porterfield burned a few bridges to slow any movements against him from Wheeling in the state’s northern panhandle.”(http://www.historynet.com/battle-of-philippi). This opened an opportunity for Major General George B. McClellan, commander of the Department of Ohio. Porterfield and McClellan had been held by by their superior officers who were still pending on Virginia’s vote to secede. They were on the north side

The battle of Cold Harbor was fought from May 31- June 12, 1864. Today it is known as one of the bloodiest engagements of the American civil war. This battle resulted in heavy losses of men for the Union and only a couple thousand for the Confederacy. It was part of General Grant's overland campaign for Richmond. Cold Harbor is located about ten miles from Richmond, Virginia in Hanover County.

Despite initial Confederate successes, the battle turned against Lee on July 3rd, and with few options remaining, he ordered his army to return to Virginia. The Union victory at the Battle of Gettysburg.“ (Document 6). The confederates encountered the union instead of defending because Robert E Lee understood that he wasn’t going to win the civil war. Encountering was not a good idea, as the Confederates attacked, they became desperate enough to fall into a trap that caused them the turning point of the war which resulted in a total lost. Another reason why the northern earned the victory is because of the great technology in the war, Ironclad ships. Ironclad ships were naval ships made out of mostly steel plates. The first battle of the ironclads was Hampton roads Virginia. First naval ship battle of the history. The outcome of the battle was

The battle of Cold Harbor was a battle fought because Lee and Grant ran into each other, of course not literally, at Bethesda Church. In the end, the Confederates won this battle. The thing is, Grant had this perfect plan to take Lee out but he ended up losing the battle. The battle was postponed mainly because the Union’s plan backfired because the help needed didn’t arrive on the right day.

May-June 1863 Vicksburg. This battle was also a big deal for both sides. It was the main transport way for supplies, food, water, and troops. It is the North’s way to win the war if they win the fort. If we lose the fort we would lose are main transport way and would start breaking down. We would start slowing down and loss a lot of hope. If the Union takes the fort they will control the Mississippi, and use it against the Confederates so they don't get food, water, and supplies.

The Battle of Cold Harbor in spring of 1864 was one of General Ulysses S. Grant’s worst offensive defeats during the Civil War. Grant failed to describe his mission command to his subordinate, direct his units to correct movement, understand his operational environment, and lead his army with a coordinated plan. Grant had a stronger, bigger, and better-equipped army than his enemy, but his failure in the mission command process led to fatal mistakes before and during the battle. Due to failed leadership, the Union preparation for this war was so poor that it suffered nearly 7,000 casualties in under an hour, making it one of the most brutal confrontations of the Civil War.

During a time where the world was changing, colonies were settled in both New England and the region around the Chesapeake. Both colonies were settled by English men and women for various reasons; however, these colonies developed differently. These colonies had their similarities, but, for the most part, they were extremely different in how they expanded. Despite these similarities of the New England and Chesapeake colonies, they developed into two distinct societies due to their different motives, their political and economic differences, and the geographic locations in which they settled.

After the loss at Manassas, Lincoln looked for another leader to replace McDowell, and some consideration settled on General McClellan. McClellan was at his best when he was organizing armies, not leading them into battle. Lincoln wanted the army to take over eastern Tennessee for political reasons, and McClellan for fairly sound military reasons wanted the same thing. The task was given to General Buell; it did not matter to McClellan that the area was impossible to take from the north, not to mention holding it.

The second battle of fort fisher was a union attack against fort Fisher in North Carolina. Fort Fisher was very important to the confederacy because it provided a port for ships creating a blockade. The second battle of fort fisher happened on January 13, 1865-January 15, 1865 . It resulted in a union victory. There was over 1,900 deaths in the second battle of fort Fisher and the entire fort was

May 31, General Sheridan’s cavalry captured the important crossroads of Old Cold Harbor. The morning after, Sheridan was able to repel an attempted repossession by Confederate infantry. Confederate reinforcements soon arrived and collided with the Union Sixth and Eighteenth Corps when they reached Cold Harbor that night. June 2, the armies had formed a seven-mile front. General Grant was poised for a major assault to General Lee’s right flank and cut off the Confederates off from Richmond, but when General Hancock's Second Corps arrived after a late-night march to help the Union left flank, the operation was delayed until the following day. This fatal delay gave Lee's troops time to build an impressive line of trenches. At dawn June 3, the Union Second, Sixth, and Eighteenth Corps, followed later by the Fifth and Ninth Corps, assaulted along the Bethesda Church-Cold Harbor line and were slaughtered at all points. Grant pulled out of Cold Harbor after nine days of trench warfare and continued to try to flank Lee's army at Petersburg.

General Grant was given command over all union armies in 1864 in which then decided he would direct operations from Virginia while traveling with the Army of Potomac which Major General George G. Meade was in charge of. Grant presence took over the Army but yet still Meade took part on. General Grant was one of the greatest General that took part in the Union Army and he wanted that to show. “Initially Grant told Meade he did not envision a campaign of maneuver.” General Grant,” Meade predicted in reply, you are opposed by a general of consummate ability, and you will find that you will have to maneuver for position.” 2 General Grant took in the advice given from General Meade and maneuvered, this already displayed the building cohesive teams