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Fredericksburg Research Paper

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On November 26, 1862, the Union army arrived in Falmouth, Virginia and across the Rappahannock River was Fredericksburg where the Confederate forces had fortified the hills behind the city. They would stay in Falmouth until December 11 when they bombarded Fredericksburg on December 13 and moved into the destroyed city, but the Confederates were in the hills. The next day the 44th New York, Orsell’s regiment joined the Third Brigade as they attempted to capture the Confederate’s position. They moved through the hills and ravine trying to avoid sniper and cannon fire, but they had to take cover behind a small rise in the ground and spend the night there in the mud. The next morning, December 14, after thirty hours of being in battle the Third …show more content…

For Orsell this loss hurt his moral and chipped away at his ideals. In the letter from December 22, 1862, a week after Fredericksburg, the loss still haunts Orsell “This separation is long and what is more tedious we cannot look forward to the time when our fondest hopes will be realized providing our lives are spared. It is not with high spirits, bring out hopes and cheerful up that I can seat myself to write you this evening.” Orsell admitted that the loss has hurt him so badly that he could not write to Olivia which was something he always looked forward. Orsell continued by describing the defeat as ‘inglorious’ and that it had “cast a gloom of disappointment and sorrow over the whole army” as well as destroying the hope of the soldiers. To close the letter, Orsell wrote about how he felt about first joining the army and how he felt now after the defeat, “Even at that time I did not think we were to suffer such a defeat and it was indeed startling.” Orsell started to truly question why he was there and if it was worth it because one wrong move could kill

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