Military Campaign Research Paper

The President of the Union at this time, Abraham Lincoln, had instructed Major General Pope to defend Washington incase of a Confederate attack. He was also told to take his army to Gordonsville to distract the Confederates away from McClellan's army. On the Confederate side, General Lee was confident enough to take

In his book written several years after the war, McClellan’s remarks on Burnside clearly depict his disdain for the subordinate General, “I think that his weak mind was turned; that he was confused in action; and that subsequently he did not know what had occurred, and was talked by his staff into any belief they chose” (McClellan, G. B. 1887). Instead of fostering mutual trust and respect, he provided unclear and biased guidance to his subordinate leaders resulting in confusion, angst, and eventually he lost control of the battle around mid-day.

McClellan’s caution in waging war is evidenced clearly in the Army of the Potomac’s Peninsula Campaign. McClellan was charged with leading the assault on Richmond, delivering what could have been a fatal blow against the Confederacy. During the Army of the Potomac’s movements towards Richmond, McClellan repeatedly delayed, believing he had inferior numbers to his initial adversary, Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston. Johnston knew the caution McClellan was prone to, and slowly drew McClellan closer to Confederate forces defending Richmond. At the Battle of Seven Pines, Johnston reinforced the idea in McClellan’s mind that caution was necessary. (McPherson, 1988, p. 461) The surprise attach by Johnston’s forces, though ultimately defeated by the Army of the Potomac, delayed McClellan’s advance as he called for more reinforcements from Washington. Johnston was wounded in the battle, and replaced by General Robert E. Lee. Lee, whose prowess as a tactician bordered on legendary, led a series of surprise attacks against McClellan’s Army of the Potomac in the Seven Days’ Battle. McClellan’s forces were pushed back, and he was relieved of duty as commander of the Army of the Potomac, until later in 1862. (McPherson, 1988, pp. 462-470)

After the Union’s defeat at Fredericksburg in December of 1862, President Abraham Lincoln once again made a change in the Union Army’s leadership. General Ambrose Burnside was replaced with Major General Joseph Hooker. Hooker and Lincoln both agreed that the key to victory in the war was the destruction of Lee’s Army in a decisive battle (Sears 57-62). Hooker’s plan to accomplish this was to use his 130,000 soldiers and launch a double envelopment of Lee’s 60,000 men still camped at Fredericksburg.

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.

George McClellan was considered to be a perfectionist and would never take the next step until everything else wasn't all figured out. He wanted more reinforcements but President Lincoln had to explain to him that this would not be a wise move. The amount of time it would take President Lincoln to get him reinforcements would be enough for the “rebels” or the confederates to gain upon him and be able to take him on easily. Even though President Lincoln stayed calm he was still impatient, he ordered McClellan and said he must move. This is because if the orders were not given McClellan would have stayed back and would doubt him self upon when to move. [Document A and B]

The Battle of Antietam was a stalemate between the Union and the Confederacy costing over 22,000 American lives. However to the North this was a strategic victory because Maryland did not secede to the South and Abraham Lincoln was provided the opportunity to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. As for McClellan, he was relieved of command shortly after Antietam because of his inability to trust his Corps Commanders to make decisions on the battlefield, his lack of understanding the operational environment in the form of overestimating the Confederate numbers, and his failed visualization of Abraham Lincoln’s desired intent and end state. Lee’s army was never over-powered nor was the Confederacy defeated because of his trust for his Corps commanders

The Battle of Fredericksburg falls in a long list of failures of the Army of the Potomac during the first year of the American Civil War. Following the Battle of Antietam the Northern Army had the opportunity to defeat Lee’s army. However, Northerners, were shocked by Lee’s escape following this battle on 17 September 1862, and were further upset by Major General George B. McClellan’s procrastination in pursuing Lee and allowing General J.E.B. Stuarts daring cavalry raid into Pennsylvania around Gettysburg (10-12 October 1862). McClellan’s failure to pursue Lee’s Army is mainly due to his own lack of confidence, believing that he doesn’t have enough men or material in order to defeat the Army of Virginia. President Lincoln had finally

GEN McClellan may not have been a great war time General but he excelled at training Soldiers, getting his men ready to fight and raising the morale of the Armies he

Lee’s defeated Army of Northern Virginia after Antietam, Lincoln ran out of his patience. On November 7 he had removed McClellan from command and appointed the reluctant Burnside to his post.

McClellan was the one who organized the Army of the Potomac in 1861 and served as General-in-Chief of the Union Army. His men liked him as a leader, but George was defeated in the Battle of Antietam. Because of his loss, Lincoln took away his command of the Army of the Potomac in late 1862. He lost in a Presidential campaign against Lincoln in 1864 and later became Governor of New Jersey.

This battle came after a brutal campaign by the South who had just won The 2nd Battle of Bull Run as well as The Seven Days Battle. Lee’s unprecedented plan to start invading the North was seen as unorthodox because all the South needed to do was survive until the citizen’s of the North got upset with the war and lost the will to fight. Lee’s plan to invade the North was to invade the Maryland which remained loyal to the union and get a crushing blow in union territory. He was also hoping that some dissenting slave owners in Maryland would join the Southern forces to help fight the North in this battle. Unfortunately for Lee, when those that dissented saw the condition that his men were

The Seven Days Campaign of 1862 was a sequence of battles that took place along the Virginia Peninsula east of Richmond, between the Union Army of the Potomac and the Confederate Virginia Army from 26 June through 2 July. The campaign consisted of the following six battles: Mechanicsville, Gaines ' Mill, and Savage Station, engagement at Oak Swamp Bridge, and battles of Frazier 's Farm and Malvern Hill over a seven-day period. Major General George B. McClellan led the Union Army of nearly 104,000 soldiers, while the newly appointed commander, General Robert Edward Lee led the Confederate Army of nearly 92,000 soldiers during this campaign. General Lee’s major objective was to protect and defend the City of Richmond against the Union Army. General Lee’s usage of the mission command principles and battlefield management during the Seven Days Campaign secured a quick and significant victory for the Army of Northern Virginia, and drove the Major General McClellan Union troops to retreat down the Virginia Peninsula. His ability to build a cohesive team through mutual trust, provide a clear commander’s intent, create shared understanding, and accept prudent risk led to the successful defense of Richmond. General Lee’s triumph in those seven days remains among the most important battles in the Army of Northern Virginia’s history as it served as a turning point in the Civil War.

The two of them split the votes so that Lincoln won most of the north. By the time Lincoln was inaugurated, seven states had seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America. After Lincoln ordered a fleet of Union ships to supply South Carolina’s Fort Sumter in April, the Confederates fired on both the fort and the Union fleet, beginning the Civil War. The Confederate leader, Jefferson Davis, was a Mexican War hero and former secretary of war, while Lincoln had a brief and an undistinguished period of service in the Black Hawk War. Lincoln proved to be a more than a capable wartime leader by learning quickly about strategy and tactics in the early years of the Civil War. Lincoln appointed General George McClellan as commander of the Union. The general continuously frustrated Lincoln with his reluctance to advance. McClellan frustrated Lincoln when he failed to pursue Robert E. Lee’s retreating Confederate Army after the Union victory at Antietam in September 1862, and Lincoln removed him from his

For example, his lack of self confidence hindered his decision-making skills and his ability to lead. He believed that,” when he had become the Republican candidate [for presidency] … he had been ‘accidentally selected’” (Keneally 83). His low self esteem also contributed to his depression at an earlier age. His occasionally poor self confidence affected his reputation among his follows, peers, and even his family. This trait was one of the things that contributed to his tentative decision making skills, which was a setback throughout his presidency. For instance, Lincoln had enlisted George McClellan as a Commander General. Though he was able to initially win battles for the Union, he would constantly ignore the president’s thoughts and propositions. After a battle in Maryland, Robert E. Lee, commander of the Confederate army, retreated to Virginia. Lincoln wanted McClellan to pursue him, although he continuously delayed. Because of his stubbornness, “many wanted McClellan sacked, [although] Lincoln still wondered about [his] potential effect on the army” (Keneally 122). When McClellan finally ineffectively pursued Lee, they had lost nine days chasing him. Only then had Abraham Lincoln finally decided to replace him. Because of Lincoln’s indecisiveness, he allowed his military General to control