Battle of the Seven Pines

Sketch of the Battle of Seven Pines

Battle of Seven Pines / Fair Oaks

Part of: American Civil War

Battle of Seven Pines or Fair Oaks by Currier & Ives

date	May 31 - June 1, 1862
place	Henrico County , Virginia , USA
output	draw

Parties to the conflict
United States	Confederate States of America
Commander
George B. McClellan	Joseph E. Johnston Gustavus W. Smith Robert E. Lee
Troop strength
26,000	26,000
losses
5,031 killed : 790 wounded: 3,594 missing / captured: 647	6,134 killed : 980 wounded: 4,749 missing / captured: 405

The Battle of Seven Pines , also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks , took place on May 31 and June 1, 1862, during the Union's peninsula campaign in the American Civil War .

On May 31, the Northern Virginia Confederate Army under General Joseph E. Johnston attacked the IV Corps of the Potomac Army , which was positioned south of the Chickahominy . Heavy rains the day before had made the small river impassable, so Johnston hoped to hit the enemy army's southern wing before reinforcements could come from the northern bank.

Due to coordination problems, the Confederate attack did not begin until 3:00 p.m. They managed to throw the US troops back a little. A counterattack by the III. Corps and through John Sedgwick's division, which had managed to cross the river, halted the attack. When it got dark, the fighting ended in a draw. The next morning the attack was carried out again. Due to leadership errors by Major General James Longstreets , this attack was unsuccessful.

One of the losses on the first day of the fight was General Johnston, who was seriously injured and had to hand over command to Major General Gustavus Woodson Smith . He led the army for less than a day, however, since President Davis appointed General Robert E. Lee as the new Commander in Chief of the Northern Virginia Army.

Lee finally broke off the battle after further attacks had been repulsed by the now reinforced Union forces. He evaded the defense line around Richmond , Virginia with the Northern Virginia Army . Lee used the time and reorganized the army. At the same time, he expanded the defense of Richmond, which confirmed his opponents that he had rightly been nicknamed "King of Spades" . On June 25, he surrendered himself to McClellan in the Battle of Oak Grove , whom he attacked every day during the seven-day battle during the following days and finally forced the withdrawal from the Virginia Peninsula. A victory over McClellan, however, succeeded only once.

The appointment of the extraordinarily capable and courageous Lee as Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Virginia Army brought the Confederation not only the successful defense against the attack on the Virginia Peninsula, but also strategic opportunities in the further course of the war that had a significant impact on the duration of the war and could even have led to the Confederation's victory.

swell

1. ↑ Fox's Regimental Losses, Chapter XIV : Union Losses
2. ↑ Fox's Regimental Losses, Chapter XIV : Confederate Losses
3. ↑ Douglas S. Freeman Volume II p. 86f Spatenkönig

Web links

Commons : Battle of Seven Pines  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

• The Armies at the battle of Fair Oaks or Seven Pines