The Battle of Chancellorsville

April 30- May 6, 1863

“Mud March” of January, 1863Union Army is HumiliatedNo end of the war in sightBurnside is replaced

Aftermath of Fredericksburg

Emancipation Proclamation becomes effective

January 1, 1863

Nickname: Fightin’ JoeLoved by his menBrilliant organizerOverconfident and cockyRaises morale by introducing better sanitary

conditions for food preparationCreates different patches and logos for each

corps

Joseph Hooker

To cross the Rappahannock River, converge on Chancellorsville, and surprise Robert E. Lee’s Confederate ArmyAttempts to flank Jackson’s men, but JEB

Stuart figures this out and warns Jackson

Hooker’s Plan

Much like when Burnside was in command, Hooker’s fellow officers grew to dislike him very quickly

After ordering his men to march forward, he then sent a message to them ordering a halt

Hooker thinks he has Lee right where he wants him“My plans are perfect. May God have mercy on

Robert E. Lee, for I shall have none.”

Dissention in the Ranks…Again

The Union Army outnumbers the Confederates 100,000 to 30,000, because he chose to advance his men with only Jackson’s corps

Hooker has his men dig in around camp, and says that Lee will not be able to defeat him because of that

However, he made one fatal mistake…

Outnumbered…Again

Even though the battle was only 2 days old, the generals and Hooker himself knew something was wrong

Years later, Hooker said, “I just lost confidence in Fightin’ Joe.”“The retrograde movement had prepared me for

something of the kind, but to hear from [Hooker's] own lips that the advantages gained by the successful marches of his lieutenants were to culminate in fighting a defensive battle in that nest of thickets was too much, and I retired from his presence with the belief that my commanding general was a whipped man.”- Darius Couch

Loss of Confidence

After Stuart scouts the Union position and informs Lee, he orders Jackson to commit a daring surprise attack on the Union’s unguarded left flank on May 2

An hour before sunset, Jackson attacks while the enemy is cooking dinner and unprepared, and they flee through the camp and past Hooker’s headquarters

There is mass confusion for both sides, as men cannot find their regiments and don’t know where they are

Surprise Attack

During the battle, a cannonball strikes Hooker’s house and a shingle falls off and hits him on the head, knocking him unconscious

When he finally stands up and walks away, another cannonball lands where he was just laying

Near Death Experience

Jackson scouts the Union position in the woods at night, when he rides near a regiment of South Carolina soldiers, who open fire, thinking he is the enemy

He is struck in the arm, shoulder, and handThe doctors amputate his arm, and his

wounds heal, but he develops pneumonia“He’s lost his left arm, and I have lost my

right.”- Robert E. Lee

The Wounding of Jackson

The Most Famous Arm in the World

The Second Battle of Fredericksburg

Though it looked like they would be badly beaten, the Union rallies, and although they lose the overall battle, they inflict severe damage on the Confederates

Final casualty figures:USA: 17,000CSA: 13,000

Actions of May 3-6

Though the CSA Army had technically won the battle, their celebration was short lived

Jackson would die of pneumonia on May 10There was a sense of disbelief in the southThe Confederacy would never recover from

his loss, as in later battles, his presence was sorely neededExample: Ewell at Gettysburg

Known as a “Pyrrhic Victory”

A Bittersweet Victory