Thursday, May 01, 2008

The Battle of Antietam

The U.S. Army has long used the staff ride as a tool for professional development; conveying the lessons of the past to modern Soldiers. In 1906, Maj. Eben Swift took students from the General Service and Staff School at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., to the battlefield of Chickamauga on the first official staff ride.

What happened during the crucial days of September 14 to18, 1862, at Antietam Creek, was the subject of a garrison staff ride Tuesday. Along with a number of Civil War buffs, the staff spent the full day studying the movement of the armies and the missed opportunities for both forces. Moving by foot and bus to the various stops along the battle lines provided the participants an opportunity to relive the combat and experience the many human-interest stories of the event.

The Battle of Antietam provides important lessons in command and control, leadership, unit training, the Principles of War, communication and the “tools of the trade.” It is ideal for a staff ride, particularly since the terrain has changed little since the day of the battle, September 17, 1862.

It has been described as the single bloodiest day in American history.  By the end of the day, more than 22,000 American Soldiers were dead, wounded or missing.

Instead of expected Union successes in the spring and summer of 1862, the Confederates were able to achieve a string of victories that brought the two armies to the gates of Washington, D.C.  Gen. Robert E. Lee, commanding the Army of Northern Virginia, pondered his options in the first week of September.

He decided to take his army north with several goals in mind: to inflict a decisive defeat on the Federals to seriously dampen Northern morale; to take the war from Virginia to allow the farmers to gather the harvest; to foster Southern recruiting in western Maryland; and, finally, to engineer a victory which would foster European recognition of the Confederacy - and perhaps even intervention.

Maj. Gen. George McClellan, placed once more in command of the Federal Army of the Potomac, was forced to quickly reorganize the three forces at his disposal; protect Washington, D.C.; and drive the Confederates from Northern soil.

(Left) Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia boldly marched into Maryland, drawing McClellan’s Army of the Potomac out of defensive positions in Washington in pursuit. Along the way, the Confederates captured the garrison at Harpers Ferry, obtaining much-needed supplies and equipment. (Above) Artist Thure Thulstrop’s rendition of the Union’s advance on Dunker Church. (Below) Bodies of dead Confederate Soldiers lay in front of Dunker Church.
Lee’s plan was to attack into Maryland to keep Union forces from regrouping after their defeat in the Battle of 2nd Bull Run. If the Confederates were successful in Maryland, Lee planned to push on to Pennsylvania.
In the North, the clash would be known as the Battle of Antietam, while in the South, it would be regarded as the Battle of Sharpsburg.
On the Confederate side, while Lee’s audacious foray into the North netted his army much-needed supplies, equipment and clothing, the gains were at a high cost in lives lost. Tacticians today still debate whether the gains were worth the cost.
Federal forces, although successful in preventing the Confederate forces from holding ground in Maryland, missed the opportunity to break Lee’s Virginians by not keeping pressure on their adversaries once they had the advantage. The following year, the Army of Northern Virginia would attack the North again and engage Union forces at Gettysburg.