Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 12.djvu/150

136 ments that he could draw from every source, could only muster 78,000 men, the largest army he ever commanded. And yet, with this force Lee attacked McClellan in his stronghold, and in "Seven Days' battles" drove him from every position and forced him to take refuge under the cover of his gunboats at Harrison's landing, forty miles below Richmond, after a series of brilliant Confederate victories which inflicted immense loss on the enemy in both men and material. The subsequent campaign, in which the Confederates won the victory of Cedar Run mountain, fought the brilliant battle of Second Manassas, after which they drove the Federals into the fortifications around Washington, captured Harper's Ferry with 11,500 prisoners, 13,000 stand of small-arms, 73 pieces of artillery and large quantities of provisions and stores of every description, and transferred the war across the Potomac this campaign will be noted in history among the most splendid military movements. At the battle of Sharpsburg General Lee had at first only 17,000 men and only 33,000 when his troops were all up, and yet he not only successfully withstood McClellan's nearly 100,000, but considerably advanced his lines on a part of the field, remained in line of battle all day the next day "expecting and, in fact, hoping for another attack," as he himself expressed it, and only retired on information that McClellan was being largely reinforced, while he could expect no reinforcements as long as he remained north of the Potomac river.

At Fredericksburg, December 13, 1862, Burnside had over 100,000 men and Lee barely 70,000, only 20,000 of whom were engaged at any one time, and yet Lee inflicted on the enemy so bloody a defeat that those plains became henceforth historic as "Burnside's slaughter pen," and this brave soldier was compelled to "desist from further slaughter of his men" and to retreat across the river, by the emphatic remonstrance, protest and pressure of his leading generals. At Chancellorsville,