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The Army of Virginia was organized as a major unit of the Union Army
Union Army

The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S....
 and operated briefly and unsuccessfully in 1862 in the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
. It should not be confused with its principal opponent, the Confederate
Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was a military organization whose primary mission was to provide the necessary forces and capabilities to support the National Security and defense of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865....
 Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
, commanded by Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee , was a career United States United States Army officer , an engineer, and among the most celebrated generals in American history....
.

Army of Virginia was constituted on June 26, 1862, by General Orders Number 103, from four existing departments operating around Virginia
Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
: Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont
John C. Frémont

John Charles Fr?mont , was an United States military Commissioned officer, List of explorers, the first candidate of the History of United States Republican Party for the office of President of the United States, and the first presidential candidate of a major party to run on a platform in opposition to slavery....
's Mountain Department, Maj.






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The Army of Virginia was organized as a major unit of the Union Army
Union Army

The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S....
 and operated briefly and unsuccessfully in 1862 in the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
. It should not be confused with its principal opponent, the Confederate
Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was a military organization whose primary mission was to provide the necessary forces and capabilities to support the National Security and defense of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865....
 Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
, commanded by Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee

Robert Edward Lee , was a career United States United States Army officer , an engineer, and among the most celebrated generals in American history....
.

History

The Army of Virginia was constituted on June 26, 1862, by General Orders Number 103, from four existing departments operating around Virginia
Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
: Maj. Gen. John C. Frémont
John C. Frémont

John Charles Fr?mont , was an United States military Commissioned officer, List of explorers, the first candidate of the History of United States Republican Party for the office of President of the United States, and the first presidential candidate of a major party to run on a platform in opposition to slavery....
's Mountain Department, Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell
Irvin McDowell

Irvin McDowell was a career United States United States Army, famous for his defeat during the First Battle of Bull Run, the first large-scale battle of the American Civil War....
's Department of the Rappahannock, Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks's Department of the Shenandoah, and Brig. Gen. Samuel D. Sturgis
Samuel D. Sturgis

Samuel Davis Sturgis was an American military officer who served in the Mexican-American War, as a Union Army general in the American Civil War, and later in the Indian Wars....
's brigade from the Military District of Washington. Maj. Gen. John Pope
John Pope (military officer)

John Pope was a career United States Army officer and Union Army general in the American Civil War. He had a brief but successful career in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, but he is best known for his defeat at the Second Battle of Bull Run in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War....
 commanded the new organization, which was divided into three corps of over 50,000 men. Three corps of Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan

George Brinton McClellan was a Major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army....
's Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac

The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
 later were added for combat operations.

Banks's corps of the Army of Virginia fought against Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson

Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson was a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War, and probably the most well-known Confederate commander after General Robert E....
 at the Battle of Cedar Mountain
Battle of Cedar Mountain

}|-||}The Battle of Cedar Mountain, also known as Slaughter's Mountain or Cedar Run, took place on August 9, 1862, in Culpeper County, Virginia, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War....
, gaining initial advantage, but was defeated by a Confederate counterattack led by A.P. Hill. The entire army was soundly defeated at the Second Battle of Bull Run
Second Battle of Bull Run

The Second Battle of Bull Run, or, as it was called by the Confederate States of America, the Battle of Second Manassas, was fought August 28–30, 1862, as part of the American Civil War....
 by Jackson, Longstreet
James Longstreet

James Longstreet was one of the foremost Confederate States Army General officers of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E....
, and Lee, and withdrew to the defensive lines of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the Capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790....
. On September 12, 1862, the units of the Army of Virginia were merged into the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Virginia was never reconstituted.

Commander

  • Major General John Pope
    John Pope (military officer)

    John Pope was a career United States Army officer and Union Army general in the American Civil War. He had a brief but successful career in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, but he is best known for his defeat at the Second Battle of Bull Run in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War....
      (June 26 – September 12)


Organization

The first three corps were given numeric designations that overlapped with those in the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac

The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
. They were rededignated as shown for the Maryland Campaign
Maryland Campaign

The Maryland Campaign, or the Antietam Campaign, of September 1862 is widely considered one of the major Turning Point of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
 and later.

  • I Corps, Army of Virginia; commanded by Franz Sigel
    Franz Sigel

    Franz Sigel was a German military officer and immigrant to the United States who was a teacher, newspaperman, politician, and served as a Union Army Major general in the American Civil War....
     (this corps had been the Mountain Department under John Frémont; it eventually became the XI Corps
    XI Corps (ACW)

    The XI Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War, best remembered for its humiliating defeats at the battles of Battle of Chancellorsville and Battle of Gettysburg in 1863....
    )
  • II Corps, Army of Virginia; commanded by Nathaniel Banks (formerly known as V Corps
    V Corps (ACW)

    The V Corps was a unit of the Union Army Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War....
     and Department of the Shenandoah; later known as XII Corps
    XII Corps (ACW)

    The XII Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War.The corps was formed by U.S. War Department General Order of March 13, 1862, under which the corps organization of the Army of the Potomac was first created....
    )
  • III Corps, Army of Virginia; commanded by Irvin McDowell
    Irvin McDowell

    Irvin McDowell was a career United States United States Army, famous for his defeat during the First Battle of Bull Run, the first large-scale battle of the American Civil War....
     (formerly known as I Corps
    I Corps (ACW)

    I Corps was the designation of three different corps-sized units in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The units served in the following armies:...
     and Department of the Rappahannock; reverted to I Corps)
  • Cavalry Brigade, commanded by George Bayard


The following corps were attached for operations during the Northern Virginia Campaign
Northern Virginia Campaign

}|-||}The Northern Virginia Campaign, also known as the Second Bull Run Campaign or Second Manassas Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during August and September 1862 in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
:
  • III Corps
    III Corps (ACW)

    There were four formations in the Union Army designated as III Corps during the American Civil War.Three were short-lived:*Army of Virginia:...
    , Army of the Potomac; commanded by Samuel P. Heintzelman
    Samuel P. Heintzelman

    Samuel Peter Heintzelman was a United States Army General officer. He served in the Seminole War, the Mexican-American War, the Cortina Troubles, and the American Civil War, rising to the command of a corps....
  • V Corps
    V Corps (ACW)

    The V Corps was a unit of the Union Army Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War....
    , Army of the Potomac; commanded by Fitz John Porter
    Fitz John Porter

    Fitz John Porter was a career United States Army officer and a Union Army General officer during the American Civil War. He is most known for his performance at the Second Battle of Bull Run and his subsequent Court-martial of Fitz John Porter....
  • IX Corps
    IX Corps (ACW)

    IX Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War that distinguished itself in combat in multiple theaters: the Carolinas, Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi....
    , Army of the Potomac; commanded by Jesse L. Reno
    Jesse L. Reno

    Jesse Lee Reno was a career United States Army officer who served in the Mexican-American War, the western frontier, and as a Union Army General officer during the American Civil War....
  • Reynolds's Division, commanded by John F. Reynolds
    John F. Reynolds

    John Fulton Reynolds was a career United States Army officer and a General officer in the American Civil War. One of the Union Army's most respected senior commanders, despite having a relatively limited amount of combat experience in the war, he played a key role in committing the Army of the Potomac to the Battle of Gettysburg and was kill...
     (the Pennsylvania Reserves
    Pennsylvania Reserves

    The Pennsylvania Reserves was an infantry division in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Noted for its famous commanders and high casualties, it served in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, and fought in many important battles, including Battle of Antietam and Battle of Gettysburg....
    )


Major battles

  • Battle of Cedar Mountain
    Battle of Cedar Mountain

    }|-||}The Battle of Cedar Mountain, also known as Slaughter's Mountain or Cedar Run, took place on August 9, 1862, in Culpeper County, Virginia, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War....
     — Pope (Only Banks's II Corps was involved in the fighting)
  • Second Battle of Bull Run
    Second Battle of Bull Run

    The Second Battle of Bull Run, or, as it was called by the Confederate States of America, the Battle of Second Manassas, was fought August 28–30, 1862, as part of the American Civil War....
     — Pope
  • Battle of Chantilly
    Battle of Chantilly

    }|-||}The Battle of Chantilly took place on September 1, 1862, in Fairfax County, Virginia, as the concluding battle of the Northern Virginia Campaign of the American Civil War....
     — Pope (although fought mostly by Army of the Potomac
    Army of the Potomac

    The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
     troops, elements of Pope's force were engaged)


External links