All Topics  
Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia
 
 
  Topics Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia Topic Home

The Second Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia was a military organization within 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....
 during much of 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 was officially created and named following the Battle of Sharpsburg in 1862, but comprised units in a corps
Corps

A Corps is either a large formation , or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service....
 organization for quite some time prior to that. The Second Corps developed a reputation for hard fighting under famed early commander Thomas J. "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....
.

troops comprising the Second Corps originate known as the Second Corps of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac (Confederate)

The Confederate States Army Army of the Potomac, whose name was short-lived, was the command under Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard in the early days of the American Civil War....
, under the command of Major General
Major General

Major General or Major-General is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of Sergeant Major General. A Major General is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of Lieutenant General and senior to the ranks of Brigadier and Brigadier General....
 Gustavus W.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia'
Start a new discussion about 'Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


The Second Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia was a military organization within 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....
 during much of 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 was officially created and named following the Battle of Sharpsburg in 1862, but comprised units in a corps
Corps

A Corps is either a large formation , or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service....
 organization for quite some time prior to that. The Second Corps developed a reputation for hard fighting under famed early commander Thomas J. "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....
.

Background

The troops comprising the Second Corps originate known as the Second Corps of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac (Confederate)

The Confederate States Army Army of the Potomac, whose name was short-lived, was the command under Brigadier General P.G.T. Beauregard in the early days of the American Civil War....
, under the command of Major General
Major General

Major General or Major-General is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of Sergeant Major General. A Major General is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of Lieutenant General and senior to the ranks of Brigadier and Brigadier General....
 Gustavus W. Smith. This unit was also known as the Second Division and was eventually subsumed into General
General

A General officer is an Officer of high military rank. The term or equivalent is used by nearly every country in the world. General can be used as a generic term for all grades of general officer, or it can specifically refer to a single rank that is just called general....
 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....
's Army of Northern Virginia as a reserve in Maj. Gen. D. H. Hill's Division. When Lee was able to reorganize his army after finishing battles with Union
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....
 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....
 on the peninsula
Peninsula Campaign

The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War....
, he created this corps under the command of Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General (United States)

In the United States Army, the United States Marine Corps and the United States Air Force, lieutenant general is a 3 star rank general officer rank, with the U.S....
 Jackson, along with a sister corps under Lt. Gen. James 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....
. Lee's reorganization was based on his evaluation of the performance of his division commanders during the Seven Days Campaign.

Command under Lt. Gen. T. J. Jackson

Jackson Stonewall Loc
General Jackson commanded what became the Second Corps from the end of the Seven Days Campaign on July 13, 1862, until his death after the Battle of Chancellorsville
Battle of Chancellorsville

The Battle of Chancellorsville was a major battle of the American Civil War, fought near the village of Spotsylvania Courthouse, Virginia, from April 30 to May 6, 1863....
 in May 1863. Jackson's official promotion to lieutenant general was made on October 10, 1862, and "Jackson's Corps" began going by the title Second Corp about 6 November. Jackson simultaneously commanded the "Valley District" of the Department of Northern Virginia, and operated his corps near Winchester, Virginia
Winchester, Virginia

Winchester is an independent city located in the extreme northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 23,585 according to the United States Census 2000....
, guarding the lower Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley

The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bound to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River and to the south by the James River ....
 when not fully needed by Lee to be close at hand to the main army. Jackson commanded the corps at the Battle of Fredericksburg
Battle of Fredericksburg

The Battle of Fredericksburg, fought in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, from December 11 to December 15, 1862, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate States Army Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army Army of the Potomac, commanded by Major general Ambrose E....
 and in the subsequent series of engagements along the Rappahannock River
Rappahannock River

The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia in the United States, approximately 184 mi in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west across the Piedmont to Chesapeake Bay south of the Potomac River....
. The corps' finest moment came during the Battle of Chancellorsville when Jackson led the famous enveloping left flank attack that routed much of Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker

Joseph Hooker was a career United States Army officer, fought in the Mexican-American War, and was a Major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War....
's Federal 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....
. However, the subsequent loss of Jackson was devastating to Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia, and is considered to be a turning point for Lee's ability to command the army without occasionally needing to personally see to the details of corps command.

Temporary commands under Maj. Generals A.P. Hill and J.E.B. Stuart

From May 2 to May 30, 1863, the Second Corps was commanded temporarily by Maj. Gen. A. P. Hill
A. P. Hill

Ambrose Powell Hill , was a Confederate States Army general in the American Civil War. He gained early fame as the commander of "Hill's Light Division," becoming one of Stonewall Jackson's ablest subordinates....
, with the exception of one day under Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart

James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was an American soldier from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names....
 on 2 May, during the crucial loss of the mortally wounded Jackson.

Command under Lt. Gen. R. S. Ewell

Robert S Ewell
Following the mop up actions and temporary commands after the Battle of Chancellorsville, General Lee formally assigned the Second Corps to Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell
Richard S. Ewell

Richard Stoddert Ewell was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate States Army General officer during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E....
, who had recently recovered from a previous amputation of his leg after the Second Battle of Manassas. Ewell had commanded a division and worked under Jackson, and was native to this organization. Jackson had recommended Ewell for the command to Lee before he died. However, the Second Corps was reduced in size when Ewell took command, because General Lee favored creating a Third Corps
Third Corps, Army of Northern Virginia

The Third Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia was a military organization within the Confederate States Army Army of Northern Virginia during much of the American Civil War....
 under A. P. Hill. Ewell led the Second Corps through the Gettysburg Campaign
Gettysburg Campaign

File:Meade and Lee.jpgThe Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate States Army Full General Robert E....
, after smashing the Union VIII Corps
VIII Corps (ACW)

The VIII Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War....
 and decimating Maj. Gen. Robert H. Milroy
Robert H. Milroy

Robert Huston Milroy was a lawyer, judge, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War, most noted for his defeat at the Battle of Winchester II in 1863....
's command at the Second Battle of Winchester
Battle of Winchester II

The Second Battle of Winchester was fought between June 13 and June 15, 1863 in Frederick County, Virginia and Winchester, Virginia as part of the Gettysburg Campaign during the American Civil War....
. Ewell continued to command the corps through the opening campaigning of 1864 at the Battle of the Wilderness
Battle of the Wilderness

The Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5–7, 1864, was the first battle of Lieutenant general Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General Robert E....
 and the Battle of Spotsylvania. However, Ewell's ability as a corps commander waned, and Lee felt it was necessary to reassign Ewell to the Department of Richmond on May 29, 1864.

Command under Lt. Gen. J.A. Early

Jubalearly
With Ewell's reassignment, Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early took command, bringing a wealth of experience. He had already temporarily commanded both the Second and Third Corps during the incapacitation of Ewell and Hill during The Battle of the Wilderness. Early had much experience as a division commander and had served under Generals Jackson and Ewell. Therefore, Lee decided in June 1864 to use the Second Corps on yet another invasion of the Union in an attempt to cause General Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant, born Hiram Ulysses Grant , was an United States general and the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States ....
 to fall back from pressing Lee's front. Early took the Second Corps, technically as a detached Army of the Valley, up through the Shenandoah Valley and up to the outskirts 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....
, raiding the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. At first this railroad was located entirely in the state of Maryland with an original line from the port of Baltimore, Maryland, west to Sandy Hook, Maryland....
 and countryside of Maryland
Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic States of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the Washington, D.C. to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east....
 and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a U.S. state located in the Northeastern United States and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States....
 along the way. But the invasion was short lived, as the Union was able to respond with a counter campaign under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan

Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union Army General officer in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to Major general and his close association with Lieutenant general Ulysses S....
, who pressed Early back into Virginia with overwhelming Union forces. As Sheridan fought Early up the Shenandoah Valley, Sheridan commenced upon his famous "Burning" of the Valley, destroying crops, livestock, farms, barns, homes and destroying everything in his path. The Second Corps, in this final campaign, fought to the death, expending itself battle by battle until practically the entire corps was gone, and the remnants were routed in the Battle of Belle Grove
Battle of Cedar Creek

The Battle of Cedar Creek, or The Battle of Belle Grove, October 19, 1864, was one of the final, and most decisive, battles in the Valley Campaigns of 1864 during the American Civil War....
 (also Cedar Creek). Defenseless now, the citizens and communities of the Shenandoah Valley were subject to unhindered devastation from General Sheridan. Although Early was one of Lee's most highly regarded division commanders, and had successfully created a large diversion, Lee chose to officially "relieve" Early of command, rather than let the Union gather the intelligence that the Second Corps had become so expended.

Command under Maj. Gen. J.B. Gordon

Jbgordon
What little that was left of the Second Corps was reconstituted and rejoined the main body of the Army of Northern Virginia, and Maj. Gen. John B. Gordon
John Brown Gordon

John Brown Gordon was one of Robert E. Lee's most trusted Confederate States Army General Officers during the American Civil War. After the war, he was a strong opponent of Reconstruction era of the United States and was generally acknowledged to be the titular leader of the Ku Klux Klan in Georgia during the late 1860s....
 was placed in command on December 20, 1864. Gordon commanded the corps, the "left wing" of Lee's depleted army, until it was surrendered at Appomattox Court House
Appomattox Court House

File:New Appomattox Court House.jpgFile:Appomattox Court House new and old marker.jpgThe Appomattox Court House is a courthouse in Appomattox, Virginia built in 1892....
, 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....
, on April 9, 1865. A significant action conducted while Gordon was in command was the Battle of Fort Stedman
Battle of Fort Stedman

The Battle of Fort Stedman was fought on March 25, 1865, during the final days of the American Civil War. The Union Army fortification in the siege lines around Petersburg, Virginia, was attacked in a pre-dawn Confederate States of America assault by troops led by Major General John B....
, which began with a surprise attack by the corps, which achieved some success before it was repulsed by Union reserves. Gordon's command also was in the van of the army during its last combat near Appomatox Court House. Gordon and Second Corps led the surrender parade of Confederate infantry.

See also

  • First Corps, Army of Northern Virginia
    First Corps, Army of Northern Virginia

    The First Corps, Army of Northern Virginia was a military unit fighting for the Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. It was formed in early 1861 and served until the spring of 1865, mostly in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War....
  • Third Corps, Army of Northern Virginia
    Third Corps, Army of Northern Virginia

    The Third Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia was a military organization within the Confederate States Army Army of Northern Virginia during much of the American Civil War....
  • Fourth Corps, Army of Northern Virginia
    Fourth Corps, Army of Northern Virginia

    The Fourth Corps was a military unit formed in October 1864 within the Army of Northern Virginia of the Confederate States Army. It fought for the Confederate States of America during the late stages of the American Civil War....
  • Cavalry Corps, Army of Northern Virginia
    Cavalry Corps, Army of Northern Virginia

    The Cavalry Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia was the only organized cavalry corps in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War....