AEMT OPERATIONS. 





barrier of the Shenandoah Valley alone re- 

 mained to be traversed. The troops pushed 

 on twelve miles through the rain, and halted at 

 night where the "Winchester and Strasburg 

 roads divide. On the narrow ridges, along 

 which the path wound in constant ascent, there 

 was no plane or table bind for camp. That 

 rainy night the tired troops dropped and slept 

 by the roadside or in the swimming fields. 

 The nest morning, Sunday, June 1. the ad- 

 vance moved at six o'clock, and at eight the 

 whole column was in -motion on the road to 

 arg. In about an hour and a half later 

 a skirmish ensued near Strasburg, and Gen. 

 Fremont had reached the position to cooperate 

 with the force of Gen. McDoweli against the 

 advance of the enemy upon Gen. Banks. 



er the battle o'f Winchester, on the 23d 

 of March, the retiring Confederate forces in the 

 Shenandoah Valley were followed up by Gen. 

 Banks. On the 1st of April he moved from 

 urg to Woodstock, where his entrance 

 :ed by a force of cavalry, infantry, 

 and artillery under Col. Ashby. They how- 

 -.ted to Edinburg, destroying one 

 railroad and two turnpike bridge?. The ad- 

 vance was subsequently continued with occa- 

 sional skirmishes, and on the 26th Harrisonburg 

 was occupied. A considerable body of Con- 

 federate troops was in the neighborhood, but 

 in a position from which a retreat could easily 

 be made. 



The order of the President, which divided 

 the army in Virginia into five corps, placed the 

 fifth under the command of Gen. Banks. It 

 was to be composed of his division and that of 

 Gen. Shields, which had previously been com- 

 manded by Gen. Lander. This was the force 

 now encamped near Harrisonburg. About the 

 15:h of May an order was issued from the War 

 Department withdrawing the division of Gen. 

 Shields from the corps of Gen. Banks, and di- 

 recting him to report immediately at C 

 Station on the Orange and Alexandria railroad, 

 as above stated. At the same tune orders 

 were given to Gen. Banks to fall back to E 

 burg and fortify. Gen. Shields left at once, 

 and on his arrival t: >n he was 



ordered to join Gen. McDowell at Fredericks- 

 barg immediately. 



At Strasbnrg the Massanutten range of 

 mountains rise in the middle of the valley, 

 and divide it. Strasburg is favorably located 

 for defence against an attack from the south 

 by the western valley. But the eastern valley, 

 by opening out at Front Royal, affords another 

 road to the Potomac, and also a good plank 

 road, which runs direct to Winchester, going 

 round Strasburg. 



Gen. Banks had not actually fallen back to 

 urg when Gen. Shields" marched over 

 the mountain and down the eastern branch 

 of the valley to Front Royal. At that very 

 tune an attack was expected on the front, and 

 a portion of his forces had been daily skirmish- 

 ing with a Confederate force in the gap of the 



lliasanutten Mountains. It was also known 

 that Gen. Jackson, having attempted to dis- 

 lodge Gen. Milroy in the Mountain Department, 

 was returning to the Shenandoah Valley, and 

 that Gen. Ewell was with a strong force on the 

 road running from Harrisonburg to Gordons- 

 ville, and also that Gen. Taylor was still higher 

 up the valley with another Confederate force. 

 In addition, Gen. Jackson could be easily reen- 

 forced from Gordonsville. With this force 

 menacing the valley. Gen. Banks was left with 

 .an six thousand men, including cavalry 

 and artillery, to defend the whole valley, and 

 that. too. be'fore he had time to prepare him- 

 self for resistance by fortifications. 



Eastward of Front Royal there was another 

 force under Gen. Geary, charged with the pro- 

 tection of the Manassas Gap railroad. The 

 headquarters of Gen. Geary were at Rector- 

 town, and there were only between seven and 

 eight hundred troops at Front Royal. Still 

 farther east, at Catlett's Station, on the Orange 

 and Alexandria railroad, about ten miles south 

 of Manassas Junction, was the brigade of Gen. 

 Duryea. consisting of three Xew York and one 

 Pennsylvania regiment. These forces formed 

 the connection between Gen. Banks and the 

 main body of the army of the Rappahannock, 

 under Gen. McDowell, at Fredericksburg. 



The enemy.knowing the position and strength 

 of these forces, formed a plan to capture the en- 

 tire force of Gen. Banks. This plan was to be 

 executed on the proper signal being given from 

 Richmond. At tins time Gee. McClellan was 

 within fifteen miles of Richmond. Gen. Mc- 

 Dowell had been reinforced by Gen. Shields, 

 and orders were expected every hour for him 

 to advance toward Richmond. It was all-impor- 

 tant for the defence of that capital that reen- 

 forcements should be prevented from reaching 

 Gen. McClellan. After the junction of Gens. 

 Shields and McDowell, dense columns of 

 smoke could be seen at evening ascending for 

 miles south of Fredericksburg. which were 

 I by the burning of bridges to retard 

 the Federal advance. Something greater than 

 the mere burning of bridges was needed ; for 

 it was not only necessary to prevent the Fed- 

 eral reinforcements to Gen. McClellan, but 

 also to gain time to accumulate the Confederate 

 forces before Richmond from such parts of 

 the South as they could be taken, and by the 

 - of the conscript kw. The moment had 

 come for the dash on Gen. Banks, and the 

 signal from Richmond was given. Mean- 

 while Gen. Banks, according to the orders of 

 the War Department, had fallen back, and now 

 occupied Strasburg. The first movement of the 

 enemy, who had retired from their advance on 

 Fremont, and were already concentrated under 

 Jackson and Ewell for the purpose, 

 was to advance a heavy column rapid'y up the 

 valley between the Blue Ridge and Massanutten 

 mountain range to Front Royal, with the de- 

 sign of capturing the force there, and then press 

 on by a good plank road to Winchester, and 



