GRANT, ULYSSES S. (His MILITAEY CAREER.) 



427 



by Meade, was to cover Washington, and as- 

 sume the offensive against Lee's army. 



Orders were issued for a general movement 

 of all the armies in the field on May 4. Dur- 

 ing the night of the 4th and 5th Grant crossed 

 the Kapidan and encountered Lee in the Wil- 

 derness, where a desperate battle was fought 

 on the 5th, 6th, and 7th. Grant's loss was 

 2,261 killed, 8,785 wounded, and 2,902 miss- 

 ing. Lee's losses have never been reported ; 

 but, as he was generally the attacking party, 

 he probably lost more. He fell back on the 

 7th, and on that day and the next took up 

 a strong defensive position at Spottsylvauia. 

 Grant moved forward on the night of the 7th. 

 As he rode through the troops, the men greet- 

 ed him as their new commander with an ex- 

 traordinary demonstration in recognition of 

 the victory, shouting, cheering, and kindling 

 bonfires by the road- side as he passed. The 

 8th and 9th were spent by both armies in skir- 

 mishing and manoeuvring for position. Sheri- 

 dan's cavalry was started on the 9th to make 

 a raid in rear of the enemy and threaten Rich- 

 mond. On the 10th there was heavy fighting 

 with no decisive results, and, on the llth, skir- 

 mishing and reconnoitring. On the morning 

 of this day Grant sent a letter to Washington 

 containing the famous sentence, "I propose 

 to fight it out on this line, if it takes all sum- 

 mer." On the 12th, a heavy assault was made 

 on Lee's line, near the center, in which he lost 

 nearly 4,000 prisoners and 30 guns. Violent 

 storms now caused a cessation in the fighting 

 for several days. On the 19th, Ewell's Corps, 

 of Lee's army, moved around Grant's right 

 flank and attacked, but was repelled after hard 

 fighting. Grant's losses from the 8th to the 

 21st of May, around Spottsylvania, were 2,271 

 killed, 9,360 wounded, and 1,970 missing. The 

 estimate of the enemy's loss, in killed and 

 wounded, was nearly as great as that of the 

 national army, besides about 4,000 prisoners 

 and 30 cannon captured. In the mean time 

 Butler had occupied Bermuda Hundred, below 

 Richmond. Sherman had reached Dalton, Ga., 

 and was steadily driving Johnston's army to- 

 ward Atlanta. But Sigel had been forced to 

 retreat before Breckinridge. 



On the 21st Grant moved by the left flank 

 to the North Anna river, where he again en- 

 countered Lee, and after several engagements 

 moved again by the left from that position on 

 the 27th toward Cold Harbor. Grant's losses 

 between the 20th and 26th were 186 killed, 

 792 wounded, and 165 missing. Lee's losses 

 during this period have never been fully ascer- 

 tained. After much fighting by detached por- 

 tions of the two armies, Grant made a general 

 assault upon Lee's heavily intrenched position 

 at Cold Harbor on June 3, but did not succeed 

 m carrying it, being repelled with a loss of 

 about 7,000 in killed, wounded, and missing, 

 while Lee's loss was probably not more than 

 2,500. The campaign had now lasted thirty 

 days. Grant had received during this time 



about 40,000 re-enforcements, and had lost 

 39,259 men 6,586 killed, 26,047 wounded, 

 and 6,626 missing. Lee had received about 

 30,000 re-enforcements. There are no official 

 figures as to his exact losses, but they have 

 been estimated at about equal to his re- 

 enforcements. 



Sherman had now reached Kenesaw, within 

 about thirty miles of Atlanta; and on the 7th 

 news arrived that Hunter, who had succeeded 

 Sigel, had gained a victory over the forces 

 opposing him, and had seized Staunton, on the 

 Virginia Central Railroad. Grant made prepa- 

 rations for transferring the Army of the Poto- 

 mac to the south side of James river, to oper- 

 ate against Petersburg and Richmond from a 

 more advantageous position there. The army 

 was withdrawn from the enemy's front on the 

 night of June 12. The crossing of the river 

 began on the 13th, and occupied three days. 



A force had also been sent around by water, 

 by the York and James rivers to City Point, to 

 move against Petersburg. On the 15th the ad- 

 vanced troops attacked the works in front of 

 that place ; but night coming on, the successes 

 gained were not followed up by the command- 

 ers, and the next morning the position had been 

 re-enforced and strengthened. An assault was 

 made on the afternoon of the 16th, which was 

 followed up on the 17th and 18th, and the re- 

 sult was the capture of important outworks, and 

 the possession of a line closer to Petersburg. 

 Lee's army had arrived and again confronted 

 the Army of the Potomac. Grant's head- 

 quarters had been established at City Point. 

 On June 22 and 23 he made a movement from 

 the left toward the Weldon Railroad, and heavy 

 fighting took place, with but little result, ex- 

 cept to render Lee's use of that line of commu- 

 nication more precarious. Sheridan had started 

 on a raid from the Pamunkey river, June 7, 

 and after defeating the enemy's cavalry, in the 

 battle of Trevilian Station, destroying portions 

 of the Virginia railroad, and inflicting other 

 damage, he returned to White House, on York 

 river, on the 20th. From there he crossed the 

 James and rejoined the Army of the Potomac. 

 A cavalry force under Wilson had also been 

 sent to the south and west of Petersburg, 

 which destroyed railroad property, and for a 

 time seriously interrupted the enemy's com- 

 munications via the Danville and South-side 

 Railroads. 



Hunter, in the Valley of Virginia, had de- 

 stroyed the stores captured at Staunton and 

 Lexington, and moved to Lynchburg. This 

 place was re-enforced, and, after sharp fighting, 

 Hunter fell back, pursued by a heavy force, to 

 the Kanawha river. Early's army drove the 

 national troops out of Martinsburg, crossed the 

 upper Potomac, and moved upon Hagerstown 

 and Frederick. There was great consternation 

 in Washington, and Grant was harassed by 

 many anxieties. On July 11 Early advanced 

 against the fortifications on the north side of 

 "Washington ; but Grant had sent the Sixth 



