Thesis on "Battle of Antietam Sharpsburg"

Thesis 16 pages (4252 words) Sources: 8 Style: Turabian

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Battle of Antietam

The research here examines an analysis of the Battle of Antietam utilizing primary sources as the main source of reference. It first examines the immediate background of the battle, and how the Confederate and Union forces set up for their confrontation at Antietam Creek. In a defensive position, General E. Lee placed himself west of Antietam Creek, with the Potomac to his backside. General McClellan came from the northeast down onto Lee's much smaller forces. What resulted was the bloodiest battle of the entire Civil War, costing thousands of soldiers their lives. In the end, Lee failed to defend his position, and lost his chance for a successful invasion of Maryland and retreated, forces decimated, back to Richmond.

Introduction

The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest confrontation between the North and South during the entire duration of the Civil War, and it witnessed a determined General Robert E. Lee fail to properly execute his planned invasion of Maryland, defended by General George B, McClellan. In the onslaught, General McClellan held true to the principle of war of leaving open the choice for either caution or decisive action, while Lee failed to recognize his own weaknesses, both in terms of men and defense point. The main resource for this research was an excellent primary source site, Home of the American Civil War, which holds biographical accounts written by actual soldiers and generals from both the North and the South and is also a great source for official records of the Civil War era, including government correspondence and official orders to the generals on the field.

Review of the Strategic Setting

The two armies meet in the middle of September of 1862, but the battle had been brewing for a while before hand. Lee had requested the permission from Confederate President Jefferson Davis to invade Maryland. Coming off of huge victories further west, like the First and Second Battle of Bull Run, the Southern General felt the need to strike the enemy at its most crucial point had come. So, Lee got his wish, and headed east into Maryland from Harper's Ferry, which he took from the Union just a few days before the epic clash at Antietam Creek that began on in the early morning hours of September 17, 1862. The Northern forces, understanding their close proximity to the capitol of Washington D.C. amassed a huge force to meet Lee and his men on that fateful day.

Comparison of the Antagonists

It was clear in this battle, that although Lee was on an invasion mission, the antagonists were the Union forces. Lee had entered into enemy territory, yet immediately took a position of defense, in preparation for meeting a much larger force than his own. Therefore, the Union forces were the main aggressors, who began the first attack against the Confederate troops, eventually pursuing them as the retreated out of the area the next few days after the original battle. The Union army was led under General George B. McClellan; he pursued General Robert E. Lee from the North, who was in the defensive position. McClellan had won an excellent reputation in prior conflicts like the Mexican War. When he took control of the Army of the Potomac, he brought with him an invigorated spirit and lifted morale to defend the capitol. According to research, "McClellan was in Washington to take command of the dispirited force that would become the Army of the Potomac; by November he was as well general-in-chief of all the Union armies."

On the other hand, General Robert E. Lee was outnumbered two-to-one. He had taken control of the Army of Virginia in June 1862, and his career proved much more distinguished than the career of McClellan at the time of the battle.

However, his reputation could not win the battle for him, and his decision to stake everything on the line backfired dramatically.

Military Systems

The two armies met on the field, but brought within them different military systems. McClellan clearly had the upper hand in terms of sheer troop numbers; however, he proved to rely on weak logistical strategies when he used faulty inside information to make his strategic decisions. McClellan gathered his intelligence using the spies of Allan Pinkerton, an infamous private detective out of Chicago.

McClellan had false reports of Lee commanding over 100,000 men; "The Federals were under the self-imposed illusion that there was a very large force opposed to them, whereas there was only one weak division until late in the afternoon."

This faulty intelligence caused him to lag on his execution of interception. It also allowed more time for Lee to procure more ready men for the oncoming fight. According to first hand accounts of the situation, "McClellan did not know it, and [apparently] feared, when Burnside was pressed back, that Sharpsburg was a Confederate victory, and that we would have to retire."

Thus, Lee was allowed more time to organize and plan a stronger defense. More and more Confederate troops joined ranks in preparation of the fight, for before the delay "They might have brushed it aside almost without halting, but for this illusion."

Lee took full advantage of the situation, and through false reports being published in Northern news facets, knew that McClellan had been overestimating his forces. Therefore, "Lee seems to have been aware of the inflated estimates of Confederate strength leaked to the press."

McClellan's poor intelligence thus had great influence in the setting and events inside the context of the battle.

Previous Performance

The Southern Confederate forces were in high spirits because of recent victories. First-hand accounts of the battle show a force that was full of confidence, despite their small numbers; "When the Second Bull Run campaign closed we had the most brilliant prospects the Confederates ever had. We then possessed an army which, had it been kept together, the Federals would never have dared to attack."

Lee's army was heading south towards Washington D.C. from West Virginia where they crossed into Maryland on their way to executing Lee's invasion plan. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson had captured Harper's Ferry, successfully opening the road into Maryland. There, the Union surrendered, which built morale; however, it also left much of Lee's army dealing with Union prisoners' of war. Thus, troops streaming into Maryland from Harper's Ferry, confident with the success of the recent Union surrender.

However, the Northern forces had seen victory directly after the battle at Harper's Ferry. McClellan had just witnessed victory at the Battle of South Mountain, in the Blue Ridge Mountains. However, this delayed McClellan from intercepting Lee earlier, stopping his organization before Antietam. Here, Confederate accounts of the battle report 494 wounded and kill, with 440 missing.

The Northern victory "The left of General McClellan's army pursued a part of the enemy's forces to the South Mountain, where, on the 14th, he made a stand. A severe battle ensued, the enemy being defeated and driven from his position with heavy loss."

Thus, both armies had recent victories and losses walking onto the battle field early on the morning of September 17th.

Logical Situation

The logical situation of each army also had strong influence on the end result of the war. The Confederates did have a large stash of weapons. Primary accounts state that Lee had a wagon train full of ammunition and artillery reserves.

However, they were completely out-numbered and running low on supplies. Lee himself, in his proposal to invade Maryland, even acknowledged this lack of supply, stating most of his troops were in need of fresh clothing and shoes. He wrote to Jefferson Davis "The army is not properly equipped for an invasion of an enemy's territory. It lacks much of the material of war, is feeble in transportation, the animals being much reduced, and the men are poorly provided with clothes, and in thousands of instances are destitute of shoes."

The Northern regiments were also running somewhat low on supplies. Although also equipped with several battery cannons, McClellan also admitted to his troops needing further supplies. In fact, this is one of the reasons he justified not attacking Lee too early in the first place. Additionally, McClellan boasted new recruits, fresh out of Washington D.C., "The entire force, I concluded, was composed of fresh troops from Washington or some camp of instruction."

Lee had to rely on his war-torn troops which had already seen much conflict as they traveled further into Maryland.

Morale, Health, and Welfare

The morale of both troops was key in how well the soldiers within them fought. The southern soldiers new they were incredibly outnumbered. Despite the victory at Harper's Ferry, the Confederates were nervous "had he made the movement which Stuart and myself thought he was making, it was hardly possible for the little force under Lee in person to have escaped, encumbered as it was with wagon trains and reserve artillery."

Lee himself understood his disadvantage in terms of troop forces. He recognized the deteriorating state of his troops, but… READ MORE

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