Battles of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia

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Battles of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia - Multiple units engage at and around Spotsylvania Courthouse in Spotsylvania County, Virginia from May 8-21, 1864. Union Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant disengages from Confederate General Robert E. Lee and attempts to move his army around the Confederate flank. Lee understands what Grant intends to do and manages to shift all of his units to Spotsylvania first, digging in and forcing the Union to pay a costly price for control of the junction.

  • Also referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House or the Battle of Spotsylvania, Virginia - many unit profiles list these as two separate battles from May 8-12 (Spotsylvania) and 12-21 (Court House)
  • This battle includes several smaller battles and skirmishes in addition to the almost daily fighting in the vicinities of Spotsylvania Court House, Laurel Hill, Ny River, and Fredericksburg Road

Sub-Operations

Union Troops (Main operations about the Court House)

9th Corps
Division Brigade Regiments and
Smaller Units
1st Division
Thomas G. Stevenson, Brigadier General
Daniel Leasure, Colonel
Thomas L. Crittenden, Major General[4]
1st Brigade
Jacob P. Gould, Colonel[5]
Stephen M. Weld (Jr.), Lieutenant Colonel
James Ledlie, Brigadier General[6]
2nd Brigade
Daniel Leasure, Colonel[7]
Gilbert P. Robinson, Lieutenant Colonel
Artillery
2nd Division
Robert B. Potter, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Zenas Bliss, Colonel[8]
John I. Curtin, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Simon Goodell Griffin, Colonel
Artillery
3rd Division
Orlando B. Wilcox, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
John F. Hartranft, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Benjamin C. Christ, Colonel[11]
William Humphrey, Colonel[12]
Artillery
4th Division[16]
Edward Ferrero, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Joshua K. Sigfried, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Henry G. Thomas, Colonel
Artillery

Reporting directly

Provost Guard
Cavalry
Artillery Reserve[18]
John Edwards (Jr.), Captain
Provisional Brigade[19]
Elisha G. Marshall, Colonel
(AoP) Staff/HQ

General Staff:


Division Brigade Regiments and
Smaller Units
General Headquarters Provost Guard
Marsena R. Patrick, Brigadier General
Engineer Troops
Guards and Orderlies
(AoP) 2nd Corps

Escort:

Division Brigade Regiments and
Smaller Units
1st Division
Francis C. Barlow, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Nelson A. Miles, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Thomas Alfred Smyth, Colonel
3rd Brigade
Paul Frank, Colonel[21]
Hiram L. Brown, Colonel[22]
Clinton D. MacDougall, Colonel
4th Brigade
John R. Brooke, Colonel
2nd Division
John Gibbon, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Alexander S. Webb, Brigadier General<brH. Boyd McKeen, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Joshua T. Owen, Brigadier General
3rd Brigade
Samuel S. Carroll, Colonel
Theodore G. Ellis, Colonel
Provost Guard
3rd Division'
David B. Birney, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
J. H. Hobart Ward, Brigadier General[24]
Thomas W. Egan, Colonel
2nd Brigade
John S. Crocker, Colonel
4th Division[25]Gershom Mott, Brigadier General 1st Brigade
Robert McAllister, Colonel
2nd Brigade
William R. Brewster, Colonel
Artillery Brigade
John C. Tidball, Colonel
(AoP) 5th Corps
Division Brigade Regiments and
Smaller Units
1st Division
Charles Griffin, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Romeyn B. Ayres, Brigadier General
2nd Brigade
Jacob B. Sweitzer, Colonel
3rd Brigade
Joseph J. Bartlett, Brigadier General
2nd Division
John C. Robinson, Brigadier General[26]
Richard Coulter, Colonel
1st Brigade
Peter Lyle, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Richard Coulter, Colonel[28]
James L. Bates, Colonel
3rd Brigade
Andrew W. Denison, Colonel
Charles E. Phelps, Colonel
Richard N. Bowerman, Colonel
3rd Division
Samuel W. Crawford, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
William McCandless, Colonel
William C. Talley, Colonel
Wellington H. Ent, Colonel
Samuel M. Jackson, Colonel
3rd Brigade
Joseph W. Fisher, Colonel
4th Division
Lysander Cutler, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
William W. Robinson, Colonel
2nd Brigade
James C. Rice, Brigadier General
Edward B. Fowler, Colonel
3rd Brigade
Edward S. Bragg, Colonel
Artillery Brigade
Charles S. Wainwright, Colonel
(AoP) 6th Corps

Escort:

Division Brigade Regiments and
Smaller Units
1st Division
Horatio G. Wright, Brigadier General
David A. Russell, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Henry W. Brown, Colonel
William H. Penrose, Colonel
2nd Brigade
Emory Upton, Colonel
3rd Brigade
David Allen Russell, Brigadier General
Henry L. Eustis, Brigadier General
4th Brigade
Nelson Cross, Colonel
2nd Division
Thomas H. Neill, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
Frank Wheaton, Brigadier General
2nd Brigade
Lewis A. Grant, Colonel
3rd Brigade
Daniel D. Bidwell, Colonel
4th Brigade
Henry L. Eustis, Brigadier General
Oliver Edwards, Colonel
3rd Division
James B. Ricketts, Brigadier General
1st Brigade
William H. Morris, Brigadier General
John W. Schall, Colonel
William S. Truex, Colonel[31]
2nd Brigade
Benjamin F. Smith, Colonel
Artillery Brigade
Charles H. Tompkins, Colonel
(AoP) Cavalry Corps

Cavalry Corps absent on expedition toward Richmond from May 9, 1864 - Order of battle not included here

Confederate Troops

Casualties

Notes

  1. Specifically listed 800 casualties this day (see Casualties section), but no separate skirmishes/actions indexed in Dyer
  2. Referenced on Wikipedia, but not Dyer summary
  3. The IX Corps was under the direct orders of Lieutenant General Grant until May 24, 1864, when it was assigned to the Army of the Potomac. (see: Official Records, Series I, Volume XXXVI, Part 3, page 169)
  4. Assumed command May 12, 1864
  5. Disabled by sickness May 8, 1864
  6. Assumed command May 13, 1864
  7. Commanded the Division May 10–12, 1864; disabled by sickness May 14, 1864
  8. Injured May 11, 1864 (see: Gordon C. Rhea, The Battles for Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern May 7 and 12, 1864, The Order of Battle)
  9. 1st and 2nd Companies Michigan Sharpshooters attached, Wikipedia
  10. Not originally referenced on Dyer summary but referenced on unit homepage
  11. Disabled from command May 11, 1864 (see: Gordon C. Rhea, The Battles for Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern May 7 and 12, 1864, The Order of Battle)
  12. Assumed command May 12, 1864
  13. Left army May 13, 1864
  14. 9th and 10th Companies Ohio Sharpshooters attached, Wikipedia
  15. Not originally referenced on Dyer summary but referenced on unit homepage
  16. In reserve guarding trains
  17. Originally listed on Wikipedia as 30th Connecticut (Colored) Infantry, not listed in Dyer summary
  18. Not engaged; ordered to Washington May 16, 1864
  19. Discontinued as an unattached command and assigned to the First Division May 12, 1864
  20. Joined army May 15, 1864
  21. Relieved for drunkenness on May 10, 1864 (see: Gordon C. Rhea, The Battles for Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern May 7-12, 1864, The Order of Battle)
  22. Assigned May 10, 1864; captured May 12, 1864
  23. Provost duty at Fredericksburg
  24. Relieved for drunkenness on May 12, 1864 (see: Gordon C. Rhea, The Battles for Spotsylvania Court House and the Road to Yellow Tavern May 7-12, 1864, The Order of Battle)
  25. Assigned as the 3rd and 4th Brigades of the 3rd Division May 13, Mott taking command of the former and Brewster of the latter brigade (see: Official Records, Series I, Volume XXXVI, Part 2, pages 709 and 711)
  26. Robinson was wounded on May 8, 1864. On May 9, 1864 the Division was temporarily disbanded:
      • the 1st Brigade being attached to the 4th Division
      • the 2nd Brigade to the 3rd Division
      • the 3rd Brigade served as an independent command under direct orders of the corps commander
      • This arrangement continued until May 30, 1864
  27. Joined May 16, 1864
  28. Coulter assumed command of the division and Bates of the brigade May 8, 1864. The former returned to the brigade May 9, 1864
  29. Left army May 15, 1864 - Originally listed in Dyer summary as 9th Pennsylvania (Reserve) Infantry, likely not correct
  30. Joined May 14, 1864
  31. Assumed command May 14, 1864
  32. Originally referenced in Dyer as 4th United States Artillery / Battery M, likely incorrect
  33. Chief of Artillery to the whole Army
  34. 1st Brigade Horse Artillery detached with Cavalry Corps; 2nd Brigade Horse Artillery attached to the Artillery Reserve (see: Hunt's report)
  35. Disbanded and distributed among the infantry corps May 16, 1864
  36. Transferred to 5th Corps on May 13, 1864
  37. Not originally listed on Dyer summary
  38. Not originally listed on Dyer summary
  39. Not originally listed on Dyer summary

Sources