1.
United States Army
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The United States Armed Forces are the federal armed forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, from the time of its inception, the military played a decisive role in the history of the United States. A sense of unity and identity was forged as a result of victory in the First Barbary War. Even so, the Founders were suspicious of a permanent military force and it played an important role in the American Civil War, where leading generals on both sides were picked from members of the United States military. Not until the outbreak of World War II did a standing army become officially established. The National Security Act of 1947, adopted following World War II and during the Cold Wars onset, the U. S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. It draws its personnel from a pool of paid volunteers. As of 2016, the United States spends about $580.3 billion annually to fund its military forces, put together, the United States constitutes roughly 40 percent of the worlds military expenditures. For the period 2010–14, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute found that the United States was the worlds largest exporter of major arms, the United States was also the worlds eighth largest importer of major weapons for the same period. The history of the U. S. military dates to 1775 and these forces demobilized in 1784 after the Treaty of Paris ended the War for Independence. All three services trace their origins to the founding of the Continental Army, the Continental Navy, the United States President is the U. S. militarys commander-in-chief. Rising tensions at various times with Britain and France and the ensuing Quasi-War and War of 1812 quickened the development of the U. S. Navy, the reserve branches formed a military strategic reserve during the Cold War, to be called into service in case of war. Time magazines Mark Thompson has suggested that with the War on Terror, Command over the armed forces is established in the United States Constitution. The sole power of command is vested in the President by Article II as Commander-in-Chief, the Constitution also allows for the creation of executive Departments headed principal officers whose opinion the President can require. This allowance in the Constitution formed the basis for creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 by the National Security Act, the Defense Department is headed by the Secretary of Defense, who is a civilian and member of the Cabinet. The Defense Secretary is second in the chain of command, just below the President. Together, the President and the Secretary of Defense comprise the National Command Authority, to coordinate military strategy with political affairs, the President has a National Security Council headed by the National Security Advisor. The collective body has only power to the President
2.
V Corps (United States)
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V Corps was a regular corps of the United States Army during World War I, World War II, Cold War, Kosovo, and War on Terrorism. It was officially inactivated on September 15,2013 at Lucius D. Clay Kaserne, V Corps was organized July 7–12,1918 in the Regular Army in France, as part of the American Expeditionary Forces. By the end of World War I, the Corps had fought in three named campaigns, the triangles thus outlined in white are flag blue. The pentagon represents the number of the Corps, while blue, after Nazi Germany declared war on the United States on December 11,1941, the corps deployed the first American soldiers to the European Theater of Operations, United States Army. That initial deployment was known as the U. S. Army Northern Ireland Force or MAGNET, on June 6,1944, V Corps assaulted Omaha Beach, Normandy. Corps soldiers then broke out from the beachhead, liberated Paris and Sedan, Ardennes, and raced to the German border. After liberating Luxembourg, V Corps fought in the Battle of the Bulge, captured Leipzig, made first contact with the Red Army at Torgau, and, south in Czechoslovakia, liberated Plzeň by May 1945. On December 1,1950 due to concern of a Soviet threat to Western Europe during the Korean War, Seventh Army absorbed the two main Occupation Duty forces then in Germany, namely the 1st Infantry Division and the United States Constabulary. In December,1950 President Truman’s declared National Emergency due to the Korean War included a 4 division augmentation of U. S, Forces in Europe, including the NG 28th and 43rd infantry divisions. In May 1951 the 4th Infantry Division arrived in United States Army Europe in Germany, in July the 2d Armored Division arrived in Germany, and on August 25,1951 the 4th Infantry Division and 2d Armored Division were assigned as V Corps divisions. In November 1951 VII Corps was assigned to the Seventh Army, Zone of Occupation division, the 1st Infantry Division, plus the newly arrived 28th Infantry Division and 43d Infantry Division, were assigned as its divisions. The Constabulary was inactivated upon the arrival of the four U. S. division augmentation forces to Germany, V Corps was assigned to the northern area of the U. S. Occupation Zone of Germany, and the VII Corps was assigned to the area of the U. S. Zone. Note, Several years later the newly forming West German Army displaced the GDP positions of some of the U. S. units stationed in the far southern area of West Germany. As a consequence, the U. S. units GDP positions were moved further north and this shifting action likely coincided with the same time frame as the Summer and Fall conversion of all Seventh Army units to the ROAD format. As of June 1954, the main unit assignments to V Corps were 1st Infantry Division, 4th Infantry Division, 2d Armored Division, and 19th Armor Group. The first U. S. armored division to be stationed east of the Rhine River in the Cold War, namely V Corps 3d Armored Division, arrived in May/June 1956. The 19th Armor Group was replaced by the 4th Armor Group on 1 July 1955, in 1958 the 1st Infantry Division gyroscoped to CONUS, and was replaced in V Corps by the 3rd Infantry Division from CONUS
3.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
4.
Army of the Potomac
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The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in April. The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was only the size of a corps. Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell, and it was the army fought the wars first major battle. The arrival in Washington, D. C. of Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan dramatically changed the makeup of that army, on July 26,1861, the Department of the Shenandoah, commanded by Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. The men under Bankss command became a division in the Army of the Potomac. The army started with four corps, but these were divided during the Peninsula Campaign to produce two more, after the Second Battle of Bull Run, the Army of the Potomac absorbed the units that had served under Maj. Gen. John Pope. It is a popular, but mistaken, belief that John Pope commanded the Army of the Potomac in the summer of 1862 after McClellans unsuccessful Peninsula Campaign, on the contrary, Popes army consisted of different units, and was named the Army of Virginia. The Army of the Potomac underwent many changes during its existence. The army was divided by Ambrose Burnside into three divisions of two corps each with a Reserve composed of two more. Thereafter the individual corps, seven of which remained in Virginia, Hooker also created a Cavalry Corps by combining units that previously had served as smaller formations. In late 1863, two corps were sent West, and—in 1864—the remaining five corps were recombined into three, burnsides IX Corps, which accompanied the army at the start of Ulysses S. Grants Overland Campaign, rejoined the army later. For more detail, see the section Corps below, the Army of the Potomac fought in most of the Eastern Theater campaigns, primarily in Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. After the end of the war, it was disbanded on June 28,1865, the Army of the Potomac was also the name given to General P. G. T. Beauregards Confederate army during the early stages of the war. However, the name was changed to the Army of Northern Virginia. In 1869 the Society of the Army of the Potomac was formed as a veterans association and it had its last reunion in 1929. Because of its proximity to the cities of the North, such as Washington. Philadelphia, and New York City, the Army of the Potomac received more media coverage than the other Union field armies
5.
Peninsula Campaign
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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. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B, McClellan, was an amphibious turning movement against the Confederate States Army in Northern Virginia, intended to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond. McClellan landed his army at Fort Monroe and moved northwest, up the Virginia Peninsula, Magruders defensive position on the Warwick Line caught McClellan by surprise. His hopes for a quick advance foiled, McClellan ordered his army to prepare for a siege of Yorktown, just before the siege preparations were completed, the Confederates, now under the direct command of Johnston, began a withdrawal toward Richmond. The first heavy fighting of the campaign occurred in the Battle of Williamsburg, in which the Union troops managed some tactical victories, an amphibious flanking movement to Elthams Landing was ineffective in cutting off the Confederate retreat. In the Battle of Drewrys Bluff, an attempt by the U. S. Navy to reach Richmond by way of the James River was repulsed. As McClellans army reached the outskirts of Richmond, a battle occurred at Hanover Court House. The battle was inconclusive, with casualties, but it had lasting effects on the campaign. On August 20,1861, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan formed the Army of the Potomac, with himself as its first commander. During the summer and fall, McClellan brought a degree of organization to his new army. It was an achievement, in which he came to personify the Army of the Potomac. He created defenses for Washington that were almost impregnable, consisting of 48 forts and strong points, on November 1,1861, Gen. Winfield Scott retired and McClellan became general in chief of all the Union armies. The president expressed his concern about the vast labor involved in the role of army commander and general in chief. On January 27, Lincoln issued an order that all of his armies to begin offensive operations by February 22. On January 31, he issued an order for the Army of the Potomac to move overland to attack the Confederates at Manassas Junction. Although Lincoln believed his plan was superior, he was relieved that McClellan finally agreed to begin moving, on March 8, doubting McClellans resolve, Lincoln called a council of war at the White House in which McClellans subordinates were asked about their confidence in the Urbanna plan. They expressed their confidence to varying degrees, after the meeting, Lincoln issued another order, naming specific officers as corps commanders to report to McClellan. McClellan retooled his plan so that his troops would disembark at Fort Monroe, Virginia, in the Battle of Hampton Roads, Virginia defeated wooden U. S
6.
Second Battle of Bull Run
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The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30,1862 in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. Withdrawing a few miles to the northwest, Jackson took up strong concealed defensive positions on Stony Ridge, on August 28,1862, Jackson attacked a Union column just east of Gainesville, at Brawners Farm, resulting in a stalemate but successfully getting Popes attention. On that same day, the wing of Lees army commanded by Maj. Gen. James Longstreet broke through light Union resistance in the Battle of Thoroughfare Gap, Pope became convinced that he had trapped Jackson and concentrated the bulk of his army against him. On August 29, Pope launched a series of assaults against Jacksons position along a railroad grade. The attacks were repulsed with casualties on both sides. At noon, Longstreet arrived on the field from Thoroughfare Gap, on August 30, Pope renewed his attacks, seemingly unaware that Longstreet was on the field. The Union left flank was crushed and the army was back to Bull Run. Only an effective Union rear guard action prevented a replay of the First Manassas defeat, Popes retreat to Centreville was nonetheless precipitous. Success in this battle emboldened Lee to initiate the ensuing Maryland Campaign, after the collapse of Maj. Gen. George B. McClellans Peninsula Campaign in the Seven Days Battles of June 1862, Pope had achieved some success in the Western Theater, and Lincoln sought a more aggressive general than McClellan. Popes mission was to two basic objectives, protect Washington and the Shenandoah Valley, and draw Confederate forces away from McClellan by moving in the direction of Gordonsville. This allowed him to relocate Jackson to Gordonsville to block Pope, Lee had larger plans in mind. Since the Union Army was split between McClellan and Pope and they were separated, Lee saw an opportunity to destroy Pope before returning his attention to McClellan. He committed Maj. Gen. A. P. Hill to join Jackson with 12,000 men, on August 3, General-in-Chief Henry W. Halleck directed McClellan to begin his final withdrawal from the Peninsula and to return to Northern Virginia to support Pope. McClellan protested and did not begin his redeployment until August 14, on August 9, Nathaniel Bankss corps attacked Jackson at Cedar Mountain, gaining an early advantage, but a Confederate counterattack led by A. P. Hill drove Banks back across Cedar Creek. Jacksons advance was stopped, however, by the Union division of Brig. Gen. James B, by now Jackson had learned that Popes corps were all together, foiling his plan of defeating each in separate actions. He remained in position until August 12, then withdrew to Gordonsville, on August 13, Lee sent Longstreet to reinforce Jackson. From August 22 to 25, the two fought a series of minor actions along the Rappahannock River
7.
Battle of Antietam
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After pursuing the Confederate general Robert E. Lee into Maryland, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan of the Union Army launched attacks against Lees army, in defensive positions behind Antietam Creek. At dawn on September 17, Maj. Gen. Joseph Hookers corps mounted an assault on Lees left flank. Attacks and counterattacks swept across Millers Cornfield, and fighting swirled around the Dunker Church, Union assaults against the Sunken Road eventually pierced the Confederate center, but the Federal advantage was not followed up. In the afternoon, Union Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnsides corps entered the action, capturing a bridge over Antietam Creek. At a crucial moment, Confederate Maj. Gen. A. P. Hills division arrived from Harpers Ferry and launched a counterattack, driving back Burnside. Although outnumbered two-to-one, Lee committed his entire force, while McClellan sent in less than three-quarters of his army, during the night, both armies consolidated their lines. In spite of crippling casualties, Lee continued to skirmish with McClellan throughout September 18, despite having superiority of numbers, McClellans attacks failed to achieve force concentration, which allowed Lee to counter by shifting forces and moving interior lines to meet each challenge. Therefore, despite ample reserve forces that could have been deployed to exploit localized successes, McClellan had halted Lees invasion of Maryland, but Lee was able to withdraw his army back to Virginia without interference from the cautious McClellan. McClellans refusal to pursue Lees army led to his removal from command by President Abraham Lincoln in November, although the battle was tactically inconclusive, the Confederate troops had withdrawn first from the battlefield, making it, in military terms, a Union victory. Robert E. Lees Army of Northern Virginia—about 55,000 men—entered the state of Maryland on September 3,1862, emboldened by success, the Confederate leadership intended to take the war into enemy territory. Lees invasion of Maryland was intended to run simultaneously with an invasion of Kentucky by the armies of Braxton Bragg and it was also necessary for logistical reasons, as northern Virginias farms had been stripped bare of food. They sang the tune Maryland, My Maryland, as they marched, but by the fall of 1862 pro-Union sentiment was winning out, especially in the western parts of the state. Civilians generally hid inside their houses as Lees army passed through their towns, or watched in cold silence, while the Army of the Potomac was cheered and encouraged. While McClellans 87, 000-man Army of the Potomac was moving to intercept Lee, the order indicated that Lee had divided his army and dispersed portions geographically, thus making each subject to isolation and defeat if McClellan could move quickly enough. McClellan waited about 18 hours before deciding to take advantage of this intelligence and reposition his forces, McClellans Army of the Potomac, bolstered by units absorbed from John Popes Army of Virginia, included six infantry corps. The I Corps, under Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, consisted of the divisions of, the II Corps, under Maj. Gen. Edwin V. Sumner, consisted of the divisions of, Maj. Gen. Israel B. The V Corps, under Maj. Gen. Fitz John Porter, consisted of the divisions of, the VI Corps, under Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin, consisted of the divisions of, Maj. Gen. Henry W. Slocum, Maj. Gen. William F. Baldy Smith
8.
Battle of Fredericksburg
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A visitor to the battlefield described the battle to U. S. President Abraham Lincoln as a butchery. Burnsides plan was to cross the Rappahannock River at Fredericksburg in mid-November, bureaucratic delays prevented Burnside from receiving the necessary pontoon bridges in time and Lee moved his army to block the crossings. When the Union army was able to build its bridges and cross under fire. Union troops prepared to assault Confederate defensive positions south of the city, Burnside ordered the grand divisions of Maj. Gens. Sumner and Joseph Hooker to make frontal assaults against Lt. Gen. James Longstreets position on Maryes Heights. On December 15, Burnside withdrew his army, ending another failed Union campaign in the Eastern Theater, in November 1862, Lincoln needed to demonstrate the success of the Union war effort before the Northern public lost confidence in his administration. Confederate armies had been on the earlier in the fall, invading Kentucky and Maryland, and although each had been turned back. Lincoln urged Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant to advance against the Confederate stronghold of Vicksburg, Mississippi. McClellan had stopped Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Antietam in Maryland, mcClellans replacement was Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside, the commander of the IX Corps. Burnside had established a reputation as an independent commander, with successful operations earlier that year in coastal North Carolina and, However, he felt himself unqualified for army-level command and objected when offered the position. Burnside assumed command on November 7, in response to prodding from Lincoln and general-in-chief Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck, Burnside planned a late fall offensive, he communicated his plan to Halleck on November 9. The plan relied on movement and deception. He would concentrate his army in a visible fashion near Warrenton, feigning a movement on Culpeper Court House, Orange Court House and he also believed that the Orange and Alexandria Railroad would be an inadequate supply line. Lincoln reluctantly approved the plan on November 14 but cautioned his general to move with great speed, the Union Army began marching on November 15, and the first elements arrived in Falmouth on November 17. Burnside first requisitioned the pontoon bridging on November 7 when he detailed his plan to Halleck, the plan was sent to the attention of Brig. Gen. George Washington Cullum, the chief of staff in Washington. Plans called for both riverine and overland movement of the trains to Falmouth. On November 14, the 50th New York Engineers reported the pontoons were ready to move, unknown to Burnside, most of the bridging was still on the upper Potomac. Communications between Burnsides staff engineer Cyrus B, comstock and the Engineer Brigade commander Daniel P. Woodbury indicate that Burnside had assumed the bridging was en route to Washington based on orders given on November 6
9.
Battle of Gettysburg
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The Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1–3,1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. The battle involved the largest number of casualties of the war and is often described as the wars turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Meades Army of the Potomac defeated attacks by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lees Army of Northern Virginia, ending Lees attempt to invade the North. After his success at Chancellorsville in Virginia in May 1863, Lee led his army through the Shenandoah Valley to begin his second invasion of the North—the Gettysburg Campaign. Prodded by President Abraham Lincoln, Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker moved his army in pursuit, but was relieved of command just three days before the battle and replaced by Meade. Elements of the two armies collided at Gettysburg on July 1,1863, as Lee urgently concentrated his forces there, his objective being to engage the Union army. Low ridges to the northwest of town were defended initially by a Union cavalry division under Brig. Gen. John Buford, on the second day of battle, most of both armies had assembled. The Union line was out in a defensive formation resembling a fishhook. In the late afternoon of July 2, Lee launched an assault on the Union left flank, and fierce fighting raged at Little Round Top, the Wheatfield, Devils Den. On the Union right, Confederate demonstrations escalated into full-scale assaults on Culps Hill, all across the battlefield, despite significant losses, the Union defenders held their lines. The charge was repulsed by Union rifle and artillery fire, at great loss to the Confederate army, Lee led his army on a torturous retreat back to Virginia. Between 46,000 and 51,000 soldiers from both armies were casualties in the battle, the most costly in US history. Shortly after the Army of Northern Virginia won a victory over the Army of the Potomac at the Battle of Chancellorsville. Such a move would upset U. S. plans for the campaigning season. The invasion would allow the Confederates to live off the bounty of the rich Northern farms while giving war-ravaged Virginia a much-needed rest, in addition, Lees 72, 000-man army could threaten Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, and possibly strengthen the growing peace movement in the North. Thus, on June 3, Lees army began to shift northward from Fredericksburg, the Cavalry Division remained under the command of Maj. Gen. J. E. B. The Union Army of the Potomac, under Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, consisted of seven corps, a cavalry corps. The first major action of the campaign took place on June 9 between cavalry forces at Brandy Station, near Culpeper, Virginia
10.
Battle of Bristoe Station
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The Union II Corps under Warren was able to surprise and repel the Confederate attack by Hill on the Union rearguard, resulting in a Union victory. The Union army was led by Maj. Gen. George G. Meade, Lee had stolen a march, passing around Cedar Mountain, the site of a battle in 1862. This forced Meade to retreat toward Centreville, by withdrawing, Meade prevented Lee from falling on an exposed flank of the Army of the Potomac. Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren, commanding II Corps in Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancocks absence, was following V Corps on this retreat, on October 13, II Corps fought an encounter with Maj. Gen. J. E. B. Stuarts cavalry near Auburn, Virginia, the First Battle of Auburn, Warren had to push Stuart aside and, at the same time, retreat before the advance of the Confederate corps of Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell. On October 14, as Warren moved toward Bristoe Station, Stuarts cavalry harassed the rear guard at the Second Battle of Auburn, Lt. Gen. A. P. Hill, leading the Confederate Third Corps, was advancing on Ewells left. He reached Bristoe Station on October 14, Hill tried to harass the rearguard of V Corps just across Broad Run, but he missed the presence of II Corps just coming up from Auburn. Seeing Heths advance, Warren rapidly deployed his forces behind an embankment of the Orange, the result was a powerful ambush as Hills corps moved to attack the Union rear guard across Broad Run. Maj. Gen. Henry Heths division moved to attack V Corps, Union artillery, including the battery of Capt. R. Bruce Ricketts, opened fire on the Confederates, and infantry fire soon was added. Despite this, Heths men briefly secured a foothold in the lines of Col. James E. Mallon in the division under Brig. Gen. Alexander S. Webb. The Confederates were driven back, and five guns of a Confederate battery were captured in a Federal counterattack, Col. Mallon was killed in the fighting. The Confederate division of Maj. Gen. Richard H. Anderson attacked the lines of Brig. Gen. Alexander Hayss division and was also repelled, Brig. Gen. Carnot Posey was mortally wounded in that attack. Two of Heths brigade commanders, William Whedbee Kirkland and John Rogers Cooke, were badly wounded, Union casualties were 540, Confederate about 1,380. Warren, seeing Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewells Second Corps coming up on his left, eventually had to withdraw. Lee is said to have cut off Hills excuses for this defeat by saying, Well, well, general, bury these poor men, the Union forces won the battle, but they had to retreat to Centreville, Virginia, before standing their ground. When they pulled back, starting on October 18, the Confederates destroyed much of the Orange, Meade had to rebuild the railroad when he reoccupied the area around Bristoe Station. Warren won such reputation as a commander that he was given V Corps as a regular assignment after Hancock returned to the Army of the Potomac in 1864. National Park Service battle description CWSAC Report Update Freeman, Douglas S. Lees Lieutenants, jordan, David M. Happiness Is Not My Companion, The Life of General G. K. Warren
