Haymarket During the War

Haymarket During the War. “Pass Around Their Army Without Hindrance”. , On June 25, 1863, Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart and about 5,000 of his cavalrymen approached Haymarket. They acted on orders from commanding Gen. Robert E. Lee, who was on the western side of the Bull Run Mountains marching north to invade Maryland and Pennsylvania. He directed Stuart to “pass around their [U.S.] army without hindrance” to screen the Army of Northern Virginia from observation as it crossed the Potomac River. Stuart took the intended route north through Haymarket on the advice of the noted partisan ranger Maj. John S. Mosby. , Here, Stuart and U.S. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock’s II Corps converged on the Old Carolina Road simultaneously. Hancock, too, was marching north toward Leesburg. Stuart attacked the Federal wagon train and infantry, shelling them with six cannons. This bombardment “scattered men, wagons, and horses in wild confusion,” causing several Union casualties. The Federals regrouped, formed a battle line, and marched toward Stuart, forcing him to make a decision either to fight the larger force or to retreat. Stuart decided to withdraw southwest toward Buckland Mills and sent a courier to Lee detailing his change of plans. The courier never reached Lee with this vital news. Stuart began moving northward on a new route that took him 60 miles away from his intended route and out of communication with Lee for eight critical days. The effect of the loss of contact between Lee and Stuart, his most trusted reconnaissance officer, on the outcome of the Battle of Gettysburg has been debated ever since.