Battle of Frederick

Battle of Frederick. Buying Vital Time. , (preface) In June 1864, Confederate Gen. Robert E Lee sent Gen. Jubal A. Early's corps from the Richmond battlefields to the Shenandoah Valley to counter Union Gen. David Hunter's army. After driving Hunter into West Virginia, Early invaded Maryland to attack Washington. D.C., draw Union troops from Richmond, and release Confederate prisoners held at Point Lookout. On July 9, Early ordered Gen. Bradley T. Johnson's cavalry brigade eastward to free the prisoners. The next day, Johnson sent Maj. Harry Gilmor's regiment to raid the Baltimore area. Gen. Lew Wallace delayed Early at the Battle of Monocacy on July 9. Federal reinforcements soon strengthened the capital's defenses. Early attacked there near Fort Stevens on July 11, 12 and then withdrew to the Shenandoah Valley with the Federals in pursuit. He stopped them at Cool Spring on July 17, 18. Despite failing to take Washington or free prisoners, Early succeeded in diverting Federal resources., On July 7, 1864, contending soldiers, with Marylanders on both sides, battled across the farm fields that once covered this area. Union Gen. Lew Wallace's makeshift force consisted of the 3rd Maryland Potomac Home Brigade, the 8th Illinois Cavalry, and the 159th Ohio Mounted Infantry, supported by the Baltimore Light Artillery led by Baltimore native Lt. Peter Leary, Jr. They marched from Monocacy Junction, about three miles south, to block Confederate cavalry from occupying Frederick., Gen. Bradley T. Johnson led the 1st and 2nd Maryland Cavalry and four Virginia cavalry regiments in advance of Gen. Jubal A. Early's main army. The fight began at about 4 P.M. and raged until darkness fell about four hours later. Wallace was pleased with his men's performance. "Think I have had the best little battle of the war," he reported. "Our men did not retreat, but held their own. The enemy were repulsed three times." The Federals held their position until the next night and then withdrew to Monocacy Junction when the rest of Early's army approached. Reinforcements and ammunition were sent to Wallace from Baltimore even as the fight west of Frederick was underway., On July 9, at the Battle of Monocacy, Wallace's force held for a day against Early's much larger army. The time Wallace bought on July 7 and 9 allowed Federal authorities in Washington to reinforce the city's defenses and turn Early away., (captions) Lt. Peter Leary, Jr. From Frederick W. Wild, Memoirs and History of Capt. E.W. Alexander's Baltimore Battery (1912) , Corp. Charles H. Palmer, 8th Illinois Cavalry Courtesy Emily S. Palmer , Capt. Ignatius W. Dorsey, 1st Maryland Cavalry (CS) Courtesy U.S. Army Military History Institute