Marker Logo
THE HISTORICAL
MARKER DATABASE
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Near Richmond in Henrico County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Seven Days' Battles Begin

— Richmond National Battlefield Park —

 
 
Seven Days' Battles Begin Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, August 20, 2010
1. Seven Days' Battles Begin Marker
Inscription. By the final week of June 1862, the Union army lay sprawled east of Richmond, on both sides of the flooded Chickahominy River. General George B. McClellan planned to move that army within artillery range of Richmond; Confederate leader Robert E. Lee was determined to drive McClellan away from the city, even if that meant fighting a major battle.

A fractured nation watched these events with intense interest. Would the war end in the summer of 1862? Lee’s bold gamble on June 26 temporarily split his available force into three separate commands. From here he launched his first attack as commander of the Confederate army. Six days later McClellan’s force had been driven 25 miles across country, to the banks of the James River. With his retreat, any hopes for an early end to the war vanished.

“If there is one man in either army, Federal or Confederate, who is, head & shoulders, far above every other one in either army in audacity that man is Gen. Lee….Lee is audacity personified. His name is audacity….”
Joseph Ives, officer on the staff of President Jefferson Davis, before the Seven Days’ Campaign opened

(caption) Generals Longstreet, Lee and D.H. Hill spent much of June 26 on these bluffs watching and waiting for the advance of Generals A.P. Hill and Stonewall Jackson.

 
Erected
Paid Advertisement
Click or scan to see
this page online
2010 by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is June 26, 1862.
 
Location. 37° 35.107′ N, 77° 23.348′ W. Marker is near Richmond, Virginia, in Henrico County. It can be reached from Mechanicsville Turnpike (U.S. 360) near Springdale Road, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 4300 Mechanicsville Turnpike, Richmond VA 23223, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Piedmont and in Central Virginia. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Defending Richmond (within shouting distance of this marker); Chickahominy Bluff (within shouting distance of this marker); Outer Fortifications (approx. 0.2 miles away); Hanover County / Henrico County (approx. 0.4 miles away); The Chickahominy River & Seven Days' Battles (approx. 0.4 miles away); Seven Days Battles (approx. 1.4 miles away); John Marshall's Farm (approx. 1.6 miles away); a different marker also named Seven Days’ Battles (approx. 1.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Richmond.
 
Other markers no longer nearby. The Seven Days Begin (was about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line but has been replaced with another marker now near it); a different marker also named Chickahominy Bluff (was
Chickahominy Bluff image. Click for full size.
August 20, 2010
2. Chickahominy Bluff
Generals Longstreet, Lee and D.H. Hill spent much of June 26 on these bluffs watching and waiting for the advance of Generals A.P. Hill and Stonewall Jackson.
about 600 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Richmond Defences (was approx. half a mile away but has been confirmed missing).
 
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. Old Marker At This Location titled "The Seven Days Begin".
 
Also see . . .  Richmond National Battlefield Park. (Submitted on August 21, 2010.)
 
Lee's battle plan image. Click for full size.
August 20, 2010
3. Lee's battle plan
Chickahominy Bluff Overlook image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, August 20, 2010
4. Chickahominy Bluff Overlook
Seven Days' Battles Begin Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Pete Payette, March 24, 2018
5. Seven Days' Battles Begin Marker
The View Today image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Craig Swain, February 27, 2011
6. The View Today
Trees, which also mask the nearby housing subdivisions and power lines, block the wartime view.
Chickahominy Bluff Earthworks image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, August 20, 2010
7. Chickahominy Bluff Earthworks
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on November 4, 2024. It was originally submitted on August 21, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,752 times since then and 26 times this year. Last updated on November 1, 2024, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 21, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.   5. submitted on March 25, 2018, by Pete Payette of Orange, Virginia.   6. submitted on February 28, 2011, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia.   7. submitted on August 21, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.
m=259877

CeraNet Cloud Computing sponsors the Historical Marker Database.
This website earns income from purchases you make after using our links to Amazon.com. We appreciate your support.
Paid Advertisement
Jun. 27, 2026