Battle of Glendale

Battle of Glendale. Inaction on the Charles City Road.

"The loss of the brigade in this engagement was serious considering that it was confined exclusively to the artillery" , - Gen. William Mahone, CSA

, Confederate Gen. Benjamin Huger's division was to spearhead the Confederate assault by advancing down the road in front of you toward the Glendale Crossroads, one half mile to your right. Some Federals called the intersection Charles City Crossroads., As Huger advanced, Union Gen. Henry Slocum's division cut down trees to block the Confederate advance. It worked. Instead of advancing troops to stop the Federals, Huger's men tried to clear the road while Huger brought up his guns and settled into an artillery duel. Thus, Lee's lead division was out of the fight, and 9,000 men were lost to the planned assault., Meanwhile, Confederate Gens. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson and D.H. Hill failed to cross White Oak Swamp. Aside from exchanging artillery fire, their men remained idle. A few miles to the south on the River Road, Gen. Theophilus Holmes bogged down, and Lee ordered his reserve division under Gen. John Magruder to march to his aid. Nothing was gained, except for the loss of Magruder's men to support an attack on the Glendale Crossroads. Lee was not aware at the time, but his planned 72,000-man attack was reduced to just 19,000 men under Gens. James Longstreet and A.P. Hill. Furthermore, Federal troops facing the idle Huger and Jackson were free to reinforce those facing A.P. Hill and Longstreet., (captions) , Benjamin Huger was a native of South Carolina and a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point. Due to his lackluster performance during the campaign, he was removed from command less than two weeks after Glendale. Courtesy Library of Congress, Supported by the 16th New York Infantry, Gen. Henry Slocum's artillery helped bring Huger's advance to a halt. Courtesy Library of Congress