Antietam Creek / Sharpsburg, Maryland
September 16-18, 1862
In September 1862, while the Union Army was still recovering from the crushing defeat at Second Manassas, Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia invaded Maryland with over 50,000 men. Lee's objective was Harrisburg, PA in the hope of severing Washington's main link to the west by cutting the B&O Railroad, perhaps convincing Britain to recognize the Confederacy, and encouraging Peace Democrats in the upcoming Congressional elections. He sent part of his army under Gen. Longstreet toward Hagerstown, MD, and another led by Stonewall Jackson to capture Harpers Ferry, leaving Stuart and D. H. Hill in front of McClellan's slow moving army of 84,000 men. His fragmented forces were to unite at Harrisburg. One of Lee's staff lost a copy of Special Order 191 outlining the plan, and a Union soldier found it. This bit of luck enabled McClellan to confront Lee's advance before the separate units of his army could unite. McClellan met Lee’s army at Sharpsburg, Maryland, a small town just across the Potomac River about forty miles northwest of Washington. At dawn on September 17, Joseph Hooker’s 1st Corps of Federals mounted a powerful assault on Lee’s left flank that began the single bloodiest day in American military history [see map]. Attacks and counterattacks swept across Miller’s 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. Late in the day, Burnside’s corps finally got into action, crossing the stone bridge over Antietam Creek and rolling up the Confederate right. At a crucial moment, A. P. Hill’s division arrived from Harpers Ferry and counterattacked, driving back Burnside and saving the day. Although outnumbered two-to-one, Lee committed his entire force, while McClellan sent in less than three-quarters of his 70,000-man army, enabling Lee to fight the Federals to a standstill. During the night, both armies consolidated their lines. In spite of crippling casualties, Lee continued to skirmish with McClellan throughout the second day, while removing his wounded south of the river. After dark, Lee ordered the battered Army of Northern Virginia to withdraw across the Potomac into the Shenandoah Valley. Soon afterwards, McClellan was fired by President Lincoln for failing to pursue Lee's vulnerable army into Virginia. The battle was essentially a draw--each side lost approximately 12,000 men--but Lee was turned back and the loss of a third of his army was devastating. Moreover, the Union victory dashed Confederate hopes for British recognition and gave Lincoln the opportunity he needed to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.
© 2004 David C. Hanson, Virginia Western Community College
