BGuthrie Photos: VA -- Front Royal

VA -- Front Royal:

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Wikipedia Description: Battle of Front Royal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Battle of Front Royal, also known as Guard Hill or Cedarville, was fought May 23, 1862, in Warren County, Virginia as part of Confederate Army General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's Campaign through the Shenandoah Valley during the American Civil War. Front Royal demonstrated Jackson's use of Valley topography and mobility to unite his own forces while dividing those of his enemies. At a minimal cost, he forced the withdrawal of a large Union army by striking at its flank and threatening its rear.

Background:

On May 21, 1862, the Union army under Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks, numbering about 9,000 men, was concentrated in the vicinity of Strasburg, Virginia, with two companies of infantry at Buckton Depot. Col. John R. Kenly commanded 1,063 men and two guns at Front Royal. Confederate cavalry under Col. Turner Ashby confronted Banks near Strasburg, but then withdrew to join the main army, which crossed Massanutten Mountain via New Market Gap to reach Luray, Virginia.

On May 22, Jackson's Army of the Valley (about 16,500 men) advanced along the muddy Luray Road to within ten miles of Front Royal. Jackson's headquarters were at Cedar Point. Colonel Thomas Munford's cavalry regiment was sent east to close off Manassas Gap and cut communication between Front Royal and Washington, D.C.

Battle:

On the morning of May 23, the vanguard of Jackson's army reached Spangler's crossroads (present day Limeton, Virginia). Here the Confederate cavalry under colonels Ashby and Thomas L. Flournoy diverged west to cross the South Fork of the Shenandoah River at McCoy's Ford. The infantry continued to Asbury Chapel and right onto a cross road to reach Gooney Manor Road. Following this road, they approached Front Royal from the south, bypassing Federal pickets stationed near the river on the Luray Road one mile south of the courthouse. After minor skirmishing the Federals withdrew.

Jackson's leading brigade, under the leadership of Richard Taylor, deployed on Prospect Hill and along the ridge to the east. The 1st Maryland and Major Roberdeau Wheat's Louisiana "Tigers" battalion were thrown out in advance, entering the town and clearing it of Union skirmishers. Colonel Kenly, in command of Union forces, withdrew his force to Camp (Richards') Hill, supported by a section of artillery. The Union line extended in an arc from the South Fork to Happy Creek, defending the South Fork bridge. Kenly's artillery opened fire and slowed the Confederate advance. Kenly's headquarters were in the Vanoort House.

The Confederate infantry advanced through town, deploying into line of battle under an accurate artillery fire. A Confederate flanking column moved to the east, crossing Happy Creek in an attempt to force Union withdrawal without a frontal assault. After a long delay because of the muddy roads, a battery of rifled artillery was deployed on or near Prospect Hill to counter the Union guns on Camp Hill.

In the meantime, after crossing the South Fork at McCoy's Ford, Ashby's and Lt. Col. Flournoy's (6th Virginia) cavalry rode via Bell's Mill and Waterlick Station to reach the Union outpost at Buckton Depot. Ashby made a mounted assault, which cost him several of his best officers before the Union defenders surrendered. Ashby cut the telegraph lines, severing communication between the main Union army at Strasburg and the detached force at Front Royal. He then divided the cavalry, sending Flournoy's regiment east toward Riverton to threaten Kenly's rear. Ashby remained at Buckton Depot astride the railroad to prevent reinforcements from being sent to Front Royal.

On discovering that Confederate cavalry was approaching from the west, Col. Kenly abandoned his position on Camp Hill, retreated across the South and North Fork bridges, and attempted to burn them. He positioned part of his command at Guard Hill, while the Confederates ran forward to douse the flames, saving the bridges. While Confederate infantry repaired the bridges for a crossing, Flournoy's cavalry arrived at Riverton and forded the river, pressing Kenly's forces closely. As soon as the Confederate infantry crossed, the Union position could be flanked by a column moving along the river. Kenly chose to continue his withdrawal, his outmatched cavalry fighting a rear guard action against Flournoy's 6th Virginia Cavalry.

Kenly withdrew along the Winchester turnpike beyond Cedarville, Virginia, with Flournoy's cavalry in close pursuit. Jackson rode ahead with the cavalry, as Confederate infantry began to cross the rivers. At the Thomas McKay House, one mile north of Cedarville, Kenly turned to make a stand, deploying on the heights on both sides of the pike. Flournoy's cavalry swept around the Union flanks, causing panic. Kenly fell wounded, and the Union defense collapsed. More than 700 Union soldiers threw down their weapons and surrendered.

Aftermath:

Jackson's decisive victory over the small Union force at Front Royal forced the main Union Army at Strasburg under Banks into abrupt retreat. Jackson deceived Banks into believing that the Confederate army was in the main Valley near Harrisonburg; instead he had marched swiftly north to New Market and crossed Massanutten via New Market Gap to Luray. The advance to Front Royal placed Jackson in position to move directly on Winchester, Virginia, in the rear of the Union army. On May 24, Banks retreated down the Valley Pike to Winchester, harassed by Confederate cavalry and artillery at Middletown and Newtown (Stephens City), setting the stage for the Battle of First Winchester the following day.

The confusion engendered by Jackson's appearance at Front Royal and the hasty Union retreat from Strasburg to Winchester contributed materially to the defeat of Banks's army at First Winchester on May 25. Jackson used his cavalry to good advantage at Front Royal, to sever Union communications east and west, and to strike the final blow at Cedarville.
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Directly Related Pages: Other pages with content (VA -- Front Royal) directly related to this one: [Display ALL photos on one page]:
- 2006_VA_Front_Royal: VA -- Front Royal (47 photos from 2006)
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- 2010_VA_FR_Prospect: VA -- Front Royal -- Prospect Hill Cemetery (12 photos from 2010)
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Same Subject: Click on this link to see coverage of items having the same subject: [Cemeteries] [Civil War]
1997 photos: Since 1984, I've lived in Silver Spring, Maryland. From 1981 to 2002, photos were taken using a Pentax ME Super camera. From 1989 to 2002, I was doing all pictures as prints (instead of slides which I had grown up on). In 1997, at the age of 40, my photo obsession began and I started taking thousands of photos per year. In September, 2002, I switched to digital cameras and the number of photos exploded. Trips this year: North Carolina (Dad), Florida (Mom), using a time share in Arkansas to visit Civil War sites in Missouri, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee. The Civil War became my excuse to see places I'd never been to in my life and it was a great motivator for 20 years or so. Image quality for my pictures is variable because these are scans of slides and/or prints at varying quality/resolutions. The Great Pandemic Digitizing Project: When I was first setting up my website in August, 2000, I had decided to digitize some of my favorite pre-digital slides and prints. The scans were fairly low resolution but they were good enough. With COVID forcing me to stay indoors, I decided to rescan ALL of my pre-digital images from multiple sources (slides, prints, and negatives) at a much higher resolution and quality setting. (I digitized Dad's slides at the same time). Instead of replacing my original scans, I added the new scans to existing pages, figuring I'd select the best ones later. As a result, multiple versions of images appear on most of these early pages. At some point, I'll take the time to do a final review and get rid of the duplicates.
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