Existing comment:
1862: December 13:
Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia:
In early November, Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside replaced McClellan as commander of the Union Army of the Potomac. Burnside hoped for a swift advance on Richmond but delays in crossing the Rappahannock River allowed Lee to concentrate his Army of Northern Virginia at Fredericksburg. When Burnside finally attacked, he was bloodily repulsed, a costly defeat that intensified antiwar feelings in the North. |