The Wilderness to Cold Harbor, Grant's Overland Campaign: Animated Battle Map
2024 ж. 28 Сәу.
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Experience Union General Ulysses S. Grant’s campaign to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia during the summer of 1864.
Our collection of animated maps bring battles of the American Civil War to life, complete with troop movement animations, narratives, reenactment footage and more.
0:00 Grant comes East to face Lee
2:10 The Wilderness
5:09 Grant vs Lee: Learning an opponent
6:28 The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House begins
8:02 The Mule Shoe
8:58 Upton's Innovative Attack
10:00 Hancock attacks The Mule Shoe
11:35 Grant abandons Spotsylvania
12:17 Lee defends the North Anna River
13:48 Topohomy Creek and Cold Harbor
15:57 Grant moves to Petersburg
17:06 Aftermath of the Campaign
For our returning viewers, these are the same productions as before, just with our new American Battlefield Trust opening. We wanted a more cohesive look moving forward as our audience continues to grow. As always we appreciate your support and look forward to continuing to share our passion for American history.
you guys do an incredible job, and you're doing an amazing service for the nation and the world
You guys do a good job with these videos! I would love to see you guys make videos on the Petersburg Campaign, Appomattox Campaign, Atlanta Campaign, Sherman’s March to the Sea, Fort Sumter, Fort Wagner, Fort Fisher, Second battle of Bull Run, The battle of Chancellorsville, The battle of Chattanooga, The battle of Stones River, & the battle of Nashville!
Nashville!@@alecvaughn9579
Is there a name for the music at the end? It almost sounds like the soundtrack from the movie "The Abyss."
Could you do one on Sherman's March to the Sea as well as his march north up the coast?
4:46 That night, after Gordon had turned Sedgewick's right flank, there was much confusion at Grant's camp and many Union officers were in a near panic. There was a genuine fear that General Lee had cut off their supplies and nearly surrounded them. It was when one young officer began to increasingly urge that the whole Army needed to withdraw north that General Grant finally scolded the man. “Oh, I am heartily tired of hearing about what Lee is going to do. Some of you always seem to think he is suddenly going to turn a double somersault, and land in our rear and on both of our flanks at the same time. Go back to your command, and try to think what we are going to do ourselves, instead of what Lee is going to do.” - General Grant, May 6th, 1864.
That is a great line by General Grant. I was reading the book the Last Full Measure and it goes into great detail about the overland campaign.
I put that quote on my whiteboard at work.
My fav - At Shiloh Sherman approached Grant and stated “Well, Grant, we’ve had the devil’s own day, haven’t we.” To which Grant replied, “Yes”, “Lick ‘em tomorrow, though”.
I'am 70 years old and I only wish this had been in the classroom when I was younger. A wonderful and important teaching tool for a history that needs to be remembered. Narrator's voice very good and easy to listen to. Animated maps are wonderful. Exposition of key battles and relative position of respective armies as they shift in battle are priceless. A great job and wonderful service to our nation. Thank you so much for your strong efforts.
40 yes here, and I entirely agree with you. The drums and choirs in the background music are a little distracting at ti es, but this is superb. Notice the pause points in these videos, for classroom teachers to use. The editors obviously made these as both educational and entertaining.
Im 37 and only can imagine the wonders that will be around when I am 70, we might be able to experience these things as if we were there ourselves.
I'm from Virginia, but would have never fought for the Confederacy. Never! I'm a Union man, and I still believe in this Great Nation! It was always supposed to be "One Nation, under God, with Liberty and Justice for all"!
@@ronaldshank7589 Even if the union army was marching down the road to your house and burning every dwelling, taking all the animals and food? If you would have fought for the north you would have had to move into the north and left all you had in the south and start over again. If you would have stayed in the south and tried to get information to the northern forces about southern troop movements you would have been considered a spy and shot. There were northern sympathizers in the south but they were turned on by their neighbors who had given all they had (including their sons, brothers, fathers lives) to establish an independent southern nation. Southern sympathizers in the north were also turned on by their family and neighbors or shot as spies. What an awful "uncivil" war.
@@manofreedom I would have joined the Union Army anyway!!! I wouldn't have ever fought for the Confederacy, because of it's Slavery Issue! Say what you want, and say what you will. I'll fight for Freedom, and for the Right for ALL MEN EVERYWHERE to be FREE! If I die, I die, but know this:At least, if I die, I die doing what is right in the sight of Man and God!!!
Despite the losses which the AotP suffered (and Grant knew before the campaign began that they would be), it is a fact that Grant's campaign was a resounding success. Grant hoped, but never expected, to defeat Lee. Grant's plan of campaign was to engage, and then pin Lee in place around Richmond, so that Lee could not reinforce Joe Johnston's Army of the Tennessee. Grant's plan was for Sherman to break up Johnston's army and wreak havoc in the Confederate heartland. Generally, this is what happened. Grant's 1864 campaign is unique in Civil War history, in that Grant coordinated the actions of five separate armies, with the strategic objective of winning the war- something which neither Lee nor any other Confederate general ever contemplated.
It's pretty astounding considering how much effort the Union put into Grand Strategy (the Anaconda Plan, the Blockade, the simultaneous occupations of Vicksburg and Tullahooma and - as you mentioned - Grant's five-pronged strategy) and the Confederates never seemed to consider that there *could* be such a thing as Grand Strategy. They almost *never* intentionally coordinated the efforts of their great field armies, but the Federals did it all the time.
@@jeffbenton6183 I very much agree. It was, imho, brought on by a mindset of Confederation, with no central body having absolute authority and which precluded a strong united effort. Davis fought two wars- one against the Union, and the other against Confederate state governors. To top it off, many of his own generals quarreled with one another.
@@jeffbenton6183 Perhaps a good point--but did the South have enough armies/manpower for the same kind of Grand Strategy?
@@richardernsberger5692 If the South didn’t have the resources to match the United Stares they should not have fired the first shot.
Lee did not want to conquer the North. He had a 2 year window to force a truce, which would equal a win. He almost pulled it off with Stonewall. Oh, well..
There was a man, wounded on that first afternoon of the Wilderness Battle. And his name was Harmon. He was a 41-year-old farmer and infantryman in NC's 46th Regiment. And he was my great-great grandfather, my direct ancestor on my father's side. He was born in 1823. Harmon was wounded on that Thursday afternoon and then taken 117 miles by wagon to Lynchburg, VA - where many wounded were taken and put in what had formerly been tobacco warehouses. And there he died from his wounds, an agonizing month later. And if he had not first fathered my great-grandfather before he enlisted in the war, I would not be typing this. He is buried in the Old City Cemetery in Lynchburg. In the Wilderness battle, Lee was massively outnumbered, with 61,000 men to Grant's 101,000. Over those three horrific days, a total of approximately 2,246 union soldiers and 1,495 confederates were killed. About 12,000 union and 8,000 confederates were wounded.
Cool story...Harmon was a bit older than some of the other men I assume. Then again I don't know how many men over 35 served in the Confederate army. I wonder if there is a regimental history anywhere for the 46 th. Those battles really became big. The wounds...and to die from the flames!
Thanks for sharing. A great, great, etc. uncle of mine died fighting for the South in the Wilderness under A.P. Hill. His grave is missing in our family cemetery. He was a Capt and previously fought in the Mexican War. His brother, my great, great, great, grandfather was a "Bush Wacker" and lived through the war. Another great, great, great grandfather was a slave owner and was killed in Jones County Mississippi, as described in the book "The Free State of Jones". I'm glad to live in modern times.
@@wes326 well from what I know A.P Hills men fought like demons on that first day- your grandfather was a brave man to fight in that inferno
Ironically, a small number of casualties for the size of the armies and the usual scale of dead and wounded for the time. However, according to this video’s numbers, the casualties were much greater.
What a fantastic yet tragic story...you are so lucky to be related to such a patriot
I entered a jungle along the Potomac River in my youth in the 1970s trying to find a perfect fishing spot that was so thick with vines, old growth trees and saplings I had to turn back. I was stopped in my tracks by jungle growth. It happens. It's real. It's an unimaginably dense thicket of growth. Yeah, let's go fight a battle in that. Ha!
Did you find any civil war relics?
It's a forest, not a jungle. Virginia is not in the tropics.
@@metarus208 Granted a deciduous forest that is like a jungle in the Summer. I grew up there and it can be impenetrable, especially along the river.
@@josephhinton5489 true that. apologies. I used to be in SW Virginia
I remember doing some hunting and feeling trapped in the thickest parts of the old forests, even having to crawl through certain areas. Mentally it takes a toll on you being that confined and unable to move properly. Branch after branch pushing against you, brambles tugging on you. I can't imagine having to fight in that.
Both of these generals were incredibly forward thinking and way ahead of their time. These moves are unusually modern for the civil war.
They had to be. The civil war was largely the first modern war. Weaponry had advanced to a point where marching onto a clear field and exchanging volleys was a much more bloody affair than in the past. They were using rifled muskets which were far more accurate. Europe didn't learn the lesson from the American civil war initially. At the outset of the war you had men marching out in formation in lines using bolt action rifles. The result was horrific which is why they retreated to trenches. That eventually gave way to use of armor as a spearhead and using natural terrain as cover as opposed to digging trenches.
By the time Lee and Grant started fighting each other in Virginia, the appearance of the battlefield had changed dramatically compared to the start of the war. The battlefields began to resemble very strongly what became the norm of WWI.
@@mcsmedia8081 I was thinking that, too. The narrator kept saying how both sides were digging trenchworks
It’s actually kinda the opposite. Lee was the stereotypical Virginian patrician with a well known family who went way back and married into the Custis family (Washington’s wife Martha was a Custis). He was old school and the typical be in the front giving orders in the battle. He fought like the Napoleonic generals did. Thinking one great battle for “glory” would have them surrender. Grant, on the other hand, was a nobody who came from nothing. He struggled in life but when gifted a slave he freed him (the equivalent of walking away from your house.. he was”worth” $1000 which was the equivalent of two years of earnings). At that time he was pawning his watch for Christmas gifts for his children and chopping firewood and carrying it 20 miles to the city to sell. He was the first “modern “ general who didn’t think “glory “ came from war, but rather was a means to an end. He used the telegraph to coordinate with the different army’s and used rail lines to his advantage and the confederacys disadvantage. During battle he stayed back coordinating but his orders were short and to the point. Find em, fix em, destroy them (currently USA military doctrine). Land and cities were pointless to him, Lee had an obsession with DC but Grant knew he had to destroy the army and cities were pointless.
@@marquisdelafayette1929 Slight nitpick: Grant did not consider cities to be pointless, otherwise he wouldn't have tried so hard to take Vicksburg, defend the Union's hold on Chattanooga, seize Petersburg without a fight, etc. This is a modern misconception, in part caused by his own exaggerated self-characterization. - i.e. that Mr. "I don't maneuver" Grant just shoved his head through a brick wall all the time and that's what made him more effective than McClellan. In truth, he and Sherman were actually *better* at maneuvering and taking cities then worse Generals who were ultimately replaced. That being said, it is true that Grant considered Lee's army his primary objective with Richmond being secondary, unlike McClellen who considered it the other way around. Grant would force Lee into loosing a decisive battle, by threatening Richmond. Cities supply armies, whoever seeks to defeat armies must cut off supply lines and capture cities from time to time.
I love the animated map. It shows that army movements are influenced by supply routes through towns and roads.
I live in Mechanicsville. My land is on the Totopotomoy battlefield and cold harbor is about 7 minutes from my house. This video was well done. Excellent battlefield recreation and graphics!
Do you find bullets and stuff?
Yes, one day within an hour and a half my sons found 4 unused, rifled bullets. Had to belong union men. I live on the union occupied side of the battlefield. Totopotomoy Creek and 1/2 mile from the entrance to Patrick Henry’s neighborhood and the other direction 1/2 to pole green church, famous for its role in the great awakening, a meeting house during the War of Independence, and used by civil war snipers. Lots of history in Mechanicsville VA.
@@BobbyBowker that's amazing. I've always wanted to find something like that but they understandably prohibit looking for things on the battlefields.
Creapppy
Awesome! It’s amazing most people don’t know or care probably what happened under their feet. I live about a mile from the center of the small last battle in the fall of mobile. Much smaller scale than your land but sacred none the less. We’ve found grape shot, minie balls etc.
This is fantastic! What great footage, with re-enactors! The "vector graphics" also bring the armies' maneuvers to life.
One of my great-grandfather's, his father and two brothers fought through that campaign. On both sides, they were some hardy, determined men.
Wonderful depiction of the Overland battles and events! It was so continuous that I never realized the Cold Harbor and Spotsylvania were the 3rd and 4th most costly battles of the Civil War!
80,000 men, both Union and Confederate troops, killed, wounded, missing, and captured, and in just a 6 week period of time, gives rise to that sad axiom:"In war, men are expendable". This is an absolutely tragic axiom that must never be either forgotten or repeated.
Great video!!!! Glad to have the opportunity to walk/explore the actual fields of battle. Thanks to the National Park Service any State Park Service for preserving as much of these battlefields as possible. Hope to pay another visit someday soon.
This is how ALL military history should be taught! It describes and shows how tactics developed and were enacted!
Whoever animated this excellent video, played Sid Meier's Gettysburg - the coloured oblong blocks representing Divisions Corps and Brigades, moving on a map. As they were usrd in the cutscenes in Sid Meier's Gettysburg. It's exactly what made that old and wonderful game so much better than Sid Meier's Antietam. Simple and elegant graphical representations of complex events. Here updated, and for many different battles. Very well done. Animated maps for every battle, from Fort Sumpter to Appomattox, from Glorieta Pass to Atlanta, would be great. Really useful and interesting. Grant was heavily criticised for, and during, this campaign, even (I think) by Mary Todd Lincoln who believed him a butcher who simply thrust larger numbers of men directly against Lee's army. Indeed many people thought Grant was simply using his greater numbers - that the Army of the Potomac would bleed to death less slowly. Throw them in, and move againt enemy, and if they die, the Union can replace them, the Confederacy cannot. I think history, and indeed this video shows that to be a simplification of Grant's strategic mind.
Your time & efforts are GREATLY APPRECIATED! Can't thank you enough for the information.
Man these are great, the civil war has been my new obsession and this channel gives me my fix!! Thank you
Thank for such a high quality video, I'm reading about the Overland Campaign right now and this answered many questions I had! Appreciate it!
You are not giving Upton the credit he deserves on the massive wedge attach using stacked regiments. That idea was Upton's.
A french column to smash a line wasn't exactly a new idea.
Upton became a innovator for the US military after the war, influencing significant changes in tactics, organization, and most importantly , training.
I would like to see the whole event as a battle field animation with the narration. The battle field animation is great!
Lee: "How many times do I have to teach you this lesson Yankee?" Grant: "I can do this all day old man. I ain't heard no bell yet."
Awesome, you should do one on the Atlanta campaign
I completely agree with you on that but for sure I would love to see one on the battle of new market where the brave cadets of the Virginia military institute made their stand
I hear this due Grant and also his right-hand man Sherman were pretty good.
But I can’t wait to see hood and Johnson engage Sherman in the Atlanta campaign especially since the story gone with the wind takes place during the Atlanta campaign
Chase Murray black watch Dolan Yeah agreed, Gone With The Wind perfectly captures the uncertainty the civilians had during the atlanta campaign.
Charlie Theanteater just saying I would love to see a movie based on the only civilian account of the bloody battle of Gettysburg Pennsylvania done like gone with the wind because I mean the civilian account of the battle includes some of my ancestors in it
The first main Battle, The Wilderness, Both Armies listened to 250 severely wounded Union Soldiers, burn to death as all the lint that fell in the leaves, caught fire and the severely wounded slowly burned to death. Their screams were so horrific, Grant literally...went into his tent and cried like a baby...people reported they hadn't seen a grown man so out of control sobbing. That first Battle between Lee and Grant...he found out what he was dealing with in Lee. Rebels smashed their right flank, nearly separated Union from their supply wagon train, several Generals we're captured as well as 20 cannon. Several Confederates received 2nd and 3rd degree burns trying to help the injured Federals. Being on the ground, they didn't pass out from smoke inhalation. They were already suffering terribly from their wounds they received...but to burn to death on top of that?? Good Lord.... I've read where Grant, in ONE MONTH and one day...from like May 3rd, through June 4th, lost MORE men...in one MONTH...than the previous 3 years fighting...between 60,000, and 72,000. THAT'S what happens when you back R.E. Lee into a position where he's protecting the livelihood of his State. From Wilderness, through Cold Harbor. Now THAT'S insane. Mary Lincoln couldn't STAND him. Thought he was a butcher. Said SHE could use that Army as well as he was. I will say this though. If Grant wanted to win this War, he did it in the only way that I personally see, he could have. One thing about the Army of Northern Virginia, they were about as battle hardened as an Army could be, at that time. They weren't receiving new Soldiers...they had to make due with what they had...and did it unbelievably well. These 2 Armies were BOTH American, and THATS what hurts the most.
It's what it took to win against a determined foe on home turf. Though I wince at titling Grant a butcher when proportionally speaking, Lee had a larger percentage of casualties under his command than any other general. He wanted to keep on the attack, but in the summer of 1864, it was Grant who had the initiative.
Throughout the war, Lee lost more troops than Grant did. 94,000 for Grant vs over 100,000 for Lee. The idea that Grant is a butcher with no tactical prowess is lost cause mythism.
@@rayzas4885 Secession is not "lost cause" myths. Secession is not only a States right but a human right. Our founding fathers understood the importance of Secession to keep checks and balances. Sadly we live under a Federal Nationalized Democracy with authoritarians at the helm. The Confederacy seceded ideologically to preserve the constitutional Republic that the United States was established as in 1776.
@@rebelsoul5980 James Madison, for starters, did not agree with you. You know, the guy that wrote most of the constitution. And, look at history. The "right" of provinces to secede without the permission of the parent government has happened maybe once or twice in history. The overwhelming response, under any theory of government, is to treat it as insurrection. Go back as far in history as you like, that's the response like 99 out of100 times or more. It isn't this obvious idea that so many 21st century southern apologists think it is. There were also plenty of southerners who said secession _itself_ was an act of war (and then voted for it anyway). I should also note that the government established along your preferred lines was tried. It was the Articles of Confederation and it failed miserably. It failed in no small part because the Federal government was too weak. That's how we got our constitution to start with. So, whatever they said in 1776, it was repented of before the 18th century ended. A few hotheads thought secession was still allowed. But not even all southerners agreed.
My great great grandfather, Asa Fitch Holcomb, who enlisted 12/09/1863, Co. B 24th Reg. NY Cavalry, 45 at the time, was at the front as a saddle stitcher for this entire campaign, Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Laurel Hill and Cold Harbor. His feet were disfigured from a fire in his youth but as a cobbler and harness maker he was there. He couldn’t walk very well but still did his duty. I have the greatest respect for all of these men on both sides. It is the greatest disrespect in my mind to tear down or remove their memorials of the Confederacy erected by their descendants, families and neighbors for each man following his duty and even dying for it, especially Lee’s beautiful statue. History cannot be re-written. This is how it was and 21st century judgements pale with the reality of those past terrible bloody battles and times. Reunions in later years of both armies showed the greatest respect for each other and even shed tears as former fellow adversaries. My great great grandfather’s brother, Amos C. Holcomb enlisted 11/28/1861 at age 41 and survived to be discharged on 11/18/1865. He was with Co. H 93rd Infantry Reg. NY Volunteers. We need to honor all these men from both armies. Thank you for a great job with this video.
You guys do a great job. This is awesome
My 2x Great grandfather’s brother was part of a new regiment and attached to the II Corps for this campaign. Him and much of his regiment became casualties at Cold Harbor. II Corp was mauled in those six weeks
One of the best corps in the civil war.
Every single one of these videos are incredible and sobering. Wow.
My great grandfather served with Berdan's Sharpshooters during the Civil War and was wounded at the Wilderness. He recovered and returned to duty for the Appomattox Campaign. I've read Smith's history of the Sharpshooters and the battle descriptions are very confusing. This made the battle so much easier to understand. Thanks very much for a great presentation.
What is more remarkable is that Grant was able to cross the James at it's estuary where it is far wider that most of it's course to the west. It was just a few miles west of that point where he established the massive temporary port at City Point, from where he conducted the oversight of the Siege of Petersburg.
Fabulous Work! Just wonderful! Thank you and truly, truly appreciated! You guys are AWESOME!!!!!!!!
Love these animated maps. For this please note, however, that the road labelled on the map as Brock Road is actually Plank Road. Brock Road extends southeast from Plank Road to Spotsylvania Courthouse. The fighting along Brock Road occurred at the intersection with Orange Plank Road.
What amazes me is how what often seems like obvious tactics are revolutionary.
My great grandfather x2 was in these battles with co I 8 Alabama. How anyone made it out of these battles amazes me. He only had minor wounds. God bless the memory of these fine brave soldiers! Deo vindice
Fantastic production. Thank you.
GREAT video, as always! Grant knew how to use his numbers, and Lee was always Lee. How horrible is war. Would have been better if Lee had accepted Lincolns offer, before the war really got started, to lead the northern armies... but his loyalty was to VA . war wouldve been over within a year, if that
Well-done. That's a stretch of the war that is hard to comprehend.
It's work like this that makes me exceptionally proud to be a member of the ABT
These animated maps, along with very important explanations in 4 minutes, make the ABT as the premier education tool for US military history!
the animated maps are great and give a wonderfully clear picture of operations... we need 3 more for the western theater ... Wilson Creek... Pea Ridge... and Prairie grove...
History comes alive …. Great Job Guys !!!!
My Great Grandfather was in this campaign, with Burnside's Corp.
He served under Burnside and lived? Lucky guy
My great-great grandfather was there as well, under Warren
@@FixedWing82 Was that Gouvernor K. Warren, by any chance? He played an important part in letting Union Troops know that a Confederate attack was coming, as the Confederates were trying to go up Little Round Top, if I have my facts right. And he got the message through to the Union Troops JUST IN TIME, with only minutes to spare! Also: Watching the 20th Maine, under Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, leading the attack, as his brave Union Soldiers down the hill at that battle, with a fixed Bayonet charge, no less, was a true inspiration to watch! The Union FOREVER!!!🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
@@ronaldshank7589 Yes that's the man, Gouvernor Warren, the hero of Little Round Top. At the time of the Overland campaign he was in command of V Corp.
@@FixedWing82 Just think...one man was all it took to save the entire Union Army from quite possibly being totally destroyed! That Brother is a True Hero in my Heart! I'm from Virginia, but I'd of gone North, found a Union Regiment, joined up, and helped to save the Union! Think about this, too:It took the action of only ONE, to save the World. Do you know who that was? The ONE, the ONLY, The WORD-CHRIST JESUS! What he did on an old rugged cross showed just how much he loves ALL of us! If it hadn't been for Him, we'd end up TOTALLY DESTROYED!!!!!✝️✝️✝️
Brilliant..I could watch these over again Seriously so insightful.
The quality of these videos is great
Great video…it was bigger than the main effort of Grants overland campaign. The US Navy was cutting off the Confederacy, Sherman was marching to Atlanta, the fall of Vicksburg cut off the west and the confederacy from the Mississippi, other lines of effort as well. The multiple prongs of operation breaks the will of the enemy, called “Operational Art” in military doctrine.
6:07...Grant pushes southward...the troops, until then, had always withdrawn, even after a victory...the simple decision to stay after the enemy gave the men an enormous morale boost...and it had to have demoralized the rebels a bit, no rest for the weary...there are numerous facets to any battle/war, and the swing in morale is just a part of the bigger picture...but 'we are winning' versus 'we are not winning' is huge in the individual mind, in regards to future performance...
These videos are pure gems
Beautiful music at the end.
I live near the Wilderness Battlefield. There are still miles of earthworks still there.
General U.S. Grant is my favorite Union General in the Civil War, along with General Windfield Scott Hancock, "Hancock the Superb" as he was called. I also like General Thomas, who made a valiant stand at Chickamauga, preventing a complete Union rout, earning him the Title "The Rock of Chickamauga". Phil Sheridan, who eventually stopped Jeb Stuart at Yellow Tavern, and torched the Shenandoah Valley: The breadbasket of the Confederacy: a vital food supply source, which was among many efforts to reduce Lee's Army of Northern Virginia's ability to wage war in the east, and Sherman, commander of Union forces in the west, also reduced the Confederate war efforts by taking the vital railroad city of Atlanta and leaving a trail of destruction all thru Georgia all the way to Savanah. 🇺🇲
Robert Gould Shaw. That’s my dude.
Very well done. I just wish it was longer
Great production values. BTW always thought Grant's move at the North Anna was masterful.
al he avoided a trap set by Lee that should have been fairly obvious (Lee would not only have the interior lines allowing him to transfer troops easily and quickly from one flank to the other while grant forces would have to ford the river TWICE to move forces from one flank to the other)
Grant was truly the first modern US general, who understood that supplies and numbers would inevitably win out against audacity and tactics. And it worked, but at a huge cost.
Gordon Rhea's books on the Overland Campaign has pretty good evidence that the attack at Cold Harbor was not as bloody as usually described. Not that it was in any way a victory.
Excellent series!!!
This is great! Please more on Meade after Gettysburg. The guy didn’t sit around for 2 years and Grant can’t be given all the credit.
Meade was "promoted" sideways after Gettysburg. Lincoln did not like him.
The "animated" presentation is priceless--the only technique giving us some grasp of these complex battle situations. Too bad for the troops of the time, those rapid movements of divisions required almost inhuman physical effort by tired, hungry foot soldiers.
LTC(R) Steven Clay led a group of WWII, Vietnam, Gulf War, and GWOT Veterans on a Battlefield Tour of the Overland Campaign in OCT 2015.
These are very cool, thank you for making these!!
Keep up the good work.
Shout out Emory Upton and the 121st NY volunteers including my 3rd great grandfather Sedate Foote who was wounded in Cold Harbor. 🇺🇸
An often overlooked fact was that Grant seized the initiative and never let up. The casualties of the Overland Campaign were staggering yet Grant ended the war in 11 months from the moment he moved in May. When weighed with to over two years of war that was largely inconclusive in the East, Grant's casualties are comparatively light for a decisive result.
One must take into account the improvement in Union Cavalry under Sheridan.
I must admit that Sheridan got better.
@@marknewton6984 And that the Confederate Cavalry was manned heavily by the descendants of the English/Scots Border Reivers. Attrition depleted that Army.
Grant sent Lee a note saying a truce to clear the wounded off the field would benefit them both. Lee responded that all his wounded had been cleared. Grant asked for a truce to clear his wounded. Lee agreed.
When did this happen? Was the video incorrect when it said there wasn't a truce after a certain battle? Please tell me more, I'd love to learn about these details.
@@jeffbenton6183 Cold Harbor.
Sounds like Lee, a gentleman.
Ulysses S. Grant did not like to retreat. Ever.🇺🇸
It hits hard when he says many of the wounded perish in the flames
An ancestor of mine was a Capt in the 26th Mississippi under A. P. Hill and died on May 5th on the Orange Plank Road in The Battle of the Wilderness. As a kid I found his wife's and children's graves in a family cemetery but not his. Terrible tradegy.
Please do one on Missionary Ridge and related battles.
You MUST go to these battlefields to understand these battles. The Bloody Angle is a small area. The slight elevation they were fighting for at the apex is mind blowing. This elevation does look down the line on both sides. The terrain of the Wilderness undulates, along with the tangled undergrowth back then. You can see why Longstreet was wounded by friendly fire. Uptown’s attack at Spotsylvania, you can actually see the distance. Also, The assault on the MuleShoe by Hancock, not over a flat field. There is a trough that natural led the assault. Confederate rifles that did fire during the assault, most powder was wet, went over their heads. You have to visit these battlefields.
I’ve had the fortune of visiting a number of them. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to make those trips. This wasn’t an option when I was a kid but I wish I could have watched something like this prior to visiting. It would have really provided a lot more context to a young me.
Not to re-fight the contest between the North & the South, but I feel young students should delve deeply into not only the war between the states & Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, but also the American Revolution & our war for independence from Great Britain. The last of which led to our Declaration of Independence, Constitution & Bill of Rights. Struggles long gone, but not forgotten. They constitute the warp & woof of our Republic. Bonds hopefully never to be torn asunder again.
Grant was super underrated
Very much so, not only as a general but also as a president. He belongs in the company of Lincoln.
He Had every advantage. He threw bodies at the outnumbered south. The south had no chance of winning the war. Grant happened to be in charge when it ended.
@@johngallagher3467 the South had a big chance to win the war . The problem was their idea of government. . Many weaker nations have defeated stronger nations with the right strategy . The thirteen colonies defeated the strongest country in the world at that time .
@@reneaguilar3471 to be fair, the Brit’s by the end of the war, hardly cared. Look at the numbers sent to fight Napoleon over the colonies. It wasn’t a popular war for either side, and if the British REALLY wanted victory, they could’ve easily gotten it. They had numbers, control of the sea, control of trade, etc. if they committed more, we’d still be speaking the Queens English
@@animeisdead you need to read some history more diligently .
If you are wondering exactly what Emory Uptons attack tactic was: "he developed a new tactic to attack the Confederate breastworks, one that would foreshadow tactics used in the trench warfare of World War I. Upton devised a tactic wherein columns of massed infantry would swiftly assault a small part of the enemy line, without pausing to trade fire, and in doing so attempt to overwhelm the defenders and achieve a breakthrough"
What was revolutionary about it? European armies had been using column formations to force breakthroughs since the Napoleonic Wars.
wow, i am actually reading a book right now called Lee's last campaign and it's dealing with the wilderness battle right now. amazingly i was thinking if there was some kind of animated maps for the battle and viola here it shows up
There are a bunch. I think The Armchair Historian has a ton. There are some great channels
One of the things that separate Grant from other leaders is his unshaking trust and faith in his suboordinates.
Hm he was in an dispute with Thomas "Traitor"
Or his resolve to press forward when others would have turned back.
@@douglyons2678 Burnside did wanted to continiuo. Sherman was the same. On the other side we have Lee, Jackson, Hood who where offensive.
It was also part of his downfall, especially during his presidency. But I think Grant's pokerface under stress, his dedication to egalitarianism, his raw determination, and his understanding of logistics that really set him apart from other commanders.
Please make more!
My Ancestor Randall VanValkenburgh was in Company A Michigan 17th reg. And this is the battle that ended his journey as a soldier. “Randall's regiment was ordered to make a charge against the rebels along with a regiment of Indians. The Indians were quite brave until they heard the reports of the rebel's guns. they immediately broke and ran. This exposed the other regiment. The enemy fired lengthwise on the remaining and the men fell by the hundreds. The men that were left ran behind trees, logs, or anything that they could find for protection. Randall stepped behind a tree to load his gun. He was in the act of ramming the cartridge down it, when he was struck by a bullet. It struck him in the right hand. he began to feel numb all over, and the only thing that he could think to do was to get out of there as fast as he could. He quickly dropped his gun and ran. He immediately went back to the field hospital where they tried to fix his hand. That night all the men that were able to ride were taken in wagons within five miles of Fredericksburg. On arriving at Fredericksburg, Randall had his fingers amputated. After spending several days there he was sent to Washington to the hospital. At this hospital, Randall saw the first white bedding that he had seen in two years. It certainly seemed like heaven to lie between such white sheets. President Lincoln came to the hospital to visit the boys each day. He would always ask the boys how they were, and sometimes would stop and talk to Randall.”
If i was a college instructor this would be an excellent source to use
Do they teach civil war history in college?
This should be junior high school material. It shouldn’t take kids reaching 18+ before they learn basic American history. I get your point though. Especially if somebody’s specifically studying this campaign in college then I agree it would be useful. I just think this type of stuff should be basic history… but then there’s Florida lol
@@rebelsoul5980it’d be part of an American history course. And then after that if you want to specialize in Civil War History you can take courses specifically on that depending on the university or college, and further courses if you want to specialize into something even more specific.
9:46 I'm pretty sure attacking in a column was used in the Napoleonic wars which the American civil war officers were very well versed.
They worded it incorrectly. What was revolutionary was the fact that they used a concentrated force to break the rebel line, bulking up their forces instead of spreading them out in a horizontal line. This basically was making headway’s to the kind of massive charges into trenches that you’d see in WWI.
@@537monster Nothing revolutionary about that.
They studied Roman army tactics, but I think rifle armed Legions would have outperformed a modern army of the time 🥴
@@craftpaint1644 As I said Napoleon did the same thing.
@@craftpaint1644 Doubtful. The Union and Confederate soldiers were very well-drilled. When they failed, it was the fault of their officers.
Can you do this for the Petersburg and Appomattox campaigns?
I wish we got longer more detailed documentaries on these battles. I notice battles lost by the Union get the least amount of time. They get glazed over quickly until Grant finally wins.
How are they losses if Lee retreats every time?
@@chaosXP3RT because the attacks aren’t what made Lee move. The attacks failed. Grant gave up trying to force Lee back so he just moved his entire army around somewhere else. Lee moved because Grant moved. When Grant pulls back and marches somewhere else Lee also has to move in order to block him. Redeployment. It wasnt until the end of Petersburg that Lee actually had to “ retreat” because Grant broke his lines. After that Lee was indeed in full retreat. But Wilderness to Cold Harbor Lee never retreated. He simply redeployed his army to block grants next moves. Grant was unable to dislodge Lee all summer. So Grant simply marched around Lee and played leap frog 🐸. It worked eventually. But very costly Stalemate may be a better word for both armies. Neither of them retreated, they simply deployed somewhere else to try again. But Grant finally caused Lee to retreat after long siege at Petersburg
@@JohnnyRebKy That was the only way to defeat Lee, there was simply no other way.
@@JohnnyRebKy The Confederates scored tactical victories, but the Union scored strategic victories. The Confederates repulsed the Union assaults and held the field, but they failed to stop the Union from pursuing their strategic objective, Richmond. Additionally, the Confederates took grievous casualties that they, unlike the Union, could ill afford to take and could not replace. The individual battles might have been slightly won on the field by the Confederates, but that doesn't matter because the Confederates were pinned in a siege around Petersburg/Richmond, which is exactly what Grant wanted. Strategy > Tactics.
@@JohnnyRebKy Lee makes very few strategic moves throughout the war.
9:54 Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that tactic a copy of Napoleonic style attack columns. Hardly revolutionary as most major powers in Europe at this time (Prussia, Russia, Austria) used attack columns (successive lines of infantry).
I just want to give a MASSIVE SHOUT OUT and Commemorate with Adoration for the 2nd, 4th, 5th, 27th, and 33rd Virginia Infantry regiments and the Rockbridge Artillery Battery.....Will Always be Immortally Remembered for there Dauntless Intrepid and Valorous Deeds in the Field...Proving they were prepared to Engage and Endure Suffering, Harm, and Injury..... While Brandishing Courage Under Conditions where Belligerents were Waging War with Extreme Violence....😊❤️💯🙏....
What is the music during the ending scene?
Thanks
North Anna was Lee's greatest victory. Grant quit the field of battle without even attempting to dislodge his foe. The narrative says Lee failed to strike a decisive blow, but that's because Grant retreated before Lee could. Just days later, Lee did strike that decisive blow against Grant... at Cold Harbor. Grant gave the Confederates a full day to rest up and dig in before he sent his men to their certains deaths.
It's mild blowing intensity and speed compared to the time elapsed between battles in the first few years. Must have been almost a blur. I feel like most of the civil war history is taught from Sumpter up until Gettysburg, then skips over to Appomattox. This campaign was little known to me until I got into it as an adult.
Which is weird, because overland was pretty bloody.
You Should Do The Franklin-Nashville Campaign.
As a George Henry Thomas fanboy, I couldn't agree more!
Jeffbenton6183 Thomas doesn’t get the credit he deserves he is CRIMINALLY underrated
Does any one know if there are pictures taken of actual battles taking place ....if there are where ?
By how many months did Lee shorten the war? Would any other commanding officer have lengthened it?
To be brutally honest, Lee is a totally different General fighting inside the state of Virginia than when fighting outside it. Gettysburg and Antietam proved that. Lee was fighting in his home state and he and his officers knew the topography and hidden roads better than Grant's did and by fighting a bloody, defensive strategy, Lee was hoping the bloody stalemate would cause the North to lose the resolve to continue the war. The mounting northern casualties caused a lot of Republican politicians to cry for peace-especially after Cold Harbor.
I feel Lee's efforts in Maryland and Pennsylvania were hampered by his raiding. In summer '61, Lee raided farms in Virginia. In summer '62 he raided farms in Maryland. In summer '63 he raided farms in Pennsylvania. In summer '64, he was trapped in Virginia. In spring '65, he surrendered.
I think one big difference for Lee in Virginia was the locals were pro confederacy. The US forces couldn't move without someone seeing and giving warning. He didn't have that advantage north of the Potomac.
VERY well done!
My Great great great garndfather was in the 3rd NY Independence Artillery regiment. I know he was in this battle but cant find where. Any help?
Maybe you could try find that unit on an order of battle and work from there?
I am from Lima-Peru, but I love to study and read about wars because I am a frustrated Navy guy, not accepted in the Officer's Academy because my size (5'5", minimum 5'8"), anyway, I find very interresting this videos because depicts the tactics that were done in that time, and weapons. However I don't like the quantity of losses this war had because the generals were using old tactics with modern weapons, so, basically the ACW changed the way of fighting between armies and I guess, many of the tactics are used in modern wars so far. Cheers.
This war took place during a pivotal point in military history: the rapid transition from early modern infrantry warfare to the current modern era where technology and weaponry could nullify superior troops and tactics provided there was enough of it and if only one knew how to use it. At this stage in history (1860s), the technology to mass produce high quality, more lethal weaponry that could take advantage of the inherit weakness within infantry and cavalry tactics of the day just wasn't feasible yet. Politics had as much to do with the bloodiness as poor decision making. Not to mention, the infrastructure was such that it could not provide either army much of a benefit so as to not require every point on a map be defended with able-bodied soldiers, unlike in Europe. After the first two years of the war, both armies had advanced in tactics and strategy out from the dark ages and into the bleating edge of modern warfare. There's so much novelty and ingenuity from civil war warfare if you study the whole event.,
Love this channel! Don't know how I got unsubbed.
Elias Thorn (8th NY Heavy Artillery) killed at Spotsylvania 5/19/64
What is truly appalling is that 50 years later in France, the casualties of The Overland Campaign would be achieved in just a few days, in places like The Somme, Ypres, and Verdun.
It is astounding if you ever visit the Illinois Monument at Vicksburg which states the name of every soldier that fought compared to the British monument at the Somme where it only says every soldier who died it is astoundung.
8:57 Sorry who’s that supposed to be on the left with the Santa hats? Hessian mercs?
When a shovel was as vital as a rifle, a peek into the future fifty years, World War One.
My question is why was Uptons attack at 9:20 a revolutionary new concept, I wish it was explained further. What I gathered was because there were 4 lines of infantry attacking in a smaller battle line, but I’m not entirely sure that’s the point because Napoleon and Frederick the Great both used the massed infantry assaults on smaller fronts to punch through the battle lines. Please feel free to let me know if you know the answer or have other theories
I think you are correct. They made a mistake. They are speaking of a concentrated assault against an entrenched position, but even this has examples in earlier military history. Perhaps they are referring to The American Civil War specifically. Prior to this assault suggested by Upton and then performed under his command, the only prior event I can think of is Sedgewick's attack against Early on the heights behind Fredericksburg during The Battle of Chancellorsville.
@@thethingreywall6520 Couple years later, but I found the comment weird as well. It's in Upton's Wikipedia page as well nearly word for word.
Lee took command at the bloody angle when all was nearly lost, wasn’t he some general, if he had the resources of the north, it would have taken a good man to beat him!!