Posted on 12/23/2022 5:54:08 AM PST by Homer_J_Simpson
Major-Gen H.W. Halleck, General-in-Chief, United States Army, Washington:
GENERAL: I have the honor to offer the following reasons for moving the Army of the Potomac across the Rappahannock sooner than was anticipated by the President, the Secretary of War, or yourself, and for crossing at a point different from the one indicated to you at our last meeting at the President's.
During my preparations for crowing at the place I had first selected, I discovered that the enemy had thrown a large portion of his force down the river and elsewhere, thus weakening his defences in front, and I also thought I discovered that he did not anticipate the crossing of our whole force at Fredericksburgh, and I hoped by rapidly throwing the whole command over at that place to separate, by a vigorous attack, the forces of the enemy on the river below from the forces behind and on the crest in the rear of the town, in which case we could fight him with great advantage in our favor
To do this we had to gain a height on the extreme right of the crest, which height commanded a new road lately made by the enemy for purposes of more rapid communication along his lines, which point gained, his positions along the crest would have been scarcely tenable, and he could have been driven from them easily by an attack on his front in connection with a movement in the rear of the crest.
How near we came to accomplishing our object future reports will show. But for the fog and unexpected and unavoidable delay in building the bridges, which gave the enemy twenty-four hours more to concentrate his forces in his strong positions, we would almost certainly have succeeded.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
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From the Army of the Potomac: An Important Letter from Gen. Burnside – 2-3
The Total Loss at Fredericksburgh – 3
The Cabinet Crisis: The Return of Secretaries Seward and Chase to their Respective Positions – 3-4
The Resignation of Gen. Burnside: The President Refuses to Accept It – 4
News from Washington: Important Matters before Congress – 4
Military Calumnies – Gens. Sigel and McDowell – 4-5
Editorial: The Cabinet Crisis – 5
Editorial: A Good Example – 5-6
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