This past week, I finished David Chandler’s mammoth book, Napoleon’s Campaigns. It took me two years to finish it, but I understand why Charles de Gaulle commented that it was the best military history written on Napoleon’s Campaigns. Chandler marks Napoleon’s operational genius as the reason behind his success. He did not view him as a great tactician, and he often stumbled at critical moments like Leipzig, Borodino, and Waterloo. Nevertheless, Napoleon accomplished more than any other general in history. Chandler accurately depicted his faults and triumphs in a narrative that is unmatched in military history.
This past week was the anniversary of the Battle of Second Deep Bottom. It was a momentous and significant battle that almost cleared a path to Richmond for the Federals on August 16, 1864. The initial objective of this Federal movement was to draw Confederate troops away from Petersburg and the Shenandoah Valley. Grant had already planned another movement against the Weldon Railroad to cut a vital supply line running to Petersburg. He also wanted Phil Sheridan, now commander of the Army of the Shenandoah, to defeat Jubal Early’s force in the Valley. Therefore, Grant utilized his bridgehead at Deep Bottom once again. He established this bridgehead only a couple of days after the end of the Overland Campaign on June 18, 1864. Grant proceeded to take action against Confederate forces around Richmond between 27-29 July 1864, successfully drawing Confederates away from Petersburg before their unsuccessful attempt to break through Confederate lines there.
Now, Federal forces managed to press ahead of their initial position from 27-29 July, occupying Fussell’s Mill roughly two miles north of the Federal bridgehead. Alfred Terry’s Second Corps managed to capture some ground just west of Fussell’s Mill, while David M Gregg’s cavalry attempted to outflank the Confederate position near White’s Tavern but was repulsed by Rooney Lee’s cavalry. The Second Corps held a firm line just south of Fussell’s Mill around this time, and they were not participating in the main action on August 16. Alfred Terry’s Tenth Corps breached the main Confederate line on August 16. All hope seemed lost for the Confederates. The only Confederate reserves on hand were just a couple of Alabama regiments. The Union did not seem to grasp the terrain, and they had just gained a significant advantage over their Confederate counterpart due to the heavily wooded terrain. General Charles Fields ordered these two Alabama regiments forward to fill the gap. They successfully drove back the Union forces at a high cost, sealing off any gap that gave the Federals the best opportunity to take Richmond at any time during the war.
There was a brief interlude following this heavy fighting from August 16 to permit both sides to collect the wounded and dead from the field. A stalemate ensued between both sides. Robert E. Lee arrived on August 16, believing the Confederate situation was in peril. Lee wanted to make a counterattack against Federal forces. Yet, it could have been better coordinated, and nothing more came of it on August 18. Grant was in no hurry to push Hancock’s men against the fortifications, ordering him on August 17 to rest his men. He only thought for a moment that part of the Confederates detached from north of the James River, but he realized later it was not enough to launch a full assault. He ordered Hancock to only demonstrate against the place on August 19 to draw attention away from Petersburg. Finally, on August 20, Grant ordered the men to withdraw from Fussell’s Mill, largely achieving their operational objective. Furthermore, Union forces suffered 2900 casualties while the Confederates suffered 1500. The Deep Bottom Bridgehead remained a thorn in the Confederate’s side as Grant would use it again in late September to establish a permanent foothold only a few miles from Richmond at Fort Burnham.
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