These victories were achieved by Lee’s courage and daring strategies. He first won battles against McClellan’s forces in the Seven Days Battles. Lee was going to cross the Chickahominy River with a large amount of his army so they could attack the Union’s north flank. Lee also sent General J.E.B. Stuart along with his cavalry to circle the Union Army and find places where they would be most vulnerable. This was important because Lee was going to get Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson to attack the Union forces from the right flank. Lee also was successful in cutting one of the Union’s main supply lines. Even though this plan sounded brilliant, it did cost the Confederate Army many thousands of lives. However, Lee’s tactics were so effective, the forced McClellan to retreat so he could save his supply lines ("Peninsula Campaign."). This was portrayed as a huge victory by Southern newspapers and boosted the morale of the South.
Then the Battle of the 2nd Bull Run took place. With the help of Jackson, Lee had cut the Union supply line between Manassas and Washington DC. Meanwhile, Lee was building up his force at Gordonsville. He was planning to attack the Union before they could be reinforced. He positioned Jackson and his troops so they could fight and wear out some of the Union Army. Lee was really good at flanking and reinforcing his line. After that assault, Lee called for General James Longstreet to finish off the Union Army which managed to retreat with whatever they had left ("Bull Run: Second Battle of Bull Run.").
After Manassas, the Battle of Chancellorsville took place. With an army half of the Union, Lee divided his forces with great risk and attacked Union General Joseph Hooker. With much the Union Army moving towards Fredericksburg, they met the Confederate Army with resistance. The Union couldn’t handle them and being over-whelmed, Hooker called for his troops to push back and be defensive. With this move, Lee began his strong offensive attack as he learned the Union line was growing weaker and weaker. Using his tactics, Lee sent Jackson to out-flank the Union ("The Battle of Chancellorsville Summary & Facts | Civilwar.org." ). This is considered Lee greatest victory but such triumph was to be short-lived. The reason for that was that as Jackson was returning at night, one of his own men shot him in the arm due to confusion. Jackson, who later died, was a huge blow to the Confederate Army ("Weider History Group.”).
During the Civil War, Robert E. Lee knew that the Confederates were outnumbered and outgunned by the masses. However, through his decisive leadership and courage, Robert E. Lee led his troop to numerous victories during the beginning of the war. By obtaining clever military tactics, Lee showed the South that could prevail. Had Jackson not died and had Lee had more supplies, one can say that the outcome of the war would’ve been much different.
Works Cited Page
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"Peninsula Campaign." Civil War Trust: Saving America's Civil War Battlefields. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Feb. 2012. <http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/glendale/glendale-history-articles/sevendayskrick.html>.
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