Battle of Cold Harbor Virginia - June 1-3, 1864

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Battle of Cold Harbor Historian Page What happened during the Battle of Cold Harbor? On the night of June 1, 1864, General Grant ordered his army to attack General Robert E. Lee's army who was stationed at Cold Harbor, ten miles northeast of Richmond, Virginia. His plan was to attack all along the Confederate's lines. This was the plan because General Grant knew that General Lee's army had fought the previous day, and General Grant was assuming that the Confederates had no time to form their lines and prepare to battle with them. General Grant was also assuming that the attack would find weaknesses in the Confederate line, break it, and give them no time to regroup and reform their lines. This first ordered attack never happened because Winfield Scott Hancock's troops returned too late after getting lost the evening before and marching several extra miles to get into position. General Grant then postponed the attack until June 3. This delay for the attack would prove tragic for General Grant's troops because the Confederates now had an extra day to dig their trenches and construct defensive blockades. The next day at 4:30 AM on June 3, General Grant's troops attacked. When the Union first attacked, they forced back General Lee's front lines, but when he found a second line which commanded General Lee's front lines, the Union made no further progress. There was wicked fighting going on for 20 minutes until 7,000 soldiers from the Union, and 1,500 soldiers from the Confederates lay dead on the battlefield. General Grant then gave up and retreated. The Confederates ended up being the winners of the war because they lost more men than the Union. Who were the most important people on both sides in the Battle of Cold Harbor? North: Ulysses S. Grant General Grant was the head Commanding General of the whole Union army. He was a modest, honest, smart, quite, serious, and moral man who was very devoted to and loved his wife and children. He had a keen sense of humor, and was very popular among his friends. General Grant graduated among the lowest graduates of his class at West Point. During the Mexican War, General Grant moved up in ranking to Lieutenant. After the Mexican War, Grant had nothing to do, so he turned to alcohol. He became a drunk who was poor and succeeded in nothing at the time. When the Civil War started and the North had no one to command their army, they asked General Grant if he would like to be part of the Union army. He agreed to this offer, then kept moving up. During the Civil War, General Grant moved up to the highest position- General. After the Civil War, General Grant became President Ulysses S. Grant of the United States for eight years.   South: Robert E. Lee General Lee was born and raised in Virginia. His parents were Harry Lee and Ann Carter. His father left Ann and her kids when General Lee was young. General Lee was the grandson of Martha Washington and the adopted grandson of President George Washington. He graduated from West Point as the second highest in his class in 1829. General Lee was the General of the Confederates during the Civil War. He actually believed that the South would never win the war, but he still felt that since he lived in Virginia (a southern state), he would fight for the South and try his best to defend them. Many people believe that if General Lee had fought for the North, the Civil War would have ended two years earlier because he was such a great General.       What else was going on in the world at the same time as this battle was taking place? America: The Civil War is taking place with the Union (North) versus the Confederates (South). Asia: In Persia, the first constructed telegraph was opened by British people as part of the line to India. Europe: Barbituric Acid is invented by a German chemist named Adolf Baeyer. It becomes the first barbituate drug. Africa: Karl von der Decken, an explorer from Europe, explores the land in East Africa. South America: A Spanish fleet explores the Chincha Islands in Peru. Australia: E.G. Gould established the first homeopathic pharmacy.

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