Battle of the Wilderness

Throughout the winter of 1863-1864, the armies rested and refitted on opposite sides of the Rapidan River. The Army of the Potomac swelled with thousands of new draftees and recruits, though many questioned those soldiers' commitment to the cause. Wilbur Fisk of the 2nd Vermont Infantry wrote on April 7, 1864, that never in a war had the rank and file felt a more resolute earnestness for a just cause and a more invincible determination to succeed. Commanded by Major General George Gordon Meade, the Union army numbered 120,000 men and 275 cannon. The Army of Northern Virginia struggled to keep its regiments full, and in the Wilderness it brought 13,000 fewer men than it had fielded at Gettysburg the year before. Samuel Clyde of the 2nd South Carolina Infantry wrote on April 28, 1864, that the troops were in excellent spirits and eager for the fray, and that General Grant's glory would soon vanish and his great name be buried with those of his unfortunate predecessors. Commanded by General Robert E. Lee, the Confederate army numbered 60,000 men and 226 cannon.

Lake of the Woods, Virginia · United States