“A Great Struggle is Now Impending”

Shortly after capturing the Confederate picket line on March 25, the Union high command prepared to attack the Confederate lines on the Boisseau Plantation, and final orders for a dawn assault arrived on the afternoon of April 1. Major General Horatio G. Wright, commanding the Union Sixth Corps, assigned axmen and sharpshooters to go ahead of the infantry to clear obstructions and pick off enemy riflemen, ordered the soldiers not to stop and return fire during the charge, and began an artillery bombardment of 150 guns at 10:00 p.m. on April 1 that continued until after midnight to weaken enemy resistance and disable Confederate cannon positions. Even with these measures, many Federal soldiers believed the assault might kill them, and some pinned slips with their names and hometowns to their uniforms so their bodies could be identified, while one Federal commander admitted that all knew bloody work lay ahead.

Virginia · United States