During the summer of 1864, Confederate forces under Gen. Jubal A. Early dominated the Shenandoah Valley, defeated Federal armies, burned Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, threatened Washington, D.C., and endangered President Abraham Lincoln's reelection. In August 1864, Union leaders sent Gen. Philip H. Sheridan to the Valley to end Confederate control. After weeks of probing and smaller clashes, Sheridan learned that Early had divided his forces and that one of his divisions had left for Richmond, so he moved to attack. Early on the morning of September 19, 1864, Sheridan's cavalry divisions crossed Opequon Creek at three points, leading about 39,000 Union soldiers toward Winchester, with three infantry corps behind them. Although Sheridan hoped to surprise and overwhelm Early's scattered army, Early had realized Sheridan's intentions on September 18 and hurried to consolidate his forces, while the Union advance through narrow Berryville Canyon became confused and delayed. Around 11:40 am, the first main Union attack by Gen. Horatio Wright's VI Corps and Gen. William Emory's XIX Corps was badly mauled near the Berryville Pike from the First Woods across the Middle Field to the Second Woods and West Woods, as Confederate artillery and counterattacks by Gen. John Gordon's and Gen. Robert Rodes' divisions stopped the assault. By mid-afternoon, Sheridan committed his reserve, Gen. George Crook's Army of West Virginia, or VIII Corps, against Early's weakened left from the north, forcing it back toward Winchester. At the same time, two Union cavalry divisions, 6,000 mounted soldiers, attacked along the Valley Pike and overwhelmed resistance in their path. The Confederate left flank collapsed, and Early ordered a retreat that became a rout through the streets of Winchester. The battle ended in a Union victory, with 39,240 Union troops and 15,200 Confederates engaged, and estimated casualties of 5,020 Union and 3,610 Confederate. The Third Battle of Winchester was the largest battle fought in the Shenandoah Valley and one of the pivotal battles of the Civil War. Later Union victories at Fisher's Hill, Tom's Brook, and Cedar Creek, together with the devastation of the region's agriculture in The Burning, gave the Union permanent control of the Valley, aided Abraham Lincoln's reelection, and helped speed Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox the following spring.
