Early in the battle, the strength and importance of the Coaling became clear when Confederate forces under Gen. Charles Winder arrived and Winder's cannon fired on Union skirmishers, only for the guns on the Coaling to reply from the height and shell the southern guns and infantry. Gen. Stonewall Jackson ordered Winder to send a regiment through the woods to capture the Union guns, and Winder added a second regiment, dispatching the 2nd Virginia and 4th Virginia with supporting cannon. The Federals on the Coaling saw the movement, but the Confederates disappeared into the trees, where dense woods and tangled brush slowed their advance and forced the Confederate cannon to turn back. The 2nd Virginia finally reached a bluff from which its men could see the Union gunners, and Col. James W. Allen ordered them to take deliberate aim and fire in hopes of surprising the artillerymen. Two chance shots, likely from the belatedly arriving 4th Virginia, revealed their position. The 2nd Virginia's volley drove off the gunners, but Union infantry of the 66th Ohio hurried to a nearby hilltop and opened fire, allowing the cannoneers to return and unleash grape and canister. With both regiments under heavy fire, Allen withdrew them and reported to Jackson that he could not carry the battery without assistance, showing that a stronger effort would be needed to seize the height.