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The Battle of Cedar Creek, or The Battle of Belle Grove, October 19, 1864, was one of the last battles in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign (August-December 1864) during the American Civil War.
General Jubal A. Early's Confederate Army attacked the Union forces at Cedar Creek, in Frederick, Shenandoah, and Warren Counties of Virginia, just before sunrise under a cover of dense fog, routing two of the divisions of the Army of the Shendoah. General Horatio G. Wright, the Union commander, was wounded but remained on the field. General Philip H. Sheridan, coming back from a conference in Washington, heard the cannonading from near Winchester, some twenty miles away. He picked up fleeing soldiers along the way and arrived on the battlefield by midmorning. He rallied the troops and by evening the battle was over.
General Sheridan's report of the famous ride:
- "...and was unconscious of the true condition of affairs until about 9 o'clock, when having ridden through the town of Winchester, the sound of the artillery made a battle unmistakable, and on reaching Mill Creek, half a mile south of Winchester, the head of the fugitives appeared in sight, trains and men coming to the rear with appalling rapidity. I immediately gave directions to halt and park the trains at Mill Creek, and ordered the brigade at Winchester to stretch across the country and stop all stragglers. Taking twenty men from my escort, I pushed on to the front, leaving the balance under General Forsyth and Colonels Thom and Alexander to do what they could in stemming the torrent of fugitives. I am happy to say that hundreds of the men, when of reflection found they had not done themselves justice, came back with cheers. ...still none behaved more gallantly or exhibited greater courage than those who returned from the rear determined to reoccupy their lost camp. ..."
- Reports of Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan, U.S. Army, commanding Middle Military Division, including operations August 4, 1864-February 27, 1865: The War of the Rebellion, Vol. 43, Part I, pages 52-54.
Forces:
- Union - 31,944
- Confederate: - 15,265
Casualties:
- Union - 5,665 (644 killed, 3,430 wounded, 1,591 missing)
- Confederate - 2,910 (320 killed, 1,540 wounded, 1,050 missing)
Significance:
- The battle resulted in a crushing defeat for the Confederacy. They were never again able to threaten Washington, D.C., through the Shenandoah Valley.
The participation of the Vermont Brigade in the battle (more Vermonters took part in this battle than any other in the war) is commemorated by a large wall-sized painting in the Cedar Creek Room on the second floor of the Vermont State House in Montpelier. In 1997, proposed highway construction threatened a ridge where the 8th Vermont Regiment, commanded by Stephen Thomas, lost nearly two-thirds of its men in a heroic early morning stand. The proposal prompted the Vermont State Legislature to adopt a resolution asking Virginia to prevent building on the ridge [1] (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/1998/acts/actR247.htm).
References
The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Union and Confederate Armies, Government Printing Office, 1893.
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