May 30, 1864
---Battle of Bethesda
Church, Virginia: Fighting continues
along the Totopotomoy River. Grant
begins to look for ways to break the deadlock.
Gen. Lee is also looking for a break, and sends Jubal Early (now
commanding Ewell’s Second Corps), in an assault on the Union left flank, where
Gen. Warren’s V Corps has just taken up position on the south bank of the
Totopotomoy. Gen. Rodes’ division of
graybacks plows into Crawford’s Federals, and a few new regiments panic and
retreat before the onslaught. Early’s
choices are limited at this point, as Rodes’ column is disorganized from the attack,
and reinforcements have not come up yet.
Maj. Gen. Stephen D. Ramseur, a new division commander, urges Early to
let him attack—to which Early reluctantly agrees--but he does so without
supports on either flank. In the lull,
Warren has strengthened his line. As
Ramseur advances at 6:30 PM, Toon’s brigade finds itself pinned down by
flanking fire from the bluecoats, and so only Pegram’s brigade is in the
advance. As they dashed forward, the
Federals open fire. One Confederate
officer writes, “Our line melted away as if by magic: every brigade, staff and
field officer was cut down, mostly killed outright in an incredibly short
time.” Point-blank range rifle fire and
artillery canister cut down the advancing Rebels. The slaughter is so severe that a Union
officer begs the survivors to surrender—and they do so in large numbers. This disastrous attack results in 90% killed,
wounded, and captured to Pegram’s brigade.
Losses: U.S.
731
C.S. 1,593
In the evening, orders to Gen. Butler’s Army of the James detach
Maj. Gen. William “Baldy” Smith and two corps to move by boat to join
Grant’s army. Lee learns of this, and
demands reinforcements from Beauregard’s tiny force at Richmond.
---Captain Augustus C. Brown, of the 4th New York
Heavy Artillery Regiment, writes in his journal of the fighting along the
Topopotomoy that day as his regiment is sent in to fortify a line, and of this
tragicomical incident:
Between our works and the house,
which stood with its rear towards us, was a semi-circle of negro quarters, and
in front of these little frame and log houses the artillerymen had backed up
their caissons and ammunition wagons to conceal them as much as possible from
the enemy. At the door of one of these cabins was a large pile of ashes, where
the old “mammy” who lived there had emptied the contents of her stove for
years, and as the men took out the ammunition from the chest on a limber,
considerable powder was sprinkled on this dumping ground. Not long after the
rebels had commenced firing, and after they had sent several rifled projectiles
through the main house and its roof, and had split some of the great trees
standing close by, the old darkey woman came to her door, cool as a cucumber,
and apparently oblivious of the danger of her act, threw a shovel full of hot
ashes and coals just out of her stove squarely under the limber, and instantly
the front of that shanty was taken off as cleanly as if cut down by a monster
hay-knife. Two men were killed and several wounded, but the negress is said to
have escaped unhurt. A tremendous cheer at once rang out from the rebel line,
the occupants of which no doubt supposed that the explosion of the limber chest
had been caused by one of their shells.
---Kate Cummings, a Southern woman serving as a nurse in a
Confederate Army hospital with the Army of Tennessee, writes in her journal of
the lackluster service of the Georgia Militia (state troops) in guarding the
hospital areas,, and thus addressing the hardcore States Rights politics of
Gov. Joe Brown of Georgia, and his tendency to hold back men and material from
the Confederacy:
There are many tales related of the
Georgia militia. It seems that there was but one man in the whole place who
could be prevailed on to go out as a scout. But the poor militia are constantly
having some tales told on them. I think the governor is to blame for the
contempt in which the Georgia militia are held. He holds to the doctrine of
state rights with a greater tenacity than is at all needed at present.
According to his views, Georgia had not only a right to secede in the
beginning, but she can secede from the Confederacy any time she pleases. Many
of the Georgians fairly worship both him and Stephens. I think that both have
done our cause a vast deal of harm, at home and abroad. They have denounced the
administration time and again, because it has not done exactly as they thought
right. Whatever may be their views on that subject, I think they had better,
for the present, keep them to themselves, as they will be productive of nothing
but harm. If the present administration can not guide our affairs, why no one
else can, and it is the duty of every man to give it his hearty support. “My
country right, my country wrong, but still my country.”
