It had been
nearly two months since the battle of Chancellorsville where
General Robert E. Lee had achieved his greatest victory.
With the skills of his great general, "Stonewall" Jackson,
Lee was able to defeat and turn back an offensive by the
vastly superior Army of the Potomac led by General Joseph
"Fighting Joe" Hooker. The price had been high, and some
would say too costly, as another result of the battle was
the loss of Lee's most talented general, Thomas J. Jackson.
Lee's first reaction to the death of Jackson was that it was
"God's will," and he felt sure that the Lord would raise up
another leader equal to Jackson's abilities. In future
campaigns he would realize that no one could fill his shoes
and the loss of Jackson changed the course of the war.
In May 1863
General U.S. Grant was laying siege to the strategically
located city of Vicksburg, Mississippi. President Jefferson
Davis called the city the "link that holds the South's two
halves together." If Grant could take the city, the
Federals would control the Mississippi River an split the
Confederacy. Davis wanted Lee to do something about Grant.
There was talk of sending Virginia troops to General
Johnston in the west to beat back Grant and save the city.
Lee had a bolder plan. He would invade the North and
possibly take the pressure off Vicksburg with his new
invasion. With another major victory on northern soil,
perhaps Lincoln might even talk terms for peace.
On the rainy morning of June 25, 1863 General
Lee with his three corps of about 65,000 men crossed the
Potomac River in a desperate endeavor to win independence
for the Confederate States of America. As Lee and
Longstreet crossed with the First corps and rode out of the
river that had divided a nation, a band struck up the tune
of Dixie as they entered Maryland. No one know what lay
ahead, but spirits were high and the look of power and
determination was seen on Lee's face, as he had come to
believe in the invincibility of his army.
