KNOXVILLE THREATENED BY BRECKINRIDGE.

287

ay from the combined movement upon Southwestern Virginia, and e Confederates time to strengthen their forces in that direction, ly along the line of the great railway. Burbridge remained several 1 Kentucky after his expulsion of Morgan, reorganizing and remountworn army, and then, late in September, he started with a fresh colrectly for the salt works of the Confederates, near Abingdon, in gton County, Virginia, to destroy them. He was met by

Oct. 2,
1864.

force under Breckinridge, and after a sharp conflict was back, with a loss of about three hundred and fifty men. munition was running low, so he retreated that night, leaving his d to the care of his foe.

• Oct, 28.

ouraged by this success, Breckinridge soon moved into East Tenand threatened Knoxville. Meanwhile General Gillem discovered a rate force in his rear, at Morristown, when he attacked ddenly, routed them, and inflicted upon them a loss of adred men and four guns. Soon after this Breckinridge moved cauforward, and on a very dark night fell suddenly upon. Nov. 12, 13. at Bull's Gap, charged gallantly up a steep, half-wooded he gloom, drove the Nationals from their intrenchments, and utterly them. Gillem fell back to Russellville, where he was again attacked ted, and after a loss of his battery, train, nearly all of his small-arms, away by his soldiers in their flight, and two hundred and twenty > fled to the shelter of the intrenchments at Knoxville. Breckinridge I him as far as Strawberry Plain, and for awhile held the country ed of that point in subjection to the Confederates.

er military movements in that mountain region were so intimately ted with, and auxiliary to, those of the Army of the Potomac against ond, that we will now turn to a consideration of the general events of ampaign from the Rapid Anna to the James, after noticing earlier ents of some detachments of National troops on the flanks and rear Army of Northern Virginia.

first of these movements which attracted much attention occurred In February, when General B. F. Butler, then in command of the ment of Virginia and North Carolina, lately vacated by General Fosanned and attempted the capture of Richmond, and the release of the prisoners there, by a sudden descent upon it. Arrangements were For a diversion in favor of this movement by the Army of the Potomac, hen, on the 5th of February, a column of cavalry and 1864. y, under General Wistar, about fifteen hundred strong, 1 rapidly northward from New Kent Court-House to the Chicka5, at Bottom's Bridge, intending to cross it there, General Sedgwick, a temporary command of the Army of the Potomac, in the absence of al Meade, made the diversion, in obedience to orders from Washington. nt Kilpatrick's cavalry across the Rapid Anna at Elly's Ford, and t's at Barnett's Ford, while two divisions of Hancock's infantry waded ream at Germania Ford. These skirmished sharply with the Confedwho stood unmoved in their position, and when the prescribed time execution of the raid had expired, these troops recrossed the Rapid with a loss of about two hundred men. Wistar's raid was fruitless,

288

KILPATRICK'S RAID ON RICHMOND.

owing to the escape, by bribery, of a culprit from prison, who gave the Confederates information of the approaching danger. Wistar found Bottom's Bridge and the line of the Chickahominy too strongly guarded, and there appeared too many evidences of strength beyond it to warrant him in attempting to cross the stream, so he returned to New Kent, without loss, his infantry having marched eighty miles within fifty-six hours, and his cavalry one hundred and fifty miles in fifty hours.

This raid was followed a little later by a more formidable one from the Army of the Potomac, led by General Kilpatrick. Its object was to effect the release of the Union captives at Richmond, then suffering terribly by cruelty and starvation in the filthy Libby Prison, and more horribly on bleak Belle Isle, in the James River, in front of Richmond-circumstances which we shall consider hereafter. Kilpatrick left camp at three o'clock on

1864.

Sunday morning," with five thousand cavalry, picked from his own • Feb. 28, and the divisions of Merritt and Gregg, and crossing the Rapid Anna at Elly's Ford, swept around the right flank of Lee's army, by way of Spottsylvania Court-House, and pushing rapidly toward Richmond, struck the Virginia Central railway, at Beaver Dam Station, on the evening of the 29th, where he had his first serious encounter with the Confederates. While small parties were out, tearing up the road and destroying public property, he was attacked by some troops that came up from Richmond, under the Maryland traitor, Bradley T. Johnson. These he defeated, in a

BELLE ISLE. 1

sharp skirmish, when he struck across the South Anna, and cut the Fredericksburg and Richmond railway at Kilby Station. This accomplished, he

pushed on by Ashland, and along the Brooks turnpike, and, early 1864. on the first day of March, halted within three miles and a half of Richmond, and within its outer line of fortifications, at which the Confederates had thrown down their arms and then fled into the city.

At Spottsylvania Court-House, about five hundred of Kilpatrick's best men, led by Colonel Ulric Dahlgren, a dashing young officer, and son of Admiral Dahlgren, then before Charleston, diverged from the main column, for the purpose of sweeping through the country more to the right, by way of Frederickshall, and through Louisa and Goochland Counties, to the James River, above Richmond, where they intended to destroy as much of the James River canal as possible, cross the stream, and, attacking the Confederate capital from the south simultaneously with Kilpatrick's assault

FORTIFICATIONS AROUND RICHMOND.

289

north, release the prisoners on Belle Isle. Kilpatrick listened or the sound of Dahlgren's guns, but hearing nothing from his 1 being stoutly opposed when attempting to push through the

ine of the Richmond fortifications, he thought it prudent to withHe did so, after a severe fight, and moving along the road toward csville, bivouacked within six miles of Richmond. Late in the evenVOL. III.-19

290

REPULSE OF THE NATIONALS AT RICHMOND.

ing, and just as the wearied troopers were falling into needed slumber, they were called to action by the summons of a two-gun battery that opened upon them, followed by a sharp charge. The assailants were quickly repulsed, but it being evident that little repose could be obtained there, Kilpatrick's column moved on, crossed the Chickahominy, and pushed for the Pamunkey. There were no means at hand for passing over that stream, so the raiders moved across the Richmond and York River railway, not far from White House, where they met a force coming up from New Kent Court-House, which General Butler had sent to the aid of Kilpatrick.' Thus far Kilpatrick had been pretty hotly pursued by the Confederates, with whom he skirmished frequently, but now the chase was at an end. He had lost about one hundred and fifty men during the raid, and gained five hundred prisoners and many horses. Although he failed to accomplish his main object, he had inflicted a serious blow upon the Confederates in the destruetion of railway property and stores.

Let us note the fortunes of the less-favored Dahlgren and his men meanwhile. After destroying the railway station at Frederickshall, about an hour after General Lee had passed over the road, he moved southward, led by a negro guide, who, ignorantly or treacherously, took the column to the James River, near Goochland Court-House, instead of to a fording place nearer Richmond. The exasperated men, believing the negro to have betrayed them, hung him on a tree, and then passed on down the north side of the James, somewhat injuring the canal on the way, and destroying the outbuildings of the farm of James A. Seddon, then Confederate "Secretary of War." They reached the outer line of fortifications around Richmond, on the northwest side of the city, at dark on the 2d of March, while rain was falling copiously, and carried them, but were met by such an overwhelming force when they approached the second line, that they were speedily repulsed, with loss. With the remnant of his force Dahlgren retreated toward the Chickahominy, annoyed at every step, for Kilpatrick's swoop had aroused the Confederates into intense action, and they swarmed around the pathway of the weaker invader. Dahlgren and about a hundred of his horsemen

became separated from the rest, and on the evening of the 3d," * March, 1864. just as they had crossed the Mattapony at Dabney's Ferry, into King-and-Queen County, they were attacked by a body of local Confede rate militia, when the gallant young leader of the troopers was shot dead, five bullets having entered his body. Several others were killed, and nearly all of the remainder of the one hundred were made prisoners. The rest of Dahlgren's command were scattered, and made their way to the Union lines as best they might.

The slayers of Dahlgren acted like savages in the treatment of his dead body, and the alarmed, mortified, and exasperated Conspirators, whose haughty pride had been deeply wounded by this invasion of their Capital by a handful of "cowardly Yankees," were disposed to make the ninety unfor tunate prisoners captured when Dahlgren was killed, to feel the weight of their hatred and vengeance, by executing the whole of them. It was con

DESTRUCTION OF UNION PRISONERS PROPOSED.

291

"cabinet" meeting, and Seddon, the Confederate "Secretary of. ote a letter to General Lee, asking his views concerning the matter, ne said the contemplated murder had "the sanction of the President the Cabinet, and General Bragg." General Lee had a good • not sanctioning such a proceeding then, for his own son was a nd held for retaliation whenever any Union prisoner should be put and the plea that prevailed against it was, "It is cruelty to Gen

onspirators were also ready to commit a still more diabolical act, ing Libby Prison to be blown up with gunpowder, with its crowd es, in the event of the latter attempting to escape. For the twofold of "firing the Southern heart" and offering to mankind some justior a deed so revolting, on the plea of retaliation, the Conspirators be published what purported to be copies of papers found on the Dahlgren, comprising an address to his men, a special order and da, in which it was avowed that the object of the expedition was e the Union prisoners, and, with their aid, destroy the bridges at d with torpedoes and fire, murder "Jeff. Davis and his cabinet," the city. It must be remembered that Dahlgren was not killed 5 days after Winder had "placed in readiness," according to the testimony of one of Seddon's men, just cited, the powder for the of the Union prisoners; so the plea of retaliation fails. It was d clearly proven that the papers were forgeries, based upon instruca orders found in Dahlgren's pocket, which in letter and spirit were et accordance with the rules and usages of honorable warfare. This n of the Conspirators availed them nothing. It only added another the black character of the rebellion, and with the relative preparamurder at Libby Prison, presents another evidence of the wickedEs leaders.

ahlgren's special order, found in his pocket, he said: "As General nay follow me, be careful not to give a false alarm." This referred pedition on which Custer set out," for the purpose, chiefly, ing the attention of the Confederates from that of KilCuster crossed the Rapid Anna at Banks's Mills Ford, een hundred cavalry, in light marching order, flanked Lee's army est, and pushed rapidly on by way of Madison Court-House to the River at Berner's Bridge, within four miles of Charlottesville,