Headquarters Army Of Potomac
November 9, 1863
We have once more moved our Headquarters. . . . Reveille was
beaten so early that, when I popped my sleepy head out of the tent, there were
the stars, most magnificent, especially Venus who sat above the moon and looked
like a fire-ball. The moon was but a little one, but her circle was completed
by that kind of image you often see, only the figure of the Man-in-the-Moon was
plainly reflected on this image, a thing I never noticed before. These were the
astronomical observations of Lyman, as he stood in the sharp air, clad in a
flannel shirt and drawers. A sense of coldness about the legs roused me to a
sense of my position, and I speedily added more warm garments. Breakfast was
ready by the time it was light; and, every mouthful of beef I stowed away, I
expected to hear the cannon that would announce the opening of the great
battle. The General was confident of a battle and remarked cheerfully that “he meant
to pitch right into them.” The idea was that they would take a chosen position,
near Brandy Station, and there await our attack, for which they would not have
been obliged to wait long. The bulk of the army was therefore crossed at
Kelly's Ford, so as to advance with undivided force; General Sedgwick, however,
with nearly his whole corps, held the redoubt he had taken on the north side,
and, at the proper moment, was ready to throw his bridges, cross the river and
take them in the flank. An hour wore away, and there was no sound of battle; so
we all mounted, and rode to a small house on Mt. Holly. This is a low, steep
hill, close to Kelly's Ford and commanding it. . . . Presently there appeared a
couple of dragoons, with five fresh prisoners. . . . “How were you taken?” quoth the
Provost-Marshal. “Well, we were on guard and we went to sleep, and, when we
woke up, the first thing we seed was your skirmish line” (which was only a
roundabout way of saying they were common stragglers). “Where is the rest of
your army?” “All gone last night to the breastworks behind the Rapidan!” And
this was the gist of the matter. We passed Ewell's Headquarters, a little while
after, and there I learned that, when news of the capture of the redoubt was
brought him, he exclaimed with some profanity, “Then it's time we were out of
this!” and immediately issued orders to fall back, along the whole line, after
dark. There we crossed on a pontoon bridge, and found the 5th Corps massed, on
the other side. As the cavalcade trotted by, the men all ran to the road and
cheered and yelled most vociferously for General Meade. Soon we came up with
General Warren. He looked like a man of disappointed hopes, as he gazed round
the country and said, “There's nobody here — nobody!” And so we passed
on, and beheld our English friends, with the Staff of General Webb. They had a
very bewildered air, which seemed to say: “Oh, ah, where are these Rebel
persons? pray could you tell me where they are?” Near Brandy Station we met
good “Uncle John” Sedgwick, who said it was a cool day, as if there was nothing
particular on hand, and he hadn't been doing anything for a week or two. It was
now late on this Sunday afternoon and the troops were massing, to bivouac.
There seemed really no end of them; though but part of the army was there; yet
I never saw it look so big, which is accounted for by the fact that the country
is very open and rolling and we could see the whole of it quite swarming with
blue coats. . . . We recrossed the
Rappahannock at the railroad, and saw the fresh graves of the poor fellows who
fell in the assault of the redoubt. The Rebel officers said it was the most
gallant thing they had seen. Two regiments, the 6th Maine and 7th Wisconsin,
just at sundown, as the light was fading, charged up a long, naked slope, in
face of the fire of a brigade and of four cannon, and carried the works at the
point of the bayonet. . . . I think it
no small praise to General Meade to say that his plans were so well laid out
that our loss in all is but about 400. No useless slaughter, you see, though
there was plenty of room for a blunder, as you would have known had you seen
the lines of breastworks the fellows had; but we took part of them and scared
them out of the rest.
SOURCE: George R. Agassiz, Editor, Meade’s
Headquarters, 1863-1865: Letters of Colonel Theodore Lyman from the Wilderness
to Appomattox, p. 44-6
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