Malvern Hill

Joined
May 4, 2018
I'm doing a book on Malvern Hill as a sequel to "A Bloody Day at Gaines' Mill" (McFarland, Sept 28, 2018). Please, please deluge me with any information you might have on any regiment or battery that participated.
Of especial interest:

Magruder had 10 batteries of artillery, yet only McCarthy's Richmond Howitzers (attached to Barksdale's Brigade, Magruder's Division) is accounted for. What were the rest doing?

At Gaines' Mill, Lee put Harvey Hill under Jackson's command, creating the Reinforced Valley Army, being the Valley Army (3 small divisions Whiting, Winder/Jackson, and Ewell) plus Harvey Hill's huge division, each just over 10,00 men. The Valley Army led the march on July 1, and Whiting's Division (Law and Hood) led Whiting's Division. Winder and Ewell were next. I need more detailed information from Harvey Hill's men, as where they deployed ad how they attacked are still confusing.

First person accounts are crucial. Sears, Gallager, Foote, etc. are all just regurgitating someone else's ideas, so these are less important. However, first person accounts from them can be helpful.

Union accounts are also crucial. I've got a lot out of Porter's men, but not that much out of Couch's men, who are:
4th Corps (Keyes) Couch’s 1st Division 1st Brigade (Howe) 55 NY 62 NY Anderson Zouaves
93 Pa 98Pa 102 PA 2d Brigade (Abercrombie) 65 NY 67NY 23 Pa 31Pa 61Pa
3d Brigade (Palmer) 7 Ma 10 Ma 36 NY 2 RI

What I need to know is WHAT they did, WHERE they did it, and WHEN.

There are a LOT of Zouave units in these, yet so far I have not seen a single reference to red uniforms at all.

Federal Artillery is also important. So far, I have established three lines of guns. THE gunline, facing north near the Crews and West houses, 18 guns (6 rifles, 6 Naps 6 rifles). The Siege Gun line, with 5 30 lb Parrotts and a couple of Whitworths, in front of the Malvern House, a mile away from the Crews and West Houses, and the Western Gunline, along Malvern Cliffs facing WEST, away from the Confedrates. Some say there was another gunline behind THE gunline, curving generally northeast and east, but some others disagree. Help on this would be appreciated.

As a shameless teaser: Co F. of Berdan's Sharpshooters Lt. Col Ripley commanding, were deployed on the northern edge of Armistead's Ravine, in a field of mature wheat, gently waving in the breeze. As Armistead's skirmishers advanced, they were stopped cold by withering fire from the Sharps Infantry rifles of Ripley's men. This put Armistead in a bind. He had artillery on the way, coming to occupy the knoll, but the Union Sharpshooters still controlled it with deadly accurate fire, and lots of it. Pressed for time, Armistead ordered all three regiments in his front line to charge. Eight Hundred yards away, the union artillerymen were astonished to see a brigade come out of the woods. Even the gunners on the Napoleons must have smiled, as the Rebels were within easy range of their smoothbores.
 
Heck I live in Blairs, Home Boy! Your post is actually of great use, but not this second. I have a lot on Armistead's Brigade, and have a pretty good idea of what they did. I'll fill in pics and people once the more general stuff is written, and this will come in handy, as would any info on how they met their demise that day, or any stories thereof. The 38th's story is pretty darn good so far!
 
I'm doing a book on Malvern Hill as a sequel to "A Bloody Day at Gaines' Mill" (McFarland, Sept 28, 2018). Please, please deluge me with any information you might have on any regiment or battery that participated...

There are a LOT of Zouave units in these, yet so far I have not seen a single reference to red uniforms at all...
I'm pretty useless when it comes to any of your questions, but will observe that regarding zouaves, despite most illustrations to the contrary, not all were clothed in the traditional red and blue of their French counterparts. I can't say for any other than the famous 5th N.Y. (which WERE) but there were also zouave uniforms of gray and light blue, trimmed in various colors.
 
I cannot find a SINGLE reference to any yankees wearing red/blue at Malvern Hill. The 5th, with which I reenacted for 10 years, was on the back side of Malvern Hill guarding the river approach aka backdoor. It appears that all of the early war Zouave uniforms had worn out and everyone was wearing union blue. This is interesting because there were a lot of "Zouave" regiments on Malvern Hill.
 
Like the Federals before them, the Confederates on July 1st, were greatly hampered by the regions limited number of north-south roads. Jackson’s command of four divisions which included D. H. Hill’s, was to lead the way from Glendale along the Quaker Road, with Magruder following Jackson on the same road. Two of Huger’s brigades used a lane off of Long Bridge Road into the Carter farm, west of the Quaker Road. Huger’s other two brigades who were still well back, would follow. The commands of Longstreet and A. P. Hill in reserve would move off the Long Bridge Road onto the Carter farm.[1]

The Confederate troops in D. H. Hill’s Division had set out in the morning, manoeuvring to their various assignments. “Today we had a repetition of yesterday’s scenes, burned wagons, troops of prisoners, houses full of their wounded, from a battle fought yesterday, June 30th. About 10 A.M., we came near the enemy, but were held back in various positions and manoeuvres till near 3 P.M., when we found ourselves just in front of a powerful Federal battery at Malvern Hills, near Poindexter’s farm, of over twenty large pieces firing together, and so concentrating their efforts as to throw all their shots across a space of 150 to 200 yards along our lines.”[2]

Stonewall Jackson’s command arrived on the field, and as he had done throughout the campaign, Jackson took the left. Chase Whiting’s two brigades turned eastward off the Quaker Road into the Poindexter farm. Behind them, in immediate support or more distant support, came Charles Winder’s four brigades and Dick Ewell’s three. D. H. Hill, still attached to Jackson’s command, positioned his five brigades to Jackson’s right, astride the Quaker Road, making up the centre of the Confederate position. Lee had intended Magruder, marching behind Jackson on the Quaker Road, to take a posting to Hill’s right, west of the road. Magruder and his six brigades were nowhere in sight, however, so the place went to two brigades already on the scene, Armistead’s and Wright’s from Huger’s Division. Huger himself and his two other brigades were also missing. It was close to noon now, and the problem that had plagued Lee repeatedly in the past week, communication between units and between Lee and his units, was already once again a problem. It was a problem that would grow worse.[3]


[1] “To the Gates of Richmond – The Peninsula Campaign” by Stephen W. Sears, page 314

[2] “The Beacon”, August 8, 1862, Letter of J. J. Hutchinson (5th Alabama Infantry) dated July 14, 1862

[3] “To the Gates of Richmond – The Peninsula Campaign” by Stephen W. Sears, page 316
 
Like the Federals before them, the Confederates on July 1st, were greatly hampered by the regions limited number of north-south roads. Jackson’s command of four divisions which included D. H. Hill’s, was to lead the way from Glendale along the Quaker Road, with Magruder following Jackson on the same road. Two of Huger’s brigades used a lane off of Long Bridge Road into the Carter farm, west of the Quaker Road. Huger’s other two brigades who were still well back, would follow. The commands of Longstreet and A. P. Hill in reserve would move off the Long Bridge Road onto the Carter farm.[1]

The Confederate troops in D. H. Hill’s Division had set out in the morning, manoeuvring to their various assignments. “Today we had a repetition of yesterday’s scenes, burned wagons, troops of prisoners, houses full of their wounded, from a battle fought yesterday, June 30th. About 10 A.M., we came near the enemy, but were held back in various positions and manoeuvres till near 3 P.M., when we found ourselves just in front of a powerful Federal battery at Malvern Hills, near Poindexter’s farm, of over twenty large pieces firing together, and so concentrating their efforts as to throw all their shots across a space of 150 to 200 yards along our lines.”[2]

Stonewall Jackson’s command arrived on the field, and as he had done throughout the campaign, Jackson took the left. Chase Whiting’s two brigades turned eastward off the Quaker Road into the Poindexter farm. Behind them, in immediate support or more distant support, came Charles Winder’s four brigades and Dick Ewell’s three. D. H. Hill, still attached to Jackson’s command, positioned his five brigades to Jackson’s right, astride the Quaker Road, making up the centre of the Confederate position. Lee had intended Magruder, marching behind Jackson on the Quaker Road, to take a posting to Hill’s right, west of the road. Magruder and his six brigades were nowhere in sight, however, so the place went to two brigades already on the scene, Armistead’s and Wright’s from Huger’s Division. Huger himself and his two other brigades were also missing. It was close to noon now, and the problem that had plagued Lee repeatedly in the past week, communication between units and between Lee and his units, was already once again a problem. It was a problem that would grow worse.[3]


[1] “To the Gates of Richmond – The Peninsula Campaign” by Stephen W. Sears, page 314

[2] “The Beacon”, August 8, 1862, Letter of J. J. Hutchinson (5th Alabama Infantry) dated July 14, 1862

[3] “To the Gates of Richmond – The Peninsula Campaign” by Stephen W. Sears, page 316


Love the 5th AL letter, but beware of Sears. For example, At Gaines Mill, Lee used 4 roads for 4 divisions. Would he really dump three onto one at Malvern Hill? Of course not. That's about 25,000 men on a single lane road. But- Freeman said he did this, so Sears regurgitates it as gospel. In fact, Magruder went down the Glendale-New market Road, aka the Long Bridge Road. What book is this from?
 
Love the 5th AL letter, but beware of Sears. For example, At Gaines Mill, Lee used 4 roads for 4 divisions. Would he really dump three onto one at Malvern Hill? Of course not. That's about 25,000 men on a single lane road. But- Freeman said he did this, so Sears regurgitates it as gospel. In fact, Magruder went down the Glendale-New market Road, aka the Long Bridge Road. What book is this from?

The letter is from an unpublished manuscript I have written on the 5th Alabama Infantry Regiment.
 
I cannot find a SINGLE reference to any yankees wearing red/blue at Malvern Hill. The 5th, with which I reenacted for 10 years, was on the back side of Malvern Hill guarding the river approach aka backdoor. It appears that all of the early war Zouave uniforms had worn out and everyone was wearing union blue. This is interesting because there were a lot of "Zouave" regiments on Malvern Hill.
Well, the 5th N. Y. must've gotten more somewhere between July 1 and August 30 because they were wearing them at Second Bull Run when they were routed along with the 10th N. Y. Zouaves by Hood's Texas Brigade, as shown on the cover of this book on the battle:

Stonewall Books 010.jpg
 
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