May 12th, 1864 - Bloody fighting at Spotsylvania

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At dawn on May 12, Union General Winfield Scott Hancock’s troops emerged from the morning fog and overran the Rebel trenches, taking nearly 3,000 prisoners and more than a dozen cannons. While the Yankees erupted in celebration, the Confederates counterattacked and began to drive the Federals back. The battle raged for over 20 hours along the center of the Confederate line—the top of an inverted U—which became known as the “Bloody Angle.” Lee’s men eventually constructed a second line of defense behind the original Rebel trenches, and fighting ceased just before dawn on May 13.

Around the Bloody Angle, the dead lay five deep, and bodies had to be moved from the trenches to make room for the living. The action around Spotsylvania shocked even the grizzled veterans of the two great armies. Said one officer, “I never expect to be fully believed when I tell what I saw of the horrors of Spotsylvania.”

And yet the battle was not done; the armies slugged it out for another week. In spite of his losses, Grant persisted, writing to General Henry Halleck in Washington, D.C., “I will fight it out on this line if it takes all summer.”
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/north-and-south-see-bloody-day-at-the-bloody-angle

the-battle-of-spotsylvania-henry-alexander-ogden.jpg
 
Forgive my ignorance, but I thought the Inverted U was called the Mule Shoe, and that the Bloody Angle was a specific spot on the west side of the Mule Shoe?
 
Forgive my ignorance, but I thought the Inverted U was called the Mule Shoe, and that the Bloody Angle was a specific spot on the west side of the Mule Shoe?

That is correct. The Mule Shoe was also known as the Salient and the Bloody Angle was a section on the west side of the Salient.

R
 
Forgive my ignorance, but I thought the Inverted U was called the Mule Shoe, and that the Bloody Angle was a specific spot on the west side of the Mule Shoe?
Often the the name "Bloody Angle" is used to describe the Mule Shoe salient overall, but it originally referred to an angle within the line on the western side of the salient, also known as the "Western Angle." The fighting took place all across the salient that day but the worst was there. Due to the terrain, Grant considered that side of the salient to be the weakest and concentrated the most troops there after the initial breakthrough and Confederate counter-attacks.
 
That is correct. The Mule Shoe was also known as the Salient and the Bloody Angle was a section on the west side of the Salient.

R

Thanks, Captain.

I didn't want to seem pedantic, but I had been reading up on Spotsylvania very recently, and wanted to make sure that I understood what I read correctly.

My reading is part of my self-assigned project to research the Civil War record of my wife's great, great grandfather, Lt. George Washington Ward of the 3rd North Carolina State Troops.

Lt. Ward and his unit were part of Steurt's Brigade on the east side of the Mule Shoe on May 12. The 3rd NC was totally overwhelmed by the federal assault from Gen. Hancock's II Corps and almost all of the men were killed, wounded or captured. Lt. Ward avoided capture, but was wounded.

Although the 3rd NC would continue operation in greatly reduced form, it was only a shadow of its former self after Spotsylvania. There were only about 60 officers and men left when they surrenders at Appomattox a year later.
 
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