Sketch of the 2nd Battle of Rappahannock Station

AUG

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Rappahannock Station 2.jpg

https://www.loc.gov/item/2004660483/

Quite a detailed sketch of the battle by field artist Alfred R. Waud. Caption: "Capture of the fortifications on the Rappahannock at the Railway Bridge--by the right wing commanded by Genl. Sedgwick". Appears to be Emory Upton's charge on Hoke's Brigade. You can see the bend in the river and pontoon bridges in the background.

RP 1.jpg

RP 2.jpg

RP 3.jpg
 
Very cool, I had never seen the Alfred Waud sketch before. Thanks for posting!

I think this was a pretty important though small battle that gets little recognition. First, it represented a clear-cut victory for the Army of the Potomac, something still in pretty short supply even after Gettysburg. Second, this battle also seems to mark the emergence of Upton, who went on to a pretty significant career as a combat leader & also a theoretician.
 
Very cool, I had never seen the Alfred Waud sketch before. Thanks for posting!

I think this was a pretty important though small battle that gets little recognition. First, it represented a clear-cut victory for the Army of the Potomac, something still in pretty short supply even after Gettysburg. Second, this battle also seems to mark the emergence of Upton, who went on to a pretty significant career as a combat leader & also a theoretician.
Yeah, few know that this was in a way the precursor to Upton's famous attack on the Mule Shoe at Spotsylvania. I don't know whether he utilized the column formation at Rappahannock Station or not, but he obviously realized that he succeeded with a quick bayonet rush, covering the ground quickly without sustaining many losses. Though the fact that the battle was at night also contributed to their success.
 
Here's another sketch by Edwin Forbes of the day after the battle. Captured Confederate flags are in the foreground.

Rappahannock Station 6.jpg

https://www.loc.gov/item/2004661445/

1,600 Confederates are reported to have been captured along with four artillery pieces and seven battle flags. One of the Confederate brigades at Rappahannock Station was the Harry T. Hays' famed 1st Louisiana Brigade. According to Lee's Tigers by Terry L. Jones, the brigade had 699 men captured and less than 500 present for duty on November 10; however, 500 of the captured Louisianians were later exchanged and returned to the brigade in early March 1864.
 
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