Civil War - Events

The Battle of New Hope Church was fought in Northern Georgia during the Atlanta Campaign. Union General William T. Sherman ordered General Joseph Hooker to attack what he believed was a small Confederate force near New Hope Church, but Hooker instead found the Confederate Army of Tennessee. The battle ended with heavy Union losses, and both armies entrenched the next day as Sherman continued trying to move around the Confederates.

Key facts about Union Operations at New Madrid and Island No. 10.

Brigadier-General John Pope's successful operations against New Madrid, Missouri and Island No. 10, on the Mississippi River, between February 28 and April 8, 1862, propelled the Union one step closer to placing a stranglehold on the Confederacy by seizing control of the Mississippi River down to Fort Pillow in Tennessee.

The Battle of New Market was fought on May 15, 1864, during the Lynchburg Campaign and the larger Shenandoah Valley Campaign. Confederate forces under General John C. Breckinridge defeated General Franz Sigel’s Union army after Virginia Military Institute cadets reinforced the Confederate line. The victory kept the Shenandoah Valley under Confederate control for most of the summer of 1864 and led Union officials to replace Sigel with General David Hunter.

The Battle of North Anna was fought from May 23 to 26, 1864, during the Overland Campaign. Confederate General Robert E. Lee positioned his Army of Northern Virginia in an inverted “V” formation, placing the advancing Union army in danger, but Lee became ill before he could launch his planned attack. General Ulysses S. Grant recognized the threat, withdrew his forces, and continued his advance southeast.

The Northern Virginia Campaign was fought from July 19 to September 1, 1862, between Union and Confederate forces in Northern Virginia. Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia defeated General John Pope’s Army of Virginia through a series of engagements that included Cedar Mountain, Second Bull Run, and Chantilly. The Confederate victory allowed Lee to launch the Maryland Campaign, while the Union dissolved the Army of Virginia and merged it with the Army of the Potomac.

The Battle of Oak Grove was fought on June 25, 1862, during the Peninsula Campaign. Union forces advanced toward Richmond but gained only about 600 yards before the fighting ended inconclusively. The battle was the first engagement of the Seven Days Battles.

The Battle of Okolona was fought on February 22, 1864, during the Meridian Campaign of the Civil War. Confederate cavalry under General Nathan Bedford Forrest defeated General William Sooy Smith’s larger Union cavalry force after Smith failed to reach Meridian as ordered. The Confederate victory allowed Forrest to continue his cavalry operations in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama during 1864.

The Battle of Opequon, also known as the Third Battle of Winchester, was fought on September 19, 1864, between General Philip Sheridan’s Army of the Shenandoah and General Jubal Early’s Army of the Valley. After heavy fighting near Winchester, Virginia, Union attacks against both Confederate flanks forced Early to retreat. The Union victory became a turning point in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1864.

The Battle of Orchard Knob was fought on November 23, 1863, during the Chattanooga Campaign. About 14,000 Union soldiers under General Thomas J. Wood quickly captured a key position from roughly 600 Confederate defenders under General Arthur Manigault. The Union victory marked the first engagement of General Ulysses S. Grant’s breakout from the Confederate Siege of Chattanooga.

The Overland Campaign was a Union offensive in eastern Virginia from May 4 to June 24, 1864, led by Ulysses S. Grant against Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia. Despite costly battles at the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, North Anna, and Cold Harbor, Grant refused to retreat and continued advancing. The campaign ended when Grant shifted his operations toward Petersburg and Richmond.

The Pea Ridge Campaign was a six-month Union offensive in Missouri and Arkansas from December 28, 1861, to July 12, 1862. General Samuel R. Curtis drove Sterling Price’s Missouri State Guard out of Missouri, defeated Earl Van Dorn’s Army of the West at the Battle of Pea Ridge, and advanced across Arkansas. The campaign ended when Curtis occupied Helena, Arkansas, which became an important Union base for operations along the Mississippi River.

The Battle of Pea Ridge, also known as the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern, was fought from March 6 to 8, 1862, between the Union Army of the Southwest and the Confederate Army of the West. Confederate General Earl Van Dorn attempted to outflank Union General Samuel R. Curtis, but Confederate command losses and supply problems weakened the attack. Curtis used his artillery to drive the Confederates from the battlefield, securing a major Union victory and strengthening federal control of Missouri.

The Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought between the United States of America and the Confederate States of America on July 20, 1864, near Atlanta, Georgia. Confederate forces under General John Bell Hood attacked Union forces under General William T. Sherman and General George H. Thomas, but the Union lines held. The Union victory forced Hood to withdraw and helped set the stage for the Battle of Atlanta.

Key facts about, the Battle of Peebles Farm, also known as the battles of Poplar Springs Church, Wyatt’s Farm, Chappell’s House, Pegram’s Farm, Vaughan Road, and Harmon Road,

Fought from September 30 – October 2, 1864, during the Petersburg Campaign, the Battle of Peeble's Farm, also known as the battles of Poplar Springs Church, Wyatt’s Farm, Chappell’s House, Pegram’s Farm, Vaughan Road, Harmon Road, was a successful Union offensive that extended the Federal lines south of Petersburg, Virginia.

The Peninsula Campaign was a Union offensive led by George B. McClellan in 1862 to capture Richmond, Virginia, and end the Civil War quickly. McClellan advanced up the Virginia Peninsula but repeatedly delayed his movements because he overestimated Confederate troop strength. After Robert E. Lee took command of Confederate forces, the Seven Days Battles drove the Army of the Potomac away from Richmond, and the campaign ended in a Confederate victory.

The Battle of Perryville was fought on October 8, 1862, during the Confederate Heartland Campaign. Confederate forces pushed parts of the Union Army backward, but Union reinforcements threatened the Confederate left flank. General Braxton Bragg withdrew after realizing that he faced nearly all of General Don Carlos Buell’s army, giving the Union a strategic victory and ending the Confederate invasion of Kentucky.

Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's Petersburg Campaign was a nine-month-long Union offensive launched in June 1864, that comprised nineteen major military engagements, plus additional minor skirmishes, that forced General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia to abandon the Confederate capital at Richmond in April 1865.

Facts about the First Battle of Petersburg, including dates, casualties, participants, who won, and more interesting details you might not know. This fact sheet provides a quick overview of the battle and is for kids doing research and students preparing for the AP U.S. History (APUSH) exam.