Overview
In early May 1863, Confederate General Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia defeated General Joseph Hooker and the Army of the Potomac at the Battle of Chancellorsville. Lee then decided to move north because his army needed food, horses, and equipment, and two years of fighting had devastated northern Virginia. His troops started moving from the Culpeper area on June 3, 1863, as part of the Gettysburg Campaign of 1863.
Lee used General J.E.B. Stuart and his cavalry to conceal the Confederate army’s movements. On June 9, Union Major General Alfred Pleasonton attacked Stuart at the Battle of Brandy Station, but Pleasonton failed to locate Lee’s main encampment.
As Lee moved northwest of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Stuart’s cavalry advanced through the Loudoun Valley on the eastern side. Stuart protected the mountain gaps and the Ashby’s Gap and Snickersville turnpikes to prevent Federal scouting parties from gathering information about Lee’s army.
On June 16, Hooker ordered Pleasonton to determine the location, strength, and movements of the Confederate army. The next day, Pleasonton sent General David Gregg to occupy Aldie, where the two strategic roads converged.
Gregg sent General Judson Kilpatrick forward. At about 2:30 p.m., Kilpatrick encountered Confederate pickets east of Aldie and drove them through the village. Confederate reinforcements under Colonel Thomas Rosser counterattacked and forced the Federals back into town. Fierce cavalry fighting continued west of Aldie until about 8:00 p.m., when Stuart ordered Colonel Thomas Munford to withdraw for fighting near Middleburg.
Union forces controlled Aldie after the battle but suffered heavy casualties and gained little useful information about Lee’s movements. The battle ended inconclusively.
Essential Facts
- Date: June 17, 1863.
- Location: Aldie, Loudoun County, Virginia.
- USA Commanders: Judson Kilpatrick, David Gregg, and Alfred Pleasonton.
- CSA Commanders: Thomas Munford, Thomas Rosser, and J.E.B. Stuart.
- Who Won: The outcome of the Battle of Aldie was inconclusive.
- Campaign: Gettysburg Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, July–December, 1863.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: An estimated 305 killed and wounded.
- Forces Engaged: Various cavalry regiments of the Army of the Potomac.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 2,000.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: An estimated 110 to 119 killed and wounded.
- Forces Engaged: Various cavalry regiments of the Army of Northern Virginia.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 1,500.
Significance
The Battle of Aldie is important to American History because Union cavalry gained control of Aldie and the junction of two important turnpikes, but they suffered heavy casualties and failed to obtain significant information about the Army of Northern Virginia. Confederate cavalry continued to screen Lee’s movements on the western side of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The inconclusive battle allowed Lee to continue his march north toward Maryland and Pennsylvania, which eventually led to the Battle of Gettysburg.
History
In early May 1863, Confederate General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia soundly defeated Major General Joseph Hooker and his Army of the Potomac at the Battle of Chancellorsville. Despite the Confederate victory, Lee’s army needed food, horses, and equipment after the battle. With northern Virginia ravaged by two years of combat, Lee took the war to the North. Lee planned to disengage from Union forces near Fredericksburg, move the Army of Northern Virginia northwest across the Blue Ridge Mountains, and then push northeast through the Shenandoah Valley into Maryland and Pennsylvania. Lee began merging his army near Culpeper, Virginia, and troop movements began on June 3, 1863.
Battle of Brandy Station
To mask his intentions and screen the assembly of his invasion force, Lee stationed his cavalry, commanded by Major General J. E. B. Stuart, at Brandy Station, a few miles northeast of Culpeper. On June 9, Union Major General Alfred Pleasonton and his Cavalry Corps launched a surprise attack against Stuart’s Cavalry Division near Brandy Station. After an all-day fight at the Battle of Brandy Station, Pleasonton retired without discovering Lee’s main encampment at Culpeper, only six miles away.
Confederates Approach Winchester
After the Battle of Brandy Station, Lee’s army continued its trek northwest toward Winchester in the Shenandoah Valley, where roughly 6,900 troops were garrisoned under the command of Brigadier General Robert Milroy. On June 13, Lieutenant General Richard Ewell and his 2nd Army Corps reached Winchester and started a three-day engagement that forced Milroy’s evacuation, clearing the upper Shenandoah Valley for Lee’s advancement.
As Lee continued to move north on the west side of the Blue Ridge Mountains, he ordered Stuart’s Cavalry to move in the same direction through the Loudoun Valley on the east side of the mountains, screening the Confederate invasion force. Lee instructed Stuart to prevent Federal reconnaissance forces from advancing through gaps in the mountains to gather information about the Army of Northern Virginia’s movements. Part of Stuart’s orders included holding the Ashby’s Gap Turnpike and the Snickersville Turnpike, two strategic roads leading through the mountains.
Frustrated by the lack of intelligence about Lee’s movements, on June 16, 1863, Hooker ordered Pleasonton, “to give him information of where the enemy is, his force, and his movements.” On June 17, Pleasonton ordered Major General David Gregg’s division to seize and occupy Aldie, where the two roads converged, setting the stage for a cavalry engagement that afternoon.
The Battle of Aldie Begins
Gregg assigned Brigadier General Judson Kilpatrick and his troops to lead the advance on Aldie. At about 2:30 p.m., Kilpatrick’s brigade encountered Colonel Thomas Munford’s Confederate pickets east of town. Kilpatrick’s troopers quickly pushed the outnumbered Confederates back through the village until the 5th Virginia Cavalry reinforced them.
The Virginians, commanded by Colonel Thomas Rosser, forced the Federals back into Aldie where they established a defensive position. Rosser occupied the high ground west of town. Following a short lull, the rest of the day featured fierce but indecisive, cavalry engagements west of town, especially around the two turnpikes.
The Battle of Aldie Ends
At about 8 p.m., Stuart ordered Munford to disengage because his troopers were needed at another engagement at nearby Middleburg.
Outcome
The Battle of Aldie was inconclusive. The battle cost the Union 305 dead and wounded compared to roughly 120 Confederate casualties. The 1st Massachusetts Cavalry was hit particularly hard. Of the 294 soldiers from that unit, 198 were killed or wounded. Among Union officers who distinguished themselves at the Battle of Aldie was the young Brigadier General George A. Custer, who led several charges during the engagement.
Timeline
- 1863, April 30–May 6 — Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia defeated Joseph Hooker and the Army of the Potomac at the Battle of Chancellorsville.
- 1863, June 3 — Confederate troop movements started as Lee gathered his army near Culpeper, Virginia, for his invasion of the North.
- 1863, June 5 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Franklin’s Crossing.
- 1863, June 9 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Brandy Station.
- 1863, June 13–15 — The Confederates won the Second Battle of Winchester.
- 1863, June 16 — Joseph Hooker ordered Pleasonton to gather information about the location, strength, and movements of Lee’s army.
- 1863, June 17
- Pleasonton ordered David Gregg’s division to seize and occupy Aldie.
- Judson Kilpatrick’s cavalry encountered Thomas Munford’s Confederate pickets east of Aldie at about 2:30 p.m.
- Confederate reinforcements under Thomas Rosser forced Union cavalry back into Aldie, and fierce fighting continued west of town.
- J.E.B. Stuart ordered Munford to withdraw at about 8 p.m. because his troops were needed near Middleburg.
- Union forces controlled Aldie but failed to gain significant information about Lee’s movements.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Aldie (1863) — The Battle of Aldie was a cavalry engagement of the Gettysburg Campaign fought on June 17, 1863, near Aldie, Virginia. Union cavalry under Judson Kilpatrick pushed Confederate pickets through the village, but reinforcements under Thomas Rosser forced the Federals back. Fighting continued west of town around two strategic turnpikes. J.E.B. Stuart later ordered Thomas Munford to withdraw for fighting near Middleburg. Union forces held Aldie but failed to discover Robert E. Lee’s movements, leaving the outcome inconclusive.
Alignment
The Battle of Aldie is part of the following AP US History sections:
Suggested Reading
Please note that this section contains affiliate links to Amazon.com. If you click the links and purchase anything, American History Central may earn a commission.
Mingus and Wittenberg, the authors of more than 40 Civil War books, present a history of the opening moves of the Gettysburg Campaign in the 2-volume study. This compelling study is one of the first to integrate the military, media, political, social, economic, and civilian perspectives with rank-and-file accounts from the soldiers of both armies as they inexorably march toward their destiny at Gettysburg. This first volume covers June 3–21, 1863, while the second covers June 22–30, completes the march, and carries the armies to the eve of the Battle of Gettysburg.
This book is a tactical study of fighting from June 17 to 22, 1863, at Aldie, Middleburg, and Upperville, placed within the strategic context of the Gettysburg Campaign. It is based on Robert O’Neill’s 30 years of research and access to previously unpublished documents, which reveal startling new information. Since the fighting in Loudoun Valley of Virginia ended in June 1863, one perspective has prevailed — that Brigadier General Alfred Pleasonton, who commanded the Cavalry Corps, Army of the Potomac, disobeyed orders. According to published records, Pleasonton’s superiors, including President Abraham Lincoln, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, and army commander Joseph Hooker, ordered Pleasonton to search for General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia during a critical stage of the Gettysburg Campaign, and Pleasonton ignored their orders. Recently discovered documents — discussed in this book — prove otherwise.
