Overview
Early’s Valley Campaign was one of three campaigns that formed the Shenandoah Valley Campaigns of 1864. The campaign followed the Battle of Lynchburg, where General Jubal Early and the Confederate Army of the Valley defeated Union forces on June 17 and 18, 1864. After driving Union troops from the Shenandoah Valley, Early launched an offensive into Maryland.
Early led about 14,000 soldiers past Harpers Ferry and crossed the Potomac River at Shepherdstown on July 5 and 6. Union officials quickly assembled a force under General Lew Wallace to delay Early’s advance toward Washington, D.C. On July 9, Early defeated Wallace’s 5,800 soldiers at the Battle of Monocacy. Although Wallace lost, the action delayed Early’s advance and gave General Ulysses S. Grant time to send reinforcements to the capital.
Early advanced toward Fort Stevens on July 11, but Union reinforcements arrived overnight and pushed his forces back the next day. Early then returned to the Shenandoah Valley, ending the last Confederate offensive fought on Union soil.
Early’s successes threatened President Abraham Lincoln’s re-election campaign and troubled Grant. Grant responded by sending General Philip Sheridan into the Shenandoah Valley in August. Sheridan later defeated Early at the Battle of Opequon and the Battle of Fisher’s Hill, ending the Confederate offensive.
Essential Facts
- Also Known As: Early’s Raid.
- Date: June–August 1864.
- Location: Eastern Maryland near Washington, D.C.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: Lew Wallace, Alexander M. McCook and Horatio G. Wright.
- CSA Commanders: Lieutenant General Jubal Early.
- Who Won: The outcome was inconclusive.
- Campaign: Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1864.
- Era: Civil War, May–August, 1864.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: More than 1,500 killed, wounded, captured, or missing.
- Forces Engaged: The 6th, 19th, and 22nd Corps of the United States Army and a temporary force made up mostly of Hundred Days Men.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 15,000.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: An estimated 1,200 to 1,400 killed, wounded, captured, or missing.
- Forces Engaged: Army of the Valley.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 14,000.
Significance
Early’s Valley Campaign is important to American History because it brought a Confederate army close to Washington, D.C., and created political and military problems for the Union. Jubal Early’s victory at Monocacy and advance toward Fort Stevens showed that the Confederacy could still threaten Northern territory. The campaign forced General Ulysses S. Grant to move soldiers away from eastern Virginia to defend the capital. Early’s successes, combined with increasing Union casualties, threatened President Abraham Lincoln’s re-election effort. After Early withdrew, Grant sent General Philip Sheridan into the Shenandoah Valley, where Union victories at Opequon and Fisher’s Hill ended Early’s offensive.
History
On March 12, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Ulysses S. Grant as General-in-Chief of the Armies of the United States. Upon his arrival in Washington, Grant drafted a plan to have the various Union armies in the field act in concert and strike the Confederacy from several directions. Grant would travel with Major General George Meade and his Army of the Potomac in pursuit of General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia in the Richmond, Virginia area; Major General William T. Sherman would march three Federal armies south from Chattanooga, Tennessee to capture Atlanta, Georgia; and Major General Franz Sigel would invade western Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley to cut off supplies to Lee’s army and to prevent any Confederate attempts to attack Meade’s flank.
Battle of Lynchburg
The Shenandoah Valley runs in a north-south direction through approximately 140 miles of western Virginia between the Allegheny and Blue Ridge Mountains. Because of its exceptionally fertile farmland, the valley served as the breadbasket for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. In May 1864, Sigel marched 9,000 to 10,000 Union soldiers into the valley with orders from Grant to destroy the railroad center at Lynchburg, Virginia. Sigel’s short-lived operation, known as the Lynchburg Campaign, ended on June 17 and 18 when Confederate Lieutenant General Jubal Early and his Army of the Valley moved into the Shenandoah Valley from the south and defeated the Federals at the Battle of Lynchburg.
Battle of Monocacy — the “Battle that Saved Washington”
After driving Federal forces out of the Shenandoah Valley following the Battle of Lynchburg, Early launched his own offensive. His operations got off to a good start as he marched his 14,000-man Army of the Valley, past the Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry, and crossed the Potomac River into Maryland at Shepherdstown on July 5 and 6. Desperate to halt a possible Confederate assault on Washington, Federal leaders hastily assembled a small army commanded by Major General Lew Wallace to delay Early until Grant could send reinforcements to protect the capital. On July 9, Early’s army defeated Wallace’s 5,800 soldiers at the Battle of Monocacy near Frederick, Maryland. Although Wallace lost the battle, he bought precious time for Grant to shift troops from eastern Virginia to check Early’s advance. For that reason, Monocacy became known as the “Battle that Saved Washington.”
Battle of Fort Stevens
On July 11, Early’s army advanced on weakly defended Fort Stevens near the outskirts of Washington. Overnight, Union reinforcements arrived and repulsed Early’s assault the next day. During the Battle of Fort Stevens, President Lincoln came under fire from Confederate sharpshooters as he watched the engagement. When Early realized that veteran Union soldiers defended the capital, he returned to the Shenandoah Valley, ending the last Confederate offensive fought on Union soil. Throughout July, Early’s soldiers fought an inconclusive series of engagements with Federal troops in the Shenandoah Valley.
Outcome
The outcome of Early’s Valley Campaign threatened President Lincoln’s re-election bid in November, thanks to Early’s successes in Maryland and presence in the Shenandoah Valley. Coupled with Grant’s mounting casualty totals in eastern Virginia, Southerners had good reason to hope that the Northern electorate might opt for a peace candidate and a negotiated settlement with the Confederacy to end the war. Outside of the political arena, Confederate operations in the valley had become a source of irritation to Grant. On August 1, Grant sent Major General Philip Sheridan to the valley and, on August 7, placed him in charge of the newly created Army of the Shenandoah, with orders to neutralize Early’s operations. After a slow beginning, Sheridan’s soldiers defeated Early’s outnumbered army at the Battle of Opequon (September 19) and the Battle of Fisher’s Hill (September 22), ending the Confederate offensive.
Early’s Valley Campaign was one of three campaigns that comprised the Shenandoah Valley Campaigns of 1864. The other two campaigns were the Lynchburg Campaign (May to June) and Sheridan’s Valley Campaign (August to October).
Timeline
- 1864, March 12 — President Abraham Lincoln appointed Ulysses S. Grant General-in-Chief of the United States Armies.
- 1864, June — Lee ordered Early to leave Petersburg and move his army to the Shenandoah Valley.
- 1864, June 17–18 — Early defeated General David Hunter at the Battle of Lynchburg.
- 1864, June 28 — Early informed Lee that he planned to threaten Washington and capture it if possible.
- 1864, July 2 — Union officials were warned that a large Confederate Army was moving toward Maryland.
- 1864, July 5–6 — Early’s Army of the Valley crossed the Potomac River into Maryland at Shepherdstown.
- 1864, July 9 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Monocacy; however, their advance toward Washington was delayed.
- 1864, July 10 — Early continued his advance toward Washington.
- 1864, July 11–12 — Union forces stopped Early’s advance at the Battle of Fort Stevens.
- July 1864 — Confederate and Union troops fought several engagements in the Shenandoah Valley without a clear result.
- 1864, August 1 — Ulysses S. Grant sent Philip Sheridan to the Shenandoah Valley.
- 1864, August 7 — Grant placed Sheridan in command of the newly created Army of the Shenandoah.
- 1864, September 19 — Sheridan defeated Early’s army at the Battle of Opequon.
- 1864, September 22 — Sheridan defeated Early at the Battle of Fisher’s Hill, ending the Confederate offensive.
AP US History
Definition
Early’s Valley Campaign (1864) — Early’s Valley Campaign was a Confederate offensive led by General Jubal Early from June through August 1864. After winning the Battle of Lynchburg, Early crossed into Maryland, defeated General Lew Wallace at the Battle of Monocacy, and threatened Washington, D.C. Union reinforcements stopped Early at the Battle of Fort Stevens. General Philip Sheridan later defeated Early at Opequon and Fisher’s Hill, ending the Confederate offensive.
Alignment
Early’s Valley Campaign is part of the following AP US History sections:
