The Sword of Lincoln
The Army of the Potomac
Chapter 6: "If We Were Defeated, the Army and the Country Would Be Lost"
The sound was eerie -- many men who heard it described it as "infernal," as if it came from the bowels of hell. A high-pitched "ki-i," the yell was emitted from the throats of Confederate soldiers on the attack. During the final week of June 1862, this fearsome screech rolled across the woodlots and bottomlands of the Virginia Peninsula, heralding the rise of Southern arms in the East. When the Seven Days Campaign ended on July 1, the "Rebel Yell" echoed across a changed landscape of war.
Ironically, after weeks of slow, methodical Union steps toward Richmond, the overdue reckoning began with an advance by the Federals on June 25. With Fitz John Porter's Fifth Corps north of the Chickahominy, isolated from the rest of the army, George McClellan wanted to shorten the distance to Porter by seizing Old Tavern, a crossroads village. If the Yankees occupied the intersection, they could also move heavy cannon closer to the enemy works.
Joseph Hooker's Third Corps division led the reconnaissance-in-forc ... read full excerpt from The Sword of Lincoln: The Army of the Potomac ebook
