Battle of Middleburg
Battle of Middleburg | |||||||
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Part of the Alfred R. Waud. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
United States (Union) | CSA (Confederacy) | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
David McM. Gregg |
J.E.B. Stuart | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
Divisions | Divisions | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
97 | 40 |
The Battle of Middleburg took place from June 17 to June 19, 1863, in
Skirmish of June 17
Stuart established his headquarters at Middleburg and scattered his brigades throughout the Loudoun Valley to watch for enemy activity. Early in the morning, Col. Alfred N. Duffié, a French-born officer, had taken the 280 men of the 1st Rhode Island Cavalry westward from the Army of the Potomac's camp near Centreville. Pleasonton had ordered him to camp at Middleburg that evening and then to proceed the next day toward Noland's Ferry, extending his march to the west as far as Snickersville. Duffié crossed the Bull Run Mountains at Thoroughfare Gap at 9:30 a.m., easily pushing aside pickets from John R. Chambliss's brigade. Confederate commanders could not believe that a small Union regiment would dare to travel so deep into enemy territory without an escort, so Chambliss did not aggressively attack, fearing that the column was the advance element of a much larger enemy force. Duffié continued on his isolated march, turning to the north by 11:00 a.m. and heading for Middleburg as ordered.
Arriving there about 4:00 p.m., Duffié drove in the few Confederate pickets deployed there and disrupted Stuart's evening of socializing with local ladies. Stuart and his staff quickly retreated to Rector's Crossroads, the location of his closest brigade. He ordered
Fight on June 19
After the
The next day, Gregg again moved against Middleburg, sending the brigade of his first cousin, Col.
After a hard fight to clear reinforced pickets from Middleburg, Colonel Gregg was so impressed by the Confederate position on the high ground beyond the town that he asked for support before attacking. Kilpatrick sent two regiments to help extend the Federal line, and Gregg slowly advanced. The temperature hovered around 98 °F throughout the afternoon, sapping men and horses of energy. A series of Union charges finally forced Stuart's horse artillery to withdraw, and then his cavalry. Several Confederate counterattacks failed to regain control of the ridge.
Late in the day, Buford sent the U.S. Reserve Brigade back from Pot House, and the 2nd and
Union losses in the June 19 fight were reported as 16 killed, 46 wounded, and 37 missing. Stuart lost perhaps 40 men, including his chief of staff and friend, Prussian cavalier Heros von Borcke, who was badly wounded by a bullet in his neck. Though von Borcke survived and returned to service the following spring, the bullet remained in his body for the rest of his life, and the lingering wound would ultimately result in his death from sepsis in 1895.
Battlefield preservation
The
References
- ^ [1] American Battlefield Trust "Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 29, 2018.
- ^ [2] American Battlefield Trust "Middleburg Battlefield" page. Accessed May 29, 2018.
- National Park Service battle description
- O'Neill, Robert F. The Cavalry Battles of Aldie, Middleburg and Upperville: Small But Important Riots, June 10–27, 1863. Lynchburg, VA: H. E. Howard, 1993. ISBN 1-56190-052-4.
- Salmon, John S. The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. ISBN 0-8117-2868-4.