Crater, VA
[Scene of the explosion Saturday July 30th by Alfred R.
Waud - Courtesy of Wikipedia]
Date(s):
July 30, 1864
Location:
Please click on link below for map.
Petersburg National Battlefield, Virginia, United States
Campaign:
Richmond-Petersburg Campaign
[June 1864-March 1865]
Battles in
Campaign:
Situation:
-
During the siege of Petersburg, Virginia, the
armies were aligned along a series of fortified positions and trenches
more than 20 miles long, extending from the old Cold Harbor battlefield
near Richmond all the way to areas south of Petersburg.
-
Lieutenant Colonel
Henry Pleasants, commander of the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry of
Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside's IX
Corps and a mining engineer from Pennsylvania, proposed digging a long
mine shaft underneath the Confederate lines and planting explosive charges
directly underneath a fort (Elliott’s
Salient) in the middle of the Confederate First Corps line.
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Pleasants
believed that the explosion would kill all the defenders in the area
and open a hole in the Confederate defenses.
-
Burnside
approved the plan hoping that enough Union troops could fill the breach
quickly enough and drive into the Confederate rear area where the
Confederates would not be able to muster enough force to drive them out,
and Petersburg might fall.
Commanders:
-
Union:
Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside
-
Confederate:
Gen. Robert E. Lee
Principal Forces:
-
Union:
IX Corps
-
Confederate:
elements of the Army of Northern Virginia
Description:
-
After weeks of preparation, on July 30th the Federals exploded a mine in
Burnside’s IX Corps sector beneath
Elliott’s
salient, blowing a gap
in the Confederate defenses of Petersburg.
-
From this propitious beginning, everything deteriorated rapidly for
the Union attackers.
-
Unit after unit charged into and around the crater, where soldiers
milled in confusion.
-
The Confederates quickly recovered and launched several counterattacks
led by Maj. Gen. William Mahone.
The break was sealed off, and the Federals were repulsed with severe
casualties.
-
Ferrarro’s division of black
soldiers was badly mauled.
-
This may have been Grant’s best chance to end
the Siege of Petersburg. Instead, the soldiers settled in for another
eight months of trench warfare.
-
Maj. Gen. Ambrose E.
Burnside was relieved of command for his role in the debacle.
Photo Gallery:2
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Digging the Mine
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Map Showing the Tunnel
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Entrance to the Tunnel
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Ventilation Shaft
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"A Stupendous Failure"
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The Crater
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The Crater
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Memorial to South Carolina Soldiers who "turned a dreadful disaster into a glorious victory"
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Confederate Counterattack
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Memorial to Maj. Gen. William Mahone
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Classification3:
A
Casualties4:
-
Union:
5,300
-
Confederate:
1,032
Results:
Confederate
victory
Battlefield Websites:
Recommended
Resources:
1 National Park
Service summary.
2 Please click on the image to
enlarge it. You may copy the images if you include the following note and link
with each image: "Courtesy of
civil-war-journeys.org."
3
Classification:
-
A
- having a decisive influence on a
campaign and a direct impact on the course of the war
-
B -
having a direct and decisive influence on their campaign
-
C -
having observable influence on the
outcome of a campaign
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D
-
having a limited influence on the
outcome of their campaign or operation but achieving or affecting important
local objectives
4 Casualties are
someone killed, injured, wounded, captured or missing.
Revised
10/08/2009 |
