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the Confederate commander was that only the corps of Early was left in defence of the heights of Fredericksburg.
Now the Third Corps, Gen. Sickles, is silently withdrawn from our vicinity, whither it had accompanied us, and marches up the river to join Hooker.
On Saturday, May 2, while those divisions of the First and Sixth Corps which had crossed were lying upon the plain on the south side, the remaining divisions, by a series of marches and countermarches along the crests of the hills upon the north side, magnified their numbers to the enemy; and in the meanwhile the bulk of the First Corps departed from this vicinity, to join the force that confronted Lee. Through the afternoon of this day there was little change in our situation.
We were lying in wait.
Gen. Sedgwick was alone in command.
In the meanwhile the bulk of the Federal army, consisting of the Eleventh Corps, Gen. Howard; a division of the Third, Sickles, which had arrived from our vicinity; the Twelfth, Gen. Slocum, comprising the right; and the Second, Gen. Couch, with the Fifth, Gen. Meade, on the left, had been engaged with the enemy, with varying fortune, at Chancellorsville, west of Fredericksburg, at the junction of the Gordonsville pike and the Orange, C. H., plank road.
The Eleventh Corps had been routed by a determined attack of Jackson's force, but his advance had been checked by parts of the Second and Third Corps, the artillery under Capt. Best, and 500 cavalry and horse artillery under Gen. Pleasanton.
Stonewall Jackson had fallen in this latter engagement.
During the day, Lee had kept up a vigorous attack in front of Hooker, but was invariably unsuccessful in forcing the advanced line of Federal rifle-pits.
During the night, Hooker contracted and reformed his lines.
The First Corps arrived from below Fredericksburg, and was placed upon the right, where the Eleventh had been, previous to its discomfiture.
It was now, at midnight on the 2d of May, that Gen. Sedgwick received orders to cross the Rappahannock, carry the heights behind the town, and advance on Chancellorsville until he should come up with the rear of Lee's army.
All of the available force of the Sixth Corps was on the south side before dawn; then Gen. Gibbon with a division 8,000 strong joins us, he having crossed this morning.
Gen. Sedgwick must now have had under his command,
Boston. Press of Deland and Barta, 1886.
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