General War order, no. 3.
Ordered, That no change of the base of operations of the Army of the Potomac shall be made without leaving in and about
Washington such a force as, in the opinion of the
general-in-chief and the commanders of army corps, shall leave said city entirely secure.
That no more than two army corps (about fifty thousand troops) of said Army of the Potomac shall be moved
en route for a new base of operations, until the navigation of the
Potomac from
Washington to the
Chesapeake Bay shall be freed from the enemy's batteries and other obstructions, or until the
President shall hereafter give express permission.
That any movement as aforesaid,
en route for a new base of operations, which may be ordered by the
general-in-chief, and which may be intended to move upon tile
Chesapeake Bay, shall begin to move upon the bay as early as the 18th of March; and the
general-in-chief shall be responsible that it so moves as early as that day.
Ordered, That the army and navy co-operate in an immediate effort to capture the enemy's batteries upon the
Potomac between
Washington and the
Chesapeake Bay.