Early phases of Civil War and Antietam. On the morning of September 15, the 12,000 beleaguered defenders of Harpers Ferry finally capitulated. Later, Union General Ambrose Burnside's troops got into the fight, croosing over Antietam Creek and arriving at the Confederate right. Rather than attempting to land a finishing blow on the battered Army of Northern Virginia, McClellan was relieved when Lee retired into Virginia. Casualties were especially high among general officers, with six generals—three Union, three Confederate—being killed and a dozen more being wounded. Kelly, Martin. The Battle of Antietam became the first invasion into the North for Robert E. Lee. Contact Us. Here occurred the fighting in the “Bloody Lane,” a sunken road north of Sharpsburg, which French and Richardson eventually carried. Definitely the most significant impact of the Battle of Antietam can be seen in the Emancipation Proclamation. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Overview of the Battle of Antietam (1862) during the American Civil War. Defeated in his attempt to hold Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan and his Army of the Potomac on the east side of South Mountain, Lee was forced to consolidate his outmanned force. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. However; despite having a significantly larger force McClellan failed to destroy Lee's army and allowed the Confederates to escape. A.P. The Battle of Antietam is perhaps one of the most significant battles of the Civil War. The focus of this website is on the people who participated in the battle of Antietam (or Sharpsburg). The battle began at dawn with a furious assault on the extreme Confederate left by Hooker’s corps. The battle was shockingly violent, with casualties so high on both sides that it forever became known as "The Bloodiest Day in American History." It took place on September 17, 1862 when confederate general Robert E. Lee led his army to Sharpsburg, Maryland to fight against the union general George B McClellan. Burnside, on the southern end of the Union lines, had received his orders late and acted on them later still. Late in the day, elements of Union Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker’s I Corps crossed the upper Antietam on the Confederate left. The southernmost of three bridges over Antietam Creek (pictured here in quieter times) was staunchly defended by the Confederates during the Battle of Antietam. Soon afterwards the Federal divisions of Brig. A monument to the 132nd Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment standing along Bloody Lane (Sunken Road) at Antietam National Battlefield, Maryland. The Battle of Antietam pitted Union General George McClellan's Army of the Potomac against General Robert E. Lee and his Army of Northern Virginia. The right wing of the position was covered by the Antietam as it approached the Potomac, and the upper course of that stream formed no part of the battlefield. Know about the causes, events… Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. 23,100 casualties. Gen. Thomas (“Stonewall”) Jackson would lead one of three columns that were tasked with the capture of Harpers Ferry, while the remainder of Lee’s forces would advance to Boonsboro, Maryland, behind South Mountain, a ridge that ran parallel to Antietam Creek. Even though his troops had suffered crippling casualties, Lee decided to continue to skirmish with McClellan throughout the day of the 18th, removing his wounded south at the same time. CSA President Jefferson Davis and his armies were in control of nearly all of the 750,000 acres that were deemed CSA territory.After the first shots of the war were fired a month prior in South Carolina, the Confederates became defenders. Small arms, with the Minie style of rifled musket, had become significantly more lethal than with the old short ranged, grossly inaccurate, smooth bore muskets that had been the standard infantry weapon for nearly 2 centuries. There were 24,000 people dead, wounded, or missing that day. On September 13 Federal troops moved into Frederick, and members of the 27th Indiana infantry regiment recovered a copy of Lee’s Special Order 191 wrapped around a bundle of cigars. The Battle of Antietam and it’s significance A. The Battle of Antietam, or The Battle of Sharpsburg, was the single bloodiest day in American history. (Civil War battles often had one name in the North, which was usually associated with a prominent nearby physical feature, and another in the South, which was usually derived from the town or city closest to the battlefield.). In all his months as army commander, Major General George Brinton McClellan fought just one battle, Antietam, from start to finish. The Battle. Though it ended in a draw, the Battle of Antietam is considered a turning point in the Civil War. Burnside now crossed the Antietam with over 8,000 men, and at about 3:00 pm he launched an attack on the 2,000 or so Confederate soldiers who had retired to the heights east of Sharpsburg. Fewer than 500 Georgia sharpshooters covered nearly a mile of ground from the bridge south to Snavely’s Ford, the only other practicable crossing of the Antietam in the area. Dead Confederate soldiers near Burnside Bridge after the Battle of Antietam, Maryland, 1862. The Union name for the battle is derived from Antietam Creek, which flows south from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, to the Potomac River near Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Results and Significance of the Battle of Antietam. In the South the encounter was referred to as the Battle of Sharpsburg because the main fighting took place near the town of that name. The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest, single day battle fought on American soil. The Battle of Antietam was fought on 17th September 1862 near Antietam Creek in Sharpsburg, Maryland. AP.USH: KC‑5.3.I.D (KC), Unit 5: Learning Objective I, WOR (Theme) Google Classroom Facebook Twitter. Gen. James Longstreet occupied Hagerstown, Maryland, a city just 5 miles (8 km) south of the Mason-Dixon Line. Die Schlacht am Antietam (ænˈti təm), vor allem in den Südstaaten auch Schlacht bei Sharpsburg genannt, war die entscheidende Schlacht des konföderierten Maryland-Feldzuges während des Amerikanischen Bürgerkrieges.Sie fand am 17. The Battle of Antietam in September 1862 turned back the first major Confederate invasion of the North in the Civil War. Confederate scouts had observed massive columns of Federal infantry on the move, and Lee ordered Maj. Gen. D.H. Hill to guard the passes at South Mountain. Abraham Lincoln and Gen. George B. McClellan in the general's tent after the Battle of Antietam, Maryland, October 1862. After dark, Lee ordered the withdrawal of his battered Army of Northern Virginia to across the Potomac into the Shenandoah Valley. Pressure was brought to bear on McClellan to renew the engagement, but he refused, and Lee crossed the Potomac unmolested. May 1861 saw the establishment of a functioning Confederate government in Richmond, Virginia. U.S. Pres. On September 16, Major Gen. George B. McClellan met General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia in Sharpsburg, Maryland. The Battle of Antietam included the bloodiest day of the Civil War; nearly 23,000 soldiers were killed on Sept. 18, 1862, including over 10,000 Confederate troops and over 12,000 Union soldiers. Antietam kept Britain and France on the sidelines. American Civil War: Battle of South Mountain, American Civil War: Battle of Fredericksburg, American Civil War: Major General John Buford, American Civil War: Battle of Savage's Station, American Civil War: Major General Robert E. Rodes, American Civil War: Battle of Glendale (Frayser's Farm), American Civil War: Battle of Harpers Ferry, American Civil War: Battle of Malvern Hill, American Civil War: Brigadier General John C. Caldwell. Slavery and the Missouri Compromise . The Battle of Antietam is not just important because of what it did for the Union army, but also for the fact that it was a turning point that is significant to history. However, the Northern troops did not follow through with this advantage. Lee withdrew, regrouped, and dealt McClellan’s successor, Ambrose E. Burnside, a heavy defeat at Fredericksburg, Virginia, on December 13.…. Leaving Maj. Gen. A.P. Gen. John B. In The Long Road to Antietam, Richard Slotkin pulls the reader into this detailed account of the turn of events that led to and were Antietam. Photograph by Alexander Gardner. Although gaining some ground, the Federals…, …to check Lee’s forces at Antietam (or Sharpsburg, September 17). Mansfield, however, was mortally wounded, and his command passed to Brig. In addition, Union troops assaulted the Confederates at the Sunken Road, which actually pierced through the Confederate center. The Battle of South Mountain was a convincing Union victory, but the Confederate defenders managed to delay the Union advance long enough for Lee to begin the consolidation of his scattered forces. Finding his line of communications up the Shenandoah Valley threatened by a strong Union garrison at Harpers Ferry, on September 9 Lee issued Special Order 191, in which he detailed the division and disposition of forces for the campaign ahead. Union: Major General George B. McClellanConfederate: General Robert E. Lee. McClellan’s forces streamed through the South Mountain passes to find Lee’s army, which numbered perhaps 11,000 men on the afternoon of September 15, occupying the heights north of Sharpsburg. Conversely, President Lincoln and the Union forces were tas… ", ThoughtCo uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience. President Abraham Lincoln saw the significance of this and issued the famous Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862. Hill’s division had remained at Harpers Ferry, but on the morning of the 17th Hill received orders to rejoin Lee with all haste. It was then that the rebel yell erupted from a force on Burnside’s left flank. The repulse of Burnside effectively ended the battle. The Union army wanted to stop the Confederate’s invasion of Maryland and other territories claimed by the Union. Ambrose E. Burnside, photograph by Mathew Brady. Tools. Again, want of support checked the Federals, and the fight became stationary, with both sides losing many thousands of men. With their ammunition all but exhausted, the Confederate defenders were at last driven back by a Federal bayonet charge. Martin Kelly, M.A., is a history teacher and curriculum developer. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Last updated: December 30, 2015. Gen. Alpheus Williams, who led the corps well; after heavy fighting, Hood and D.H. Hill were driven back. On September 14 McClellan’s army struck the passes at South Mountain. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Battle of Antietam, also called Battle of Sharpsburg, (September 17, 1862), in the American Civil War (1861–65), a decisive engagement that halted the Confederate invasion of Maryland, an advance that was regarded as one of the greatest Confederate threats to Washington, D.C. Jackson’s divisions suffered even more severely, losing nearly all their generals and colonels. The Battle of Antietam half dollar was designed by William M. Simpson and minted in 1937 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Antietam.The obverse depicts Robert E. Lee and George McClellan, and the reverse shows Burnside's Bridge A.P. ThoughtCo, Aug. 25, 2020, thoughtco.com/battle-of-antietam-104394. Battle of Antietam, September 17, 1862, lithograph by Kurz & Allison. Lee withdrew, regrouped, and dealt McClellan’s successor, A.E. Battle of Antietam, also called Battle of Sharpsburg, (September 17, 1862), in the American Civil War (1861–65), a decisive engagement that halted the Confederate invasion of Maryland, an advance that was regarded as one of the greatest Confederate threats to Washington, D.C. Print The Battle of Antietam: Conflict, Outcome & Significance Worksheet 1. Arms and equipment at the Battle of Antietam: Both sides suffered from significant difficulties in conducting land warfare in the 1860s. Attacked in front and flank, his troops were driven back in great confusion with nearly half their number killed and wounded. The Battle of Antietam , also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, was a battle of the American Civil War, fought on September 17, 1862, between Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac, near Sharpsburg, Maryland and Antietam Creek. 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