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{{distinguish|text=[[Highbridge Skirmish]], which took place in Scotland during the 1745 [[Jacobite Rising]]}}
{{short description|Battle of the American Civil War}}
|conflict=Battle of High Bridge
|image=
|image_size=300px
|caption=High Bridge over the Appomattox River near Farmville, Virginia. Photographed in 1865 by [[Timothy H. O'Sullivan]] during repairs following its burning during the war. The trestles on the left were burned by retreating Confederate troops.
|partof=the [[American Civil War]]
|date= {{Start date|1865|4|6}} – {{End date|1865|4|7}}
|place=[[Prince Edward County, Virginia|Prince Edward]] & [[Cumberland County, Virginia|Cumberland County]], [[Virginia]]
|result=Inconclusive<ref>[
|combatant1= {{flagicon|USA|1863}} [[United States]] ([[Union (American Civil War)|Union]])
|combatant2= {{flagicon|CSA}} [[Confederate States of America|
|commander1=April 6: [[Theodore Read]]<br/>April 7: [[Andrew A. Humphreys]]
|commander2=April 6: [[Thomas L. Rosser]]<br/>April 7: [[William Mahone]]
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|casualties1=847 total <br/> ~800 captured<ref name=Salmon483>Salmon, 2001, p. 483.</ref>
|casualties2=~100<ref name=Salmon483/>
|campaignbox ={{Campaignbox Appomattox Campaign}}▼
The '''Battle of High Bridge''' refers to two engagements fought on April 6, 1865, and April 7, 1865, near the end of the [[Appomattox Campaign]] of the [[American Civil War]] about {{convert|4|mi}} northeast of [[Farmville, Virginia]]. The first battle is often the one identified as the Battle of High Bridge.▼
▲|{{Campaignbox Appomattox Campaign}}
▲The '''Battle of High Bridge''' refers to two engagements fought on April 6, 1865 and April 7, 1865, near the end of the [[Appomattox Campaign]] of the [[American Civil War]] about {{convert|4|mi}} northeast of [[Farmville, Virginia]]. The first battle is often the one identified as the Battle of High Bridge.
On April 6, 1865, [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] cavalry under [[Major General (CSA)|Major General]] [[Thomas L. Rosser]] fought stubbornly to secure the [[Southside Railroad (Virginia)|South Side Railroad's]] [[High Bridge (Appomattox River)|High Bridge]] and lower wagon bridge over the [[Appomattox River]] near Farmville, Virginia. A large [[Union Army]] raiding party intended to destroy the bridges to prevent the Confederate Army from crossing back to the north side of the river. Both sides had several officers killed and wounded. The Union force suffered 42 killed and wounded. The entire surviving Union force of about 800 men was captured. The Confederates suffered about 100 casualties. Union Colonel ([[Brevet (military)|Brevet]] [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier General]]) [[Theodore Read]] and Confederate Colonel Reuben B. Boston were killed. Union [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]] [[Francis Washburn]] and Confederate Colonel [[James Dearing]] (often identified as a [[Brigadier General (CSA)|brigadier general]] but his appointment was never confirmed<ref>[[David J. Eicher|Eicher, David J.]] ''The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-684-84944-7}}. p. 817.</ref><ref>Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]], ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-8047-3641-1}}. p. 593.</ref>) were mortally wounded in the engagement.
On April 7, 1865, Confederate [[Lieutenant General (CSA)|Lieutenant General]] [[James Longstreet|James Longstreet's]] rear guard attempted to burn the bridges that the Confederates had saved the day before in order to prevent Union forces from following them across. Troops of the [[Union Army|Union]] [[II Corps (Union Army)|II Corps]] fought the Confederates assigned to burn the bridges in an effort to drive off the Confederates and save the bridges. Part of the railroad bridge burned and was rendered unusable but Union forces were able to save the wagon bridge over which the II Corps crossed in pursuit of [[General (CSA)|General]] [[Robert E. Lee|Robert E. Lee's]] [[Army of Northern Virginia]]. Failure to destroy this bridge enabled Union forces to catch up with the Confederates north of the Appomattox River at [[Battle of Cumberland Church|Cumberland Church]] {{Convert|3|mi|km}} north of Farmville.
==Background==
[[File:The photographic history of the Civil War - thousands of scenes photographed 1861-65, with text by many special authorities (1911) (14762665942).jpg|thumb|left|Another view of the High Bridge]]
High Bridge, {{convert|2500|ft|m}} long and {{convert|126|ft|m}} high, was the crossing of the South Side Railroad over the Appomattox River and its flood plain, {{convert|4|mi}} northeast of Farmville, Virginia.<ref>Korn, Jerry, and the Editors of Time-Life Books. ''Pursuit to Appomattox: The Last Battles''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1987. {{ISBN|0-8094-4788-6}}. p. 118.</ref> A wooden bridge for wagons was located below the railroad bridge. During the retreat of Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia during the Appomattox Campaign, the Confederates had moved north of the river, except for a rear guard provided by Longstreet's First Corps at Rice's Station on the southern bank. The bridges had to be protected on April 6 and then destroyed on April 7 to delay the pursuit of the Confederates by the Union Army ([[Army of the Potomac]], [[Army of the James]] and [[Union Army of the Shenandoah|Army of the Shenandoah]]) under [[Lieutenant general (United States)|Lieutenant General]] [[Ulysses S. Grant]].
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==Battles==
While Washburn prepared to set fire to the bridge, three brigades of Confederate cavalrymen arrived and conducted a dismounted attack against the Union infantry, which was waiting near the Watson farmhouse, about half mile to the south. Hearing sounds of battle, Washburn and his men rejoined the infantry, and unaware that he was facing two divisions of cavalry, Read ordered a mounted charge by the 4th Massachusetts. The ferocious charge forced through the Confederate line of Colonel [[Thomas T. Munford]] and dissolved into hand-to-hand combat. Read exchanged gunfire with Confederate [[James Dearing]] during the fighting and was killed.<ref>[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7471487/theodore-read Theodore Read at Find a grave]</ref> Dearing was mortally wounded and died on April 22. Washburn was also mortally wounded and died 22 April 1865.<ref>[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/124462800/francis-washburn Francis Washburn Find a Grave memorial]</ref> The Confederates counterattacked and separated the cavalry from their supporting infantry. After another attack, the Union troopers were surrounded, and all were killed, wounded, or captured. Colonel Reuben B. Boston of the [[5th Virginia Cavalry]] was killed in the attack.<ref>Korn, 1987, pp. 118-20.</ref><ref>Salmon, 2001, p. 482.</ref> Both Read and Washburn received ranks of Brevet Brigadier General.
The survivors of the Confederate Second Corps, under Major General [[John B. Gordon]], escaped from their defeat at the [[Battle of Sailor's Creek]] and crossed the High Bridge to the north side of the river while Major General [[William Mahone|William Mahone's]] division secured the bridge. The rest of Lee's army moved on to Farmville and a rendezvous with trains of rations.
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==Aftermath==
With 47 Union casualties (plus 800 captured) versus only about 100 Confederate
As a result, Lee was forced to continue his march to the west under pressure, depriving some of his men the opportunity to receive rations from Farmville that they desperately needed. On the night of April 7, Lee received from Grant a letter proposing that the Army of Northern Virginia should surrender. Lee demurred, retaining one last hope that his army could get to Appomattox Station before he was trapped. He returned a noncommittal letter asking about the surrender terms "Unconditional Surrender" Grant might propose.
The next morning, Lee's troops moved toward [[Battle of Appomattox Station|Appomattox Station]], {{convert|25|mi|km}} west, where a ration train was expected to be waiting. Union forces were, however, already moving to capture the supply train.
==Battlefield preservation==
The [[Civil War Trust]] (a division of the [[American Battlefield Trust]]) and its partners have acquired and preserved {{convert|176|acres|km2}} of the battlefield.<ref>[https://www.battlefields.org/preserve/saved-land] [[American Battlefield Trust]] "Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 25, 2018.</ref> The acreage is part of the [[High Bridge Trail State Park]], which includes a 31-mile trail and the majestic High Bridge, which is more than 2,500 feet long and sits 130 feet above the Appomattox River. The piers of the original Civil War-era bridge still stand.<ref>[https://www.battlefields.org/visit/battlefields/high-bridge-battlefield] [[American Battlefield Trust]] High Bridge Battlefield page. Accessed May 29, 2018.</ref>
==Notes==
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* Kennedy, Frances H., ed. [http://www.bibliobase.com/history/readerscomp/civwar/html/cw_000106_entries.htm ''The Civil War Battlefield Guide'']{{dead link|date=July 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}. 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998. {{ISBN|978-0-395-74012-5}}.
* Korn, Jerry, and the Editors of Time-Life Books. ''Pursuit to Appomattox: The Last Battles''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1987. {{ISBN|0-8094-4788-6}}.
* Lucas, Michael C. "High Bridge Battlefield Museum https://web.archive.org/web/20181113183705/http://highbridgebattlefieldmuseum.com/
* Salmon, John S. ''The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide.'' Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-8117-2868-3}}.
* [http://www.nps.gov/hps/abpp/CWSII/VirginiaBattlefieldProfiles/Hampton%20Roads%20to%20High%20Bridge.pdf CWSAC Report Update]
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==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20181113183705/http://highbridgebattlefieldmuseum.com/ High Bridge Battlefield Museum ]
* [http://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state_parks/hig.shtml High Bridge Trail State Park]
{{coord|37.3122|-78.3177|region:US_type:event_scale:10000|display=title}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:High Bridge}}
[[Category:Appomattox
[[Category:Battles of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War]]
[[Category:Inconclusive battles of the American Civil War]]
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