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{{short description|Battle of the American Civil War}}
{{Infobox Military Conflict▼
|conflict=Second Battle of Rappahannock Station
|image=<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Rappahannock pontoon boat.jpg|300px]] -->
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|place=[[Culpeper County, Virginia|Culpeper County]] and [[Fauquier County, Virginia]]
|result=[[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] victory
|combatant1= {{flagicon|USA|
|combatant2= {{flagicon|CSA|
|commander1= [[George G. Meade]]
|commander2= [[Robert E. Lee]]
|strength1= 2,000 <ref name=cwsac/>
|strength2= 2,000 <ref name=cwsac/>
|casualties1=419 (Killed, wounded or captured)<ref name=nps/>
|casualties2=1,670 (Approx 1,600 captured)<ref name=nps/>
}}
{{Campaignbox Bristoe Campaign}}
The '''Second Battle of Rappahannock Station''' took place on November 7, 1863, near the village of Rappahannock Station (now [[Remington, Virginia]]), on the [[Orange and Alexandria Railroad]]
It was between [[Confederate States|Confederate]] forces under [[Major General (CSA)|Maj. Gen.]] [[Jubal Early]] and [[Union Army|Union]] forces under [[Major general (United States)|Maj. Gen.]] [[John Sedgwick]] as part of the [[Bristoe Campaign]] of the [[American Civil War]]. The battle resulted in a victory for the Union. ==Background==
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==Battle==
[[File:The War in Virginia - Battle of Rappahannock Station, Nov. 7 - a portion of Sedgwick's Sixth Corps, and the skirmishers of the 4th New York charging the Rebel works, sketched by Edwin Forbes (14576375129) (cropped).jpg|thumb|Rappahannock Station, November 7, a portion of Sedgwick's Sixth Corps, and the skirmishers of the 4th New York charging the Rebel works, sketched by [[Edwin Forbes]]]]
[[File:Rappahannock Station II Battlefield Virginia.jpg|thumb|305px|Map of Rappahannock Station II Battlefield core and study areas by the [[American Battlefield Protection Program]].]]
The operation went according to plan. Shortly after noon on November 7, French drove back Confederate defenders at Kelly's Ford and crossed the river. As he did so, Sedgwick advanced toward Rappahannock Station. Lee learned of these developments sometime after noon and immediately put his troops in motion to meet the enemy. His plan was to resist Sedgwick with a small force at Rappahannock Station while attacking French at Kelly's Ford with the larger part of his army. The success of the plan depended on his ability to maintain the Rappahannock Station bridgehead until French was defeated.<ref name=NPSbrochure/>
Sedgwick first engaged the Confederates at 3 p.m. when Maj. Gen. [[Albion P. Howe]]'s division of the [[VI Corps (ACW)|VI Corps]] drove in Confederate skirmishers and seized a range of high ground three-quarters of a mile from the river. Howe placed Union batteries on these hills that pounded the enemy earthworks with a "rapid and vigorous" fire. Confederate guns across the river returned the fire, but with little effect.<ref name=NPSbrochure/>
Maj. Gen. [[Jubal Early]]'s division occupied the bridgehead defenses that day. Early posted [[Brigadier General (CSA)|Brig. Gen.]] [[Harry T. Hays]]'s [[Louisiana Tigers|Louisiana brigade]] and Captain Charles A. Green's four gun Louisiana Guard Artillery in the works and at 4:30
Sedgwick continued shelling the Confederates throughout the late afternoon, but otherwise he showed no disposition to attack. As the day drew to a close, Lee became convinced that the movement against the bridgehead was merely a feint to cover French's crossing farther downstream. He was mistaken. At dusk the shelling stopped, and Sedgwick's infantry rushed suddenly upon the works. Col. Peter Ellmaker's brigade advanced adjacent to the railroad, preceded by skirmishers of the [[6th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment|6th Maine Infantry]]. "No Union regiment gained more laurels that day nor suffered higher casualties," according to the National Park Service. At the command "Forward, double-quick!" they surged over the Confederate works and engaged Hays's men in hand-to-hand combat. Without assistance, the 6th Maine breached the Confederate line and planted its flags on the parapet of the easternmost redoubt. Moments later the [[5th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment|5th Wisconsin]] swarmed over the walls of the western redoubt, likewise wresting it from Confederate control.<ref name=NPSbrochure/>
On the right, Union forces achieved comparable success. Just minutes after Ellmaker's brigade penetrated Hays's line, Col. [[Emory Upton]]'s brigade overran Godwin's position. Upton reformed his lines inside the Confederate works and sent a portion of the [[121st New York Infantry|121st New York]] to seize the pontoon bridge, while the rest of his command wheeled right to attack the confused Confederate horde now massed at the lower end of the bridgehead.<ref name=NPSbrochure/>
Confederate resistance dissolved as hundreds of soldiers threw down their arms and surrendered. Others sought to gain the opposite shore by swimming the icy river or by running the gauntlet of Union rifle fire at the bridge. Confederate troops south of the Rappahannock looked on hopelessly as Union soldiers herded their comrades to the rear as prisoners of war.<ref name=NPSbrochure/>
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Lee would later call on subordinates to submit reports on the battle in an effort to determine what had gone wrong, but on the night of November 7 more pressing matters demanded his attention. Loss of the bridgehead destroyed his plans for an offensive and left his army dangerously extended on a now indefensible front. Meade, acting quickly, might pin Lee's army against the [[Rapidan River]] just as Lee had tried to pin Maj. Gen. [[John Pope (military officer)|John Pope's]] army against the Rappahannock River one year earlier in the [[Second Battle of Bull Run]]. Lee immediately canceled his plans for an attack on French and within hours had his army marching south.<ref name=NPSbrochure/>
==Battlefield preservation==
As of November 2021, the [[American Battlefield Trust]] and its partners have acquired and preserved {{convert|869|acres|km2}} of the battlefield where the First and Second Battles of Rappahannock Station were fought.<ref>[https://www.battlefields.org/preserve/saved-land] [[American Battlefield Trust]] "Saved Land" webpage. Accessed November 30, 2021.</ref> The battleground for both battles is located along the Rappahannock River at Remington, Va. and features visible earthworks as well as bridge and mill ruins. The earthworks at Remington are no longer there and more than 75% of the battlefield has been developed over.<ref>[https://www.battlefields.org/visit/battlefields/rappahannock-station-battlefield] [[American Battlefield Trust]] "Rappahannock Station Battlefield" page. Accessed May 29, 2018.</ref>
==Notes==
{{reflist|refs=
<ref name=nps>[
<ref name=cwsac>[http://www.nps.gov/hps/abpp/CWSII/VirginiaBattlefieldProfiles/Rappahannock%20I%20and%20II.pdf CWSAC Report Update]</ref>
}}
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==References==
* [http://www.nps.gov/frsp/rapp.htm Brochure] by the [[National Park Service]]
* [
* [http://www.nps.gov/hps/abpp/CWSII/VirginiaBattlefieldProfiles/Rappahannock%20I%20and%20II.pdf CWSAC Report Update]
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{{authority control}}
[[Category:1863 in Virginia]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Battles of the
[[Category:Union victories of the American Civil War|Rappahannock Station II]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Fauquier County in the American Civil War|Rappahannock Station
[[Category:Culpeper County
[[Category:Conflicts in 1863|Rappahannock Station]]
[[Category:Rappahannock River]]
[[Category:November 1863 events]]
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