McClellan’s Costly Delay Despite Lee’s Exposed Strategy
Antietam National Battlefield in Maryland marks the spot where General George McClellan threw away the Civil War’s biggest gift.
Two Indiana soldiers found Lee’s battle plans wrapped around cigars at a Confederate campsite near Frederick. The orders showed Lee’s army split into five pieces, scattered across twenty-five miles.
McClellan bragged he could finally “whip Bobby Lee” but then waited eighteen hours to act. Lee escaped the trap, concentrated his forces, and fought McClellan to a bloody draw on September 17, 1862.
Here’s how McClellan’s hesitation cost Lincoln the war’s best chance to end early.
Two Soldiers Found Lee’s Secret Battle Plans
On September 13, 1862, Corporal Barton Mitchell and Sergeant John Bloss of the 27th Indiana got lucky. While resting at an old Confederate camp near Frederick, Maryland, they found three cigars wrapped in paper.
The paper was “Special Order No. 191” meant for Confederate General D.H. Hill.
They sent it up the chain of command, and division helper Samuel Pittman knew the handwriting belonged to Robert Chilton, the Confederate helper he knew before the war. By noon, the paper reached General McClellan.
The Paper Showed Lee’s Army Was Spread Across Maryland
Special Order 191 gave away everything. It showed General Robert E. Lee had split his Army of Northern Virginia into five parts spread across 25-30 miles.
Stonewall Jackson’s troops went to capture Harpers Ferry while other groups were scattered between Maryland and Virginia. Each Confederate unit sat at least 8 miles from the others, with the Potomac River between them.
McClellan’s army was just 12 miles from the closest Confederate unit at South Mountain.
McClellan Bragged He Could Finally Beat “Bobby Lee”
When McClellan saw the battle plans, he got very excited. “Now I know what to do!” he yelled.
He told Brigadier General John Gibbon, “Here is a paper with which, if I cannot whip Bobby Lee, I will be willing to go home. ” The Union general had good reason to feel sure of himself.
No commander in war history had gotten such a perfect chance to destroy an enemy army piece by piece. His Army of the Potomac had more than twice as many men as Lee’s spread-out forces.
The Union Army Did Nothing For 18 Key Hours
Despite his big talk, McClellan did nothing for 18 key hours after getting Lee’s plans. He got the orders at noon on September 13 but gave no movement orders except normal prep for the next day’s march.
His usual caution took over as his first excitement faded.
He started seeing make-believe Confederate troops everywhere, thinking the enemy had way more men than they did. While McClellan waited, Lee’s forces got time to regroup.
Confederate Scouts Noticed Something Was Wrong
On September 14, Confederate lookouts saw Union troops moving toward South Mountain passes much faster than normal. Lee right away felt something had changed – McClellan never moved this fast.
The Confederate leader knew his army was in danger and rushed orders to defend Turner’s Gap and Crampton’s Gap in South Mountain.
Lee started an emergency gathering of his spread-out groups, racing against time to pull his open army together.
A Single Confederate Group Bought Lee Valuable Time
McClellan finally attacked the South Mountain passes on September 14, but a single Confederate group under D. H. Hill held up two whole Union corps for most of the day.
Though Union forces later pushed through the mountain gaps, the delay gave Lee enough time to get his supply trains to safety.
Lee’s army began setting up defense spots behind Antietam Creek near the small town of Sharpsburg, buying key hours to gather his forces.
The Union Commander Saw Ghosts Instead Of Real Chances
McClellan reached Antietam Creek on September 15 facing only 18,000 Confederate soldiers.
Instead of attacking right away, he thought Lee had “not less than 120,000 men” – more than double the real numbers and even more than Lee had at any point in the whole war.
McClellan wasted all of September 16 on scouting while Jackson’s corps finished a forced march from Harpers Ferry, doubling Lee’s strength to about 40,000 men.
America’s Bloodiest Day Happened Along Antietam Creek
The battle finally started at dawn on September 17 with McClellan leading 87,000 troops against Lee’s 40,000. Lee threw every soldier he had into the fight while McClellan kept over a quarter of his army in reserve.
The fighting spread across places that would become famous – Dunker Church, Bloody Lane, and Burnside Bridge. When darkness came, 23,000 men were dead or hurt, making it the deadliest single day in American war history.
Lee’s Beaten Army Escaped Across The Potomac
After losing 13,700 men, Lee’s bloody army somehow held its defense line through September 18. McClellan refused to attack again despite having tens of thousands of fresh troops.
Lee took the chance to move his whole army across the Potomac River during the night of September 18-19.
When McClellan finally realized what happened, he sent only a small group after them, letting the Confederate army escape safely into Virginia.
Lincoln Grew Tired Of His General’s “Slows”
President Lincoln visited McClellan’s headquarters in October, growing more upset with his general doing nothing. The president openly criticized what he called McClellan’s “case of the slows” after Antietam.
When McClellan finally moved into Virginia more than six weeks after the battle, he moved at what Lincoln called a “snail’s pace.”
The president realized McClellan would never get the big win needed to end the war, no matter what advantages he got.
The President Finally Replaced His Cautious General
Lincoln removed McClellan from command on November 5, 1862, citing his failure to pursue Lee after Antietam. General Ambrose Burnside took over the Army of the Potomac, though he would soon prove equally unsuccessful.
Thanks to McClellan’s overcaution and phantom fears, Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia survived what should have been its destruction.
The war dragged on for nearly three more years until April 1865, costing hundreds of thousands more American lives.
Visiting Antietam National Battlefield, Maryland
Antietam National Battlefield at 5801 Dunker Church Road in Sharpsburg charges $20 for cars, $15 for motorcycles, and $10 for individuals for three days.
The visitor center opens daily 9am to 5pm with a 26-minute film narrated by James Earl Jones playing every 30 minutes. You can take an 8.
5-mile driving tour with audio guides available for purchase. The Pry House Field Hospital Museum costs an extra $5 per person.
This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.
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