Hooker Retreats from Chancellorsville

See all posts about the Battle of Chancellorsville.

End of the Chancellorsville campaign

With Sedgwick back across the river, Lee got his section of the army moving to try to resume the offensive on Hooker's main body. The night before Hooker had called a meeting of his corps commanders to consider what should be done. He stated the situation and his responsibility to guard Washington, DC. It was obvious to everyone that Hooker favored a retreat. Nevertheless  he left the generals along to discuss the situation among themselves. After a time they voted, with Meade, Reynolds and Howard for a resumption of the attack, and Sickles and Couch against it. Even though a majority of his subordinates disagreed with him, Hooker declared that he would order a retreat across the river. John Reynolds complained "What was the use of calling us together at this time of night when he intended to retreat anyhow?" The next day Hooker crossed the river, followed by his army. By the next morning the retreat had been complete. Lee had been poised to attack Federals, who were in strong entrenchments. It may have turned the campaign around, but Hooker didn't want to take the risk.

Hooker

Lee had been victorious. Although the ultimate victory had slipped from his grasp, he had, when surrounded by two forces twice his numbers, converged on one, switched corps commanders in the middle of the fighting, pushed Hooker against the river, drove back Sedgwick, and finally convinced Hooker to retreat as well. This victory was gained not only through the brilliance of the Confederate army, but the many mistakes of the Federals. The man who made the most mistakes was Joe Hooker. During the beginning of the campaign he had advanced and talked boldly, but then he faltered. He would not press the advance, instead retreating until he was eventually across the river. Some blamed it on drunkenness, or from withdrawal from alcohol, others on an injury from his close call with a shell. Publicly he blamed the defeat on anyone he could, but privately he acknowledged the source of the defeat, saying according to one source, "It was not hurt by a shell, and I was not drunk. For once I lost confidence in Joe Hooker, and that is all there is to it."

Confederate dead from 2nd Fredericksburg

In the battle of Chancellorsville the North lost 1,606 killed, 9,672 wounded and 5,919 missing. The Confederates 1,665 killed, 9,081 wounded and 2,018 missing. The fighting had been very heavy. On May 3 alone over 20,000 men had been lost. It was the bloodiest day of the Civil War second only to Antietam.