Grant plotting strategy at the Massaponax Baptist Church
Today Union General Ulysses S. Grant, unable to break through Confederate lines in the twelve-day Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, withdraws from the battle and turns his army toward the North Anna River. Spotsylvania is a draw, but Grant’s larger mission continues: that of capturing the Confederate capital city of Richmond, no matter how long it takes.
In some regards, Spotsylvania, despite high Union losses and no clear winner, has been a step in the right direction. Grant successfully deployed new battlefield techniques and further whittled down the numerical strength of Confederate General Robert E. Lee‘s Army of Northern Virginia. If a drawn-out war of attrition is a necessary prelude to the capture of Richmond, so be it. Yet it is a U.S. presidential election year, and Grant can only hope that the Northern public can stomach, for long enough, the heavy casualties needed to bring the Rebellion to a successful end.
As Grant’s Army of the Potomac marches away from Spotsylvania, Grant pauses at the Massaponax Baptist Church to devise strategy for the days ahead. Sitting in the church’s yard on pews removed from the meeting house, the general confers with his officers. The respite is brief, but important: what happens in the days ahead could further turn the tide of war against the Confederacy and inspire the confidence of the Northern public.
Due to the intensity of the war in the area, the Massaponax church, previously occupied by both Confederate and Union forces at different times, has not held services for nearly three years now, and will not again until the war is over and the building repaired and restored by church members.
Sources: Battle of Spotsylvania Court House (link) and (link) and (link); Massaponax Baptist Church Historical Marker (link); Massaponax Baptist Church History, including image (link)
