I'll never forget arriving in Fredericksburg, August 2004.  We had driven through steady rain all day...from the New York border, through Pennsylvania, through Maryland, and into Northern Virginia.  The rains were a byproduct of Hurricane Bonnie, that had become a tropical depression. Although we were trying to arrive at the Fredericksburg KOA before nightfall, we didn't reach the area until 10pm.  We drove down unknown twisting roads through woods, where a bloody battle had been fought long ago.  As the headlights shone through the dark, misty, drizzly night, I could imagine Civil War soldiers quietly, yet stealthily walking out of the woods, their guns aimed and ready for any sudden movement...      

      The Battle of Fredericksburg took place December 11-13, 1862.  General Lee led the Confederates, while General Burnside led the Union. Why Fredericksburg?  Because it was halfway between the Confederate capital of Richmond and the Union Capital of Washington DC.  To find the battlefield, simply drive to Fredericksburg, Virginia and go to...

The Sunken Road was named for its physical features which played into the strategy of the battle.  Because the road was lower than the grade of the slope next to it, the Confederates made use of this natural earthwork. 

 They also took over Marye Heights above...

 Here we on top of Marye Heights, looking down at the Sunken Road below...

 Here is another view of Marye's Heights, looking over the Sunken Road. Across the treetops you can see the city of Fredericksburg.  See anything familiar?

Perhaps a closer look will help...

 On top of this hill, is an old family cemetary that suffered from the artillery.  You can still see evidence of that today...

The tall marker to the right suffered damage as well.

Interestingly, the back corner of this cemetary is the marker for George Washington's nephew...

The top of this hill became the Fredericksburg Battlefield Cemetary.

From here we took the driving tour to Lee's hill.  Here General Lee had an excellent position to view the events as he overlooked the town and strategized. At the museum, we  had learned that at the Battle of Fredericksburg, General Lee had the best position that he ever had during the entire war. To read it made it a fact; to experience it made it a reality.   

Once again, from Lee's position, the town of Fredericksburg can be seen. Are you getting familiar with the Fredericksburg skyline?

Even from this distance, cannons were fired. See the earthworks (raised parts of the ground for protection) in front?

  Further down the road, more cannons were aimed at the Union troops.

Even further down the road, near the railroad tracks, there were more cannons.  See the train in the distance?  Of course gaining control of the railroad was yet another reason for having the battle in Fredericksburg. It was cool to experience the obvious importance of this railroad line.

See the earthworks?  No, I am not standing on them.  That is not allowed.  The NPS is trying to preserve them. I am on an NPS trail.

As we drove back down the road, my daughter pointed out all the trenches that the soldiers used as protection, as they laid behind them and shot with their guns.

These go on for miles...

And all of these pictured...

protected the men of...

that famous general...

     To see miles of trenches of one man's command, and many commands were positioned throughout the woods, gave us stunning realization of the massive numbers of soldiers who fought in this war.  As prodigious as the numbers looked at the museum, actually seeing miles of trenches gave it credence.

    Meanwhile, where were the Union troops? Actually they were in Fredericksburg before the Confederates.  A Union general established his headquarters on the other side of Fredericksburg and the Rappahanock River at beautiful Chatham Manor, a few miles from George Washington's boyhood home, Ferry Farm.  Chatham was built in the 1700's and visited by George Washington, but not Lafayette (imagine that!).  However there is a chair in the house upon which Lafayette sat, which came from the family's other house, Ellwood.  Interestingly, Chatham is named after William Pitt, Earl of Chatham, whom we learned about last year.  By the time of the Civil War, another family was living here.  When the Union troops came to town, the family fled to Ellwood.  

This side of the house faces the Rappahanock River and looks over the town of Fredericksburg. Recognize some of the landmarks?

 Even though the Union troops arrived here first, they had no means of crossing the Rappahanock. At that time, this river was quite deep and large boats used to travel up and down the river for commerce. In fact, this was another reason why the Union and Confederates were fighting here...to seize control of the river. The Union had to wait for pontoons to arrive so they could build bridges across the river.  Finally they arrived...after the Confederates arrived.  They had to build the bridge at night to try to avoid Confederate fire.  Here is one of the pontoons.  They were staggered across the river and planks were laid across them to form the bridge. 

   After the war, the owners returned to a destroyed mansion.  Horses had been allowed in the house. Grafitti can still be seen on a few of the walls today. Used as a hospital, blood was everywhere. The gardens had become a cemetary.  They sold their home. New owners had the dead relocated to the Fredericksburg Battlefield Cemetary. They cleaned up the mansion.  They added an early 20th Century touch to the property. Today, three of the graves that had been left behind, can be seen. We were able to locate two of them.

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Originally a house of Georgian architecture, Chatham was laid out symmetrically. There used to be two staircases within, one on each side.  The tour guide opened the door to the NPS offices to show us the only staircase left. Evidence of where the portico had been ripped off of the river side of the house can be seen today.  The front of the house used to face the river and the back faced the gardens.  Over time that was flip flopped. The gardens are smaller today than originally laid out.  In the gardens, the early 20th century touch can be seen with the addition of all the statues.