7 8 The American Civil WarHooker, who had been stunned when a
southern artillery shell struck a pillar
against which he was leaning, back closer
to the Rappahannock. While a groggy
Hooker sought to form a new defensive
line, Lee guided Traveller, his sturdy
gray warhorse, through thousands of
Confederate infantrymen in a clearing near
Chancellorsville. Emotions flowed freely as
the soldiers, nearly 9,000 of whose comrades
had fallen in the morning's fighting, shouted
their devotion. Lee acknowledged their
cheers by removing his hat. Seldom has the
bond between a successful commander and
his troops achieved more dramatic display.
Colonel Charles Marshall of Lee's staff later
wrote that Lee basked in 'the full realization
of all that soldiers dream of - triumph,'
adding: 'As I looked upon him in the
complete fruition of the success which his
genius, courage, and confidence in his army
had won, I thought that it must have been
Stonewall Jackson in front of the Confederate battle lines
on the evening of 2 May 1863, just before being
wounded by a volley from his own soldiers. This post-
war engraving by Confederate veteran Allen C.
Redwood mistakenly shows Jackson on the Plank Road.
The General and his small party were on the Mountain
Road, a smaller track that paralleled the Plank Road a
few dozen yards to the north. (Author's collection)from such a scene that men in ancient days
rose to the dignity of gods.'
Within minutes Lee learned that Sedgwick
had broken Early's line at Fredericksburg
and was moving towards Chancellorsville.
He divided his army for a third time,
deploying about half his troops to block this
new threat. A sharp action on 4 May at
Salem Church, located some 4 miles (6.4km)
west of Fredericksburg, stopped Sedgwick.
That night Hooker decided to retreat, and
by the morning of the 6th the Army of the
Potomac had returned to the left bank of
the Rappahannock.