Summary of Stephen W. Sears's To the Gates of Richmond

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Sample Book Insights:

#1 The council of war that McClellan called on Friday, March 7, was actually being convened to decide how and where to launch the Army of the Potomac’s grand campaign to end the war. McClellan was extremely popular with his soldiers, but he was extremely unpopular with major figures in the government.

#2 General McClellan was summoned to the White House by President Lincoln, where he was accused of treasonous intentions. He proposed moving the Army of the Potomac’s base of operations from Washington to the lower Chesapeake, and the generals voted to approve his plans.

#3 The council of war debated the Urbanna plan, which was to move the army to the Rappahannock River by water, and whether any action needed to be taken against the Potomac batteries. The three senior generals, Edwin V. Sumner, Irvin McDowell, and Samuel Heintzelman, opposed the change of base, and they were joined by John G. Barnard, the army’s chief engineer.

#4 The war council voted to change the army’s base from Bladensburg to Urbanna, and to organize the present divisions into army corps for the campaign. It was evening now, and Lincoln told the generals to return the next morning when he would make his decision.