On November 7, 1862, General Burnside took command of the Army of the Potomac. He had replaced General George B. McClellan.
General Tecumseh Sherman, was the Union General who ransacked the South, all the way to the sea. He took over the Union Campaign in the west after General Ulysses S. Grant took over command of the Union Army, or the Army of the Potomac.
He and his Army crossed over the Potomac and reentered Virginia.
Lee had won his last six encounters with the Potomac Army and was confident. He wanted to mount an offense, rather than just defend the South. There was no force preventing his move north, as long as he avoided Washington. Lee's forces had traveled past the Army of the Potomac through the Shenandoah Valley over the Potomac River and into Maryland. Meade had to find Lee. Losing contact with the enemy's main force could prove to be a disaster.
Major General George B. McClellan had rested his troops after the Battle of Antietam. This displeased President Lincoln who urged McClellan to pursue the Rebel army south of the Potomac River. Finally, McClellan followed the advice of Lincoln and on October 26, 1862, Union troops began their crossing of the Potomac River. General Lee had expected some degree of Federal pursuit in October, but he did not know to what exactly the plan of the Federals would be. Once Lee knew that McClellan's troops were over the Potomac, he sent General Longstreet eastward and General Jackson would keep his position in the Shenandoah Valley. McClellan's forces marched slowly, covering only 35 miles in eleven days. Lee had marched his troops quickly and joined Longstreet in Culpepper, Virginia. When President Lincoln realized that neither generals Longstreet nor Jackson moved their troops with no Union interference, he relieved McClellan of duty as commander of the Army of the Potomac.
The Army of the Potomac had several commanders over the years. Some of them were Brigadier General Irvin McDowell, Major General George B. McClellan, and Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant.
On November 7, 1862, General Burnside took command of the Army of the Potomac. He had replaced General George B. McClellan.
Ulysses S. Grant
Major General George B. McClellan replaced Brigadier General Irvin McDowell as commander of the Army of Northeastern Virginia on July 26th, 1861. This army was to eventually become the Army of the Potomac.
General Tecumseh Sherman, was the Union General who ransacked the South, all the way to the sea. He took over the Union Campaign in the west after General Ulysses S. Grant took over command of the Union Army, or the Army of the Potomac.
There seemed to be a communications gap between General Henry Halleck and General Meade. The problem seemed to be over the logistical support for his army and the views of Halleck on this crucial point.
The Union had several field armies, including the Army of the Potomac. After McClellan it was commanded by Ambrose Burnside, Joseph Hooker, George Meade. When Grant came east he was made general in chief over all Union armies, but made his HQ with the Army of the Potomac and traveled with it. Meade remained in command of the Army of the Potomac, but had Grant right with him, supervising.
He and his Army crossed over the Potomac and reentered Virginia.
As general in chief Henry Halleck was a formal leader having both office and personal power in the Western armies. It was a different situation in the east, however. There his personal powers were overshadowed by General George B. McClellan who commanded the Army of the Potomac. McClellan had a reputation in the US army equal to Halleck's and personal power over the Army of the Potomac. He had built and organized this army and McClellan's loyal officers gave him a distinct advantage over his own superior, Halleck.
Reportedly Major General Joseph Hooker resigned as the commander of the Army of the Potomac due to a dispute with General in Chief Henry W. Halleck. Hooker believed he did not have the confidence of the Lincoln administration. Hooker wanted to evacuate Harpers Ferry and use his troops to attack that portion of Lee's army not yet over the Potomac River. This would cut off Lee's lines of communication. Halleck, however, wanted the troops to remain at Harpers Ferry which allowed for the protection of Washington DC and Baltimore.
President Lincoln either had bad luck or was guilty of poor judgment regarding the appointment of generals in his efforts to end the Southern rebellion. The premier army of the Union was the Army of the Potomac created by Major General George B. McClellan. In November of 1861 he became general in chief and remained in charge of the Army of the Potomac. President Lincoln was hampered by political appointees he was forced to make as generals. Part of this was due to the nature of recruiting soldiers. The states were mainly responsible for raising armies and the politicos in these states demanded generalships.However, despite this, the Army of the Potomac had suffered in moral due to changes in top leadership. The first commander, McClellan was replaced by Ambrose Burnside. Lincoln had to pressure him three times to accept the position held by Burnside's friend, McClellan. Burnside was not qualified to lead the prestige Army of the Potomac. Lincoln replaced him with General John Pope who promptly lost the Second Battle of Bull Run. Pope failed in Lincoln's judgment and "Fighting" Joe Hooker became the new commander of the Army of the Potomac. Not for long though. When the Confederates threatened in Pennsylvania, General George Meade was appointed as the new army commander. For all practical purposes, General in Chief US Grant took over from Meade when Grant embarked on the 1864 Overland campaign. In a span from the middle of 1861 to early 1864, the Army of the Potomac had six commanders.
He was the general of the Continental Army.