Battle of Cedar Creek

Other Names: Belle Grove

Location: Frederick, Shenandoah, and Warren County, Virginia

Campaign: Sheridan's Shenandoah Valley Campaign (August-December 1864)

Date: October 19, 1864

Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. Horatio Wright and Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan [US]; Lt. Gen. Jubal Early [CS]

Forces Engaged: 52,945 total (US 31,945; CS 21,000)

Casualties and losses: 8,575 total (US 5,665; CS 2,910)

Result(s): Union victory

Brief Description:

At dawn, October 19, 1864, the Confederate Army of the Valley under Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early surprised the Federal army at Cedar Creek and routed the VIII and XIX Army Corps. Commander Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan arrived from Winchester to rally his troops, and, in the afternoon, launched a crushing counterattack, which recovered the battlefield. Sheridan's victory at Cedar Creek broke the back of the Confederate army in the Shenandoah Valley. Lincoln rode the momentum of Sheridan's victories in the Valley and Sherman's successes in Georgia to re-election. The battle ruined the Confederate army in the Shenandoah Valley, and it was never again able to maneuver down the valley to threaten the Union capital city of Washington, D.C. or northern states. Additionally, the Shenandoah Valley had been a key producer of supplies for the Confederate army, and Early could no longer protect it.