Peninsula Campaign: Seven Pines/Fair Oaks
May 31, 1862
The battle of Fair Oaks/Seven Pines.
McClellan's three position's at Seven Pines.
Click on the map for a link to DeLorme.
Confederate Gen. Joseph Johnston was under pressure from the political leaders in Richmond to do something. Johnston had backed up the Peninsula without putting up much of a fight, letting McCellen'a own natural timidness do the work of slowing down the Union advance. Johnston had talked of evacuating the government from Richmond and letting McClellen take the city. Johnston had hoped to draw the Union deep into Confederate territory where their supply line would become increasingly burdensome and he could spring an ambush on them and cut them off from help or retreat.
The politicians in Richmond didn't care for this plan at all. They wanted Johnston to make a stand and then drive the Union invaders from their sacred soil. Accordingly, Johnston planned and launched an attack here at Seven Pines where part of the Union Army was cut off by the Chickahominy River from the rest of the Army and couldn't be easily reenforced, which was kind of what he had been hoping for.
The Confederates gave it their all and drove the Union from it's positions but the Union troops pulled themselves together and formed a new line. Johnston’s plans were too cleaver for his army to execute and the Union finally drove off the Confederate attacks. The South suffered 6,000 casualties to 5,000 Northern losses. The battle itself didn’t accomplish much; both sides were back where they started when the battle was over. Real outcome was the wounding of Johnston and his replacement by Robert E. Lee.
Lee stopped the battle and everybody climbed back into their trenches. Lee immeadiatly started making preparations for a new offensive against McClellan: This offensive would become known as the Seven Days.
The Richmond/Petersburg Airport has swollowed up a significant portion of the battlefield. Much of the rest has been swollowed up by urban growth and private property.
This picture and the next are the final position for Seven Pines.