Antietam Attempt by Lee to invade the North Near Sharpsburg, Maryland McClellan tipped off to Lees plans when a soldier found secret orders wrapped ar
{"Image DocumentName": "Antietam Attempt by Lee to invade the North Near Sharpsburg, Maryland", "Image ImageDescription": "McClellan tipped off to Lee\u2019s plans when a soldier found secret orders wrapped around cigars. Single bloodiest day in American history. Artillery Hell, a painting of early morning hostilities at Antietam. Lee took a calculated gamble and decided to invade the North through Maryland. However, a Union soldier found Lee\u2019s secret orders wrapped around a bunch of cigars, apparently dropped by one of Lee\u2019s officers. Tipped off to the Confederates\u2019 plans, McClellan decided to pursue Lee. The two armies met up at Antietam Creek, near Sharpsburg. The ensuing battle turned into the single bloodiest day in U.S. history. More than 23,000 casualties were reported\u2014as many as the War of 1812 and Mexican War combined. The one-day battle had three separate stages. The morning phase occurred in a cornfield, where intense fighting led to control of the field changing hands at least 15 times, with many dying near the Dunker Church. The midday phase took place along an area called the sunken road, in which 5600 Union and Confederate troops were killed. The afternoon phase occurred along what became known as Burnside Bridge. Union forces finally were able to cross the bridge and force the Confederates back into Virginia. True to McClellan\u2019s nature, he refused to pursue Lee into Virginia, where he probably could have destroyed the Confederate army. He had assumed that Lee\u2019s forces were stronger than they actually were, and he allowed them to regroup and fight again. Captain James Hope of the 2nd Vermont Regiment painted various scenes of the battle of Antietam, near Sharpsburg, Maryland. The picture in this slide, Artillery Hell, depicts the early morning phase of the battle, looking north along the Hagerstown Turnpike.", "Image XResolution": "37", "Image YResolution": "37", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Centimeter", "Image Software": "SlidePlayer", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered"}