[5] Grant believed that the eastern and western Union armies were too uncoordinated in their actions, and that the previous practice of conquering and guarding new territories required too many resources.

[14] Sherman would attack Georgia with the similar goal of destroying rail lines, resources, and infrastructure used to equip and feed the Confederate armies.

[8][Note 1] Grant's campaign objective of the destruction of Lee's army coincided with the preferences of both Lincoln and his military chief of staff, Henry Halleck.

[32][Note 4] At the beginning of the campaign in May, Grant's Union forces totaled 118,700 men and 316 artillery pieces including Meade's Army of the Potomac and Burnside's IX Corps.

Grant was aware of how the Wilderness made his advantages in size and artillery less effective, and preferred to move his army further south to fight Lee in open ground.

[68] Meade believed that Lee would fight from behind (west of) Mine Run, and aligned his army north to south from Germanna Ford to Shady Grove Church while it spent the night in the Wilderness.

Not only were the Union forces spending the night in the Wilderness, "lax cavalry patrols" were causing leadership to be unaware of the proximity of Lee's Second Corps (Ewell).

[72] The 5th New York Cavalry, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John Hammond, was detached and instructed to patrol west of the Parker's Store area until relieved by Warren's V Corps.

[61] Although Meade told Grant that the threat was probably a delaying tactic without the intent to give battle, he stopped his entire army—the exact thing Lee wanted him to do.

[83] The Confederate division of Major General Edward Johnson was positioned on the Orange Turnpike west of Sanders Field, and it also guarded the Spotswood Road route of Sedgwick.

[85] They received enfilading fire on their right from the brigade of Confederate brigadier general, Leroy A. Stafford, causing all but two regiments (140th and 146th New York) to retreat east across Saunders Field.

Some were overtaken by the flames...." Further south, Crawford's First Brigade, commanded by Colonel William McCandless, did not reach the fighting in time to help Wadsworth's left.

[101] Amid hand-to-hand combat at the guns, the field caught fire and men from both sides were shocked as their wounded comrades burned to death.

[111][112] The VI Corps's lead division of Brigadier General George W. Getty was waiting at Wilderness Tavern, so at 10:30 am Meade sent it to defend the important intersection until Hancock could get there.

[115][Note 11] Hammond was nearly out of ammunition and was eventually pushed back to the vital intersection around noon, but was relieved by Getty's advance brigade just before Hill's forces arrived.

[75][Note 13] Chapman reached Catharpin Road and moved west beyond Craig's Meeting House, where he found 1,000 men from a Confederate cavalry brigade commanded by Brigadier General Thomas L. Rosser.

[132] At the same time, an additional force of men currently stationed around the Lacy House would move south and attack Hill's exposed northern flank.

[132][Note 15] Hill's weary men spent the evening of May 5 and the early morning hours of May 6 resting where they had fought—with little line integrity and some regiments separated from their brigades.

Gen John M. Gregg, a former officer from the Army of Tennessee who got command of the outfit the previous fall when it was serving out west and he asked what unit this was.

As the Texans realized this, they halted and grabbed the reins of Lee's horse, Traveller, telling the general that they were concerned for his safety and would only go forward if he moved to a less exposed location.

[152] At 10:00 am, Lee's chief engineer, Major General Martin L. Smith, reported to Longstreet that he had explored an unfinished railroad bed south of the Plank Road and that it offered easy access to the Union left flank.

[160] Longstreet rode forward on the Orange Plank Road with several of his officers while another fire caused Mahone's 12th Virginia Infantry Regiment to become separated from its brigade.

Gen Gershom Mott's division, the former command of Joe Hooker, which was once an elite unit but now considered one of the weakest in the army and they fell back in disorder.

During the morning, Gordon scouted the Union line and recommended to his division commander, Jubal Early, that he conduct a flanking attack in Sedgwick's right.

This was held by the two brigade division of Maj. Gen James B. Ricketts, formerly the command of General Robert Milroy which had been routed by the Confederates eleven months earlier at the Second Battle of Winchester.

"[171] Early initially dismissed the venture as too risky, and Ewell did not have enough men to attack until 1:00 pm when the brigade of Brigadier General Robert D. Johnston arrived.

Concern after Hancock's left had been turned by Longstreet's surprise attack from the unfinished railroad caused the Union leadership to order the cavalry to withdraw.

[192] Forest fires raged; ammunition trains exploded; the dead were roasted in the conflagration; the wounded, roused by its hot breath, dragged themselves along, with their torn and mangled limbs, in the mad energy of despair, to escape the ravages of the flames; and every bush seemed hung with shreds of blood-stained clothing.... With over 28,000 casualties, the Battle of the Wilderness ranks in the top five American Civil War battles in terms of casualties for both sides combined.

[204] The decision to have Sheridan's most inexperienced general, Wilson, lead the smallest cavalry division to scout the Union army's right flank was not a good one.

[188] This was the first time in a Virginia campaign that the Army of the Potomac continued on the offensive after an initial battle, and morale was boosted to the point that the Union soldiers sang as they marched south.