Grant had not
meant to fight here, but Lee, who knew every inch of the ground,
forced the fight on him.
In the tangled underwood of the Wilderness artillery and cavalry
were of little use, and the battle became a fierce struggle between
the foot soldiers of either army. The forest was so thick that
officers could only see a small part of their men, and could only
guess at what was going on by the sound of the firing, and the
shouts exultant or despairing, of the men who were drive to and
fro in the dark and dreary thickets. In the end neither side gained
anything except an increased respect for the foe.
Grant's aim was to take Richmond, the Confederate capital, and
after the battle of the Wilderness with that aim still before him
he moved his army to Spotsylvania. He was hotly pursued by Lee and
here on the 10th and 12th of May another stern struggle took place.
The fighting on the 10th was so terrible that on the 11th both
armies rested as by common consent. Next day the battle began again
and lasted until midnight. It was a hand-to-hand struggle. The tide
of victory swung this way and that. Positions were taken and lost,
and taken again and after twenty-four hours of fighting neither
side had won. Only thousands of brave men lay dead upon the field.
Still intent on Richmond, Grant moved southwards after this
terrible battle, followed closely by Lee.
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