Lincoln’s Message To The Army

What did President Lincoln have to say to his soldiers after the Battle of Fredericksburg?

We dug into the ECW archives and found Chris Mackowski’s post from 2013 to answer the question. Here’s the original article, recounting Lincoln’s Dec. 22, 1862, circular: A Post-Fredericksburg Message From Lincoln To The Army

Just to put things in perspective, here are some brief, fast-facts on the First Battle of Fredericksburg.

Dates: December 11-15, 1862 (most of the fighting and mass assaults took place on December 13)

Commanding Generals: Union – Ambrose Burnside, Confederate – Robert E. Lee

Positions: Union – attacking, Confederates – defending

Casualties: Union – approximately 13,300, Confederate – 4,500

Outcome: Confederate victory; no significant change in the strategic situation; Burnside removed from command about six weeks later

Re-read the casualty numbers, then read Lincoln’s message: A Post-Fredericksburg Message From Lincoln To The Army