The Battle of Front Royal: Richardson's Hill
N 38° 56.192 W 078° 11.682
17S E 743153 N 4313476
Union Col. Kenly made a last stand to hold Front Royal against Confederate Gen. Jackson's advancing troops.
Waymark Code: WMEB4V
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 04/30/2012
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In 1862, Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson was sent to take command of the forces in Shenandoah Valley since it was an important source of supplies and a possible route for invading the north, including Washington, D.C. In February 1862, Gen. George McClellan took control of the Union army and planned an assault on Richmond, Virginia from the coast (Peninsula Campaign). Jackson was ordered the hold down the Federal troops in the Valley to prevent them from reinforcing McClellan. Even with a small army of poorly-trained troops and defeat at Kernstown in March, Jackson succeeded with brilliant strategies and maneuvers to maintain control of the Valley and prevent McClellan from receiving any help. Indeed, it would be Jackson who would reinforce Gen. Robert E. Lee in successfully defending Richmond against McClellan.
On May 23, Jackson defeated the 1st Maryland Regiment USA under Union Col. John Kenly sent to Front Royal to guard the bridge and railroad over the North and South Fork of the Shenandoah River and protect Gen. Nathaniel Banks' position in nearby Strasburg. With Jackson was the 1st Maryland CSA which dubbed the Battle of Front Royal as the Battle of Brother Against Brother.
The Battle of Front Royal Driving Tour
is a site on the Civil War Discovery Trail that starts at the Front Royal Visitors Center and follows the battle through modern-day Front Royal.
The seventh stop on the tour is Richardson's Hill, where Union Col. John Kenly and his troops made a last-ditch effort to hold Front Royal after being steadily forced back through town by the Confederates. The Pennsylvania Light Artillery fired two Parrot cannons from this hill and brought the advancing Confederates to a halt. But the 6th Louisiana Infantry and 6th Virginia Cavalry surrounded the Union position on the hill and Kenly was forced to retreat across the Shenandoah River.
Two years later, six of Mosby's Rangers were executed here. Confederate Lt. Col. John S. Mosby was also known as the 'Gray Ghost' because of the way he would appear, wreak havoc, and disappear. He organized the Partisan Rangers in 1863. He and his small band of men became experts in guerilla warfare. They disrupted Union supply lines, transportation routes, and communications. Six Rangers were captured in Front Royal after trying to attack a train bearing Union supplies. It was alleged they killed a Union officer trying to escape and they were condemned to die. Four were shot and two were hanged. A month later, Mosby executed seven men from Union Gen. George A. Custer's command in retaliation because Mosby believed it was Custer who ordered his men killed.
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