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Friday, July 1, 2011

Stonewall Jackson during the Seven Days

According to: Encyclopedia Virginia:
http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Jackson_Thomas_J_Stonewall_1824-1863

During the subsequent Seven Days' Battles, Jackson participated in the operations or fighting relating to the battles of Mechanicsville, Gaines's Mill, Savage's Station, White Oak Swamp, and Malvern Hill. Some of Jackson's contemporaries and many subsequent historians considered his performance tardy, lethargic, or inept, while Jackson partisans have defended his reputation with zeal. The drive and purpose Jackson had displayed in the Valley were indeed lacking, and it was not Jackson's finest hour, but there were mitigating circumstances. Thanks to overwork during the Shenandoah Valley Campaign, his reluctance to delegate tasks, and a nervous energy that robbed him of sleep, Jackson was occasionally fatigued to the point of unfitness for command.

Moreover, Jackson operated over unfamiliar terrain with poor maps. The instructions Jackson received from Lee lacked clarity, and Lee did a poor job of coordinating the movements of Jackson and his other subordinates. Nevertheless, the campaign halted McClellan's advance on Richmond.

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