Virginia 17th Cavalry (Confederate)
9/14/62
Battle - South Mountain - Frederick County, Maryland; Washington County, Maryland; Boonsboro, Maryland
After his success at Second Manassas, Gen. Robert E. Lee led the Army of Northern Virginia north across the Potomac River on an invasion of Maryland in September of 1862. Lee divided his army, sending a portion of it into western Maryland while Lieut. Gen. Stonewall Jackson's wing attempted to capture the Federal garrison at Harper's Ferry. The bold plan was jeopardized on September 13th when a mislaid copy of Lee's orders revealing the Confederates' plans was given to Union commander Maj. Gen. George B. M…READ MORE
1/28/63
Organized - Virginia 17th Cavalry - Virginia
6/13/63
Battle - Second Winchester - Frederick County, Virginia; Winchester County, Virginia
7/1/63
Leadership Change - Brigade - Brigadier General Albert G. Jenkins, and Lieutenant Colonel Vincent A. Witcher
Brigadier GeneralAlbert G. Jenkins
Lieutenant ColonelVincent A. Witcher
7/1/63
Leadership Change - Division - Major General J. E. B. Stuart
Major GeneralJ. E. B. Stuart
7/1/63
Leadership Change - Brigade - Brigadier General Albert G. Jenkins
Brigadier GeneralAlbert G. Jenkins
7/1/63
Battle - Gettysburg - Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
In the summer of 1863, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee launched his second invasion of the Northern states. Lee sought to capitalize on recent Confederate victories and defeat the Union army on Northern soil, which he hoped would force the Lincoln administration to negotiate for peace. Lee also sought to take the war out of the ravaged Virginia farmland and gather supplies for his Army of Northern Virginia. Using the Shenandoah Valley as cover for his army, Lee was pursued first by Union Maj. Gen. Joseph Ho…READ MORE
7/6/63
Battle - Hagerstown, Maryland
5/9/64
Battle - Cloyd's Mountain - Pulaski County, Virginia
7/9/64
Leadership Change - Brigade - Brigadier General John McCausland
Brigadier GeneralJohn McCausland
7/9/64
Leadership Change - Regiment and Other - Lieutenant Colonel William C. Tavenner
Lieutenant ColonelWilliam C. Tavenner
7/9/64
Battle - Monocacy - Frederick County, Maryland
After marching north down the Shenandoah Valley from Lynchburg, the Confederate army of Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early side-stepped the Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry and crossed the Potomac River at Shepherdstown into Maryland on July 5-6th, 1864. On July 9th, a makeshift Union force under Maj. Gen. Lew Wallace attempted to stop Early's invading Confederate divisions along the Monocacy River, just east of Frederick. The strategic area was near the junction of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the Georgetown…READ MORE
7/11/64
Leadership Change - Division - Major General Robert Ransom Jr.
Major GeneralRobert Ransom Jr.
7/11/64
Battle - Fort Stevens - District of Columbia, DC
After his victory over Maj. Gen. Lew Wallace at the Battle of Monocacy in central Maryland on July 9th, Confederate Maj. Gen. Jubal A. Early pressed his advantage and moved south toward the Union capital in Washington, DC. On July 11th, Early's exhausted Confederates reached the outskirts of Washington near Silver Spring. Skirmishers advanced to feel the fortifications that encircled the city, which at the time were manned only by Home Guards, clerks, and convalescent troops. During the night, Union reinfo…READ MORE
9/19/64
Leadership Change - Brigade - Colonel Milton Ferguson
ColonelMilton Ferguson
9/19/64
Leadership Change - Division - Major General Lunsford L. Lomax
Major GeneralLunsford L. Lomax
9/19/64
Battle - Third Winchester - Frederick County, Virginia; Winchester, Virginia
To clear the Shenandoah River valley of Confederates, Maj. Gen. Phil Sheridan moved on Winchester in mid-September 1864. Sheridan's force of over 39,000 men was more than twice the size of Maj. Gen. Jubal Early's Confederate army defending the valley. After Brig. Gen. Joseph Kershaw's division left Winchester to rejoin Robert E. Lee's army at Petersburg, Early renewed his raids on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad at Martinsburg in the lower valley, dispersing his four remaining infantry divisions. On Septem…READ MORE
10/19/64
Leadership Change - Brigade - Brigadier General John McCausland
Brigadier GeneralJohn McCausland
10/19/64
Battle - Cedar Creek - Frederick County, Virginia; Shenandoah County, Virginia; Warren County, Virginia
Also known as: Cedar Creek, Belle GroveREAD MORE
11/12/64
Battle - Ninevah, Virginia
4/1/65
Battle - Five Forks - Five Forks, Virginia
The Union victory along the White Oak Road on March 31st threatened to destabilize the entire Confederate line west of Petersburg. General Robert E. Lee ordered Maj. Gen. George Pickett with his infantry division and the cavalry divisions of Col. Thomas Munford, Maj. Gen. W.H.F. Lee, and Maj. Gen Thomas Rosser to hold the vital crossroads of Five Forks, along the White Oak Road five miles west of the previous fighting there. Pickett's defensive line was not well constructed, and much of his cavalry force w…READ MORE
4/9/65
Battle - Appomattox Court House - Appomattox Court House, Virginia
Between 26,000 and 28,000 Confederate soldiers surrendered and were paroled.READ MORE
4/9/65
Mustered Out - Virginia 17th Cavalry - Virginia
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