B00HSFFI1Q EBOK Read online

  Harry poured me a large whiskey. “It will all make sense once we invade Pennsylvania and we can get back to whipping the Yankees.”

  “I am not so sure about an invasion Harry. We found a lot of new regiments just north of us. I think we may be fighting them sooner rather than later but it will be on their terms.”

  All thoughts of an invasion were dismissed when we were briefed by Colonel Boswell the next day. “The general has decided that we will need to have some war games to allow us to learn how to fight together as one Cavalry Corps. The day after tomorrow we will be setting up a battle between the different regiments.”

  I saw Harry scratch his head, “I am sorry sir but how does fighting each other help us to learn how to fight together. That doesn’t make sense.”

  For once the colonel looked as confused as we were. “I know but General Lee himself wants to watch us fight so we do it as ordered.” He looked at me; his eyes still cold and unforgiving. “Captain Hogan and his men will have to patrol north of the Rappahannock to make sure that we are not surprised by the Union cavalry.”

  I saw Danny begin to rise. I think he was going to defend me but I didn’t need any further rifts between my friends. I gave him a slight shake of the head and he sat down.

  “If that is all then I suggest that you prepare your men for the coming games.”

  If Colonel Boswell thought he was punishing me by sending me on patrol he was wrong. I was more than happy to be on patrol with my men. The task he had given me was an easy one anyway. We would not have far to ride. By crossing Beverley Ford we could ensure that no-one could approach the camp with us seeing them. It would be a pleasant day; unless the Yankees came. They didn’t and it was a good day. Trooper Ashcroft managed to bag a couple of rabbits which would make a welcome change from the rations. There were shortages of food which meant that we augmented our diet whenever we could.

  General Lee had, apparently, missed the review, which meant it would have to be repeated when he could see it. General Stuart had been pleased with the way everyone had performed. Of course the men and horses were exhausted from the constant charging and counter charging.

  When we sat outside the mess tent that night Dago was very pessimistic about the prospects. “Everyone knows that you can’t keep charging horses. You have to rest them. If this had been a real battle today then we would have all been killed. You had the best duty, Jack.”

  I nodded, “It was very peaceful.

  We drew the same duty when the review was repeated. This time it was not so peaceful. We had discovered a pleasant stand of trees by the ford and we had a couple of fishing lines out. Trooper Ritchie and I took our carbines to see if we, too, could bag some food for the pot. It was our stalking of animals which hid us from the Northern patrol which approached from the north. We were hiding in the undergrowth when we saw them. “Trooper Ritchie, go and bring the men up with their carbines.”

  As he slipped silently away I stared at the approaching riders. There were just two scouts but I knew that there would be more following. These cavalrymen had seen action. Their uniforms were faded and they rode with their pistols drawn. It would not do to underestimate them.

  By the time my men arrived I could see that there were twenty men in the patrol. They were scouting the ford. Sergeant James spread the men out and he took the right end of the line. We let them ride towards us. The road was slightly below us and dropped down to the ford; we would have the advantage of height when we opened fire.

  I waited until they were within pistol range and then swung my arm down. Our carbines bucked as we opened fire. They were briefly confused, but they showed their quality when they dismounted and drew their own weapons. The advantage was with us for, although they outnumbered us, we had height and surprise on our side. Their officer and sergeant had been knocked from their saddles in the first volley and they were taking more casualties. They were firing blindly at our smoke and they were not harming us in the least.

  There was so much smoke it was hard to see where they were. When their fire slackened I held up my hand and we waited for the smoke to clear. The survivors were heading back along the road towards their own lines. They had loaded their dead and wounded on to their horses and were heading north.

  “Give them another volley.”

  We fired again and managed to hit one of the troopers who fell from his horse. We ran to him as his comrades fled. He was a Maryland cavalryman. We found no papers on him but he had a fine pair of boots, which we took as well as an Army Colt and a full ammunition pouch. Disappointingly he only had five dollars on him. We returned to camp with the news that the enemy were scouting the ford.

  The colonel looked tired when we reported to him. I don’t think he had enjoyed the review. He even forgot to scowl at me as he rode off to give the news directly to General Stuart. When the colonel returned he told us that our task the next day, as a regiment, was to scout out the land to the north of Beverley Ford. We would be up before dawn.

  We had just paraded before the colonel when we heard the sound of gunfire coming from the ford. There was no time for a parade and Colonel Boswell became his old self as he led the regiment towards the firing at the river. As we passed the artillery camp close to St. James’ Church the colonel ordered the bugler to sound the alarm. The artillerymen erupted from their tents as we charged by.

  Ahead we could see, highlighted by the dawn, the Pennsylvania cavalry streaming across the ford. The pickets were fleeing in our direction. This was not the time to pause and reflect; if the cavalry got amongst the camp then our men, already exhausted from war games, would be slaughtered in their beds. The charge was sounded. We were too disorganised to hit them as a solid line but the colonel’s intention was obvious, to put us between them and the artillery. This would give the troops at the camp time to organise. We were like the boys in the Alamo; we were buying the army time to prepare. I spurned my sword and drew my Colt. I could be more effective with that at this close range.

  We hit their line at a bend on the Beverly Ford Road. I suspect that they thought they had done the hard part in chasing away our vedettes. We had the advantage of slightly higher ground and had momentum. They were a blue sea washing up from the river. I saw a colonel appear before me, his sabre in his hand and I fired. He was thrown from his saddle. I shot his bugler too. The lieutenant who was on the other side of the bugler swung his sword at my head. I ducked and fired blindly at the same time. I saw him clutch his stomach as he wheeled from the battle. They had been briefly halted and the horses milled around in confusion. The front ranks were being pressed forward by more men who were streaming across the ford. It was a furious battle.

  As I emptied my gun I was forced to draw my sword. I managed to parry the blow aimed at my head from the enormous grinning trooper. He was no swordsman and, as he raised his sabre for a second attempt I stabbed him in the chest. I saw three troopers galloping at me and I drew my saddle Colt and emptied it in their direction. The one trooper who reached me had his arm thrust forward to spear me. I leaned to one side to evade it and slashed at his middle with my own.

  It was with some relief that I heard the bugle sound the order to withdraw. We headed up the road. I saw that the artillery had managed to position a gun on either side of the road. I heard Danny roar, “Dismount and form a skirmish line between the guns.”

  I slipped from my horse and drew my carbine as the trooper designated as horse holder led Copper away. “Good to be back with you sir!”

  I grinned as I saw Sergeant Major Mulrooney behind me. He turned to shout at the troopers. “Find as much cover as you can and wait for the order to fire.”

  I looked down the line of my troopers. I could not see any familiar face that was missing. We had been lucky. We now had to wait to see what the enemy would do. If their commander had any sense he would form a skirmish line and his superior numbers would soon whittle us down. I saw at least one brigade do that.

  “Ready boys. Choose your
target- there are enough of them!”

  The men laughed at my weak joke. They were not intimidated by numbers. It was the quality of the mettle which would determine this battle. Danny roared, “Fire!” We began to pick off the visible targets.

  “Watch your ammunition. Don’t waste any!” This was going to be a long day and I was grateful that all of my men had full ammunition pouches as well as a spare. There were advantages to being given the dirty jobs.

  Suddenly we heard the charge sounded. A line of Union cavalry galloped at us. I later heard it was the 6th Pennsylvania. They were brave boys, but they were doomed from the start. The two cannons blasted out a wall of death and we fired into the smoke. Once the cannons had fired we could see nothing but we knew that there was a brigade of cavalry coming at us. The artillery men were firing as rapidly as they could. Each time they fired they had to realign the gun. The 1st Virginia Scouts stopped the Yankees from closing with them as they reloaded and fired. Had they dismounted and made it a fire fight then they might have succeeded but horse and man was scythed down by the murderous hail of lead, ball and grapeshot. None even came close and I was glad when the bugle sounded retreat. Those brave boys had suffered enough.

  I stood and went around my troopers. One or two had slight wounds, which David had tended to but there was nothing serious. I had time to look at the scene. This was the major attack I had feared. I looked behind me to Fleetwood Hill. General Stuart had had his camp there the previous night. Of him there was no sign. Oddly there was just one howitzer and its crew occupying the top. The thought flitted across my mind that they would have a good view.

  A courier rode up. He saluted the major in charge of the guns. “General Stuart’s compliments major. Would you pull your guns back and have them face south.”

  The major and Colonel Boswell, who had wandered over, both looked perplexed. “The south?”

  “Yes sir. Another division has crossed Kelly’s Ford. We are about to be flanked. “

  As the artillery limbered up the colonel said, “Sergeant Major, get the horses.” He turned to us, “We need to see what is going on here.”

  I pointed up the hill. “Sir, what about going up the hill. We can see the whole field from there and the slope will help us to attack quicker.”

  He smiled at me, “Good idea. To your troops, gentlemen.”

  “Sergeant James, take ten men and get to the hill as quickly as you can.”

  As I mounted Copper and turned to look at my men I heard the pop of pistols from the hill. I looked up and saw that Sergeant James and my men were under fire. “Follow me!”

  There was no time to wait for support and we galloped up the slope. I saw that the howitzer crew were firing at the approaching cavalry and my men had dismounted to form a skirmish line. We hurtled over the crest of the ridge and saw horsemen streaming up the other side. This was no time for caution. I drew my sabre and yelled, “Charge!”

  We thundered down and struck the leading troopers of the enemy brigade. Our horses were still relatively fresh and we had the hill on our side. The enemy were bowled over and they crashed into the ranks behind. I slashed left and right with my sabre. There was no finesse and no subtlety; I could have been using an axe to chop down trees but it was an effective technique in such a pell-mell battle. The blade seemed to whirl in my hand. It was when I found that there was no one before me that I halted. I had outrun my men. Copper was lathered and the blue coated cavalrymen suddenly saw that I was alone. I drew my Colt and fired at the nearest men before turning Copper to gallop up the slope to the security of the howitzer.

  The gun was still firing and its vertical trajectory meant that I was safe from its balls but not so the cavalry pursuing me. Major McClellan, General Stuart’s adjutant shook my hand as I reined in. “Well done captain. I have sent word to the general but you gave us time to organise. Dismount your men please and form a skirmish line.”

  As my horse was led away I saw Cecil shaking his head. Trooper Ritchie joined me. “We tried to get to you sir but you flew down that hill.”

  “I think Copper was keen to get into this war.”

  “Sergeant James has been wounded sir.”

  “Badly?”

  “Hard to say. The lieutenant is with him.”

  He was in good hands then, David Dinsdale was a good doctor. I drew my carbine and crouched behind the wall. We had a good view of the battle from our lofty elevation. We were like a rock surrounded by the sea; the sea in this case was the Union Cavalry Corps and I had never seen so many cavalry in one place before. The respite was brief as they charged up the hill to get at us. Some were on horses and some were afoot. The one advantage we had was that we all had similar weapons with a similar range and our howitzer was slaughtering the men in the rear of their lines.

  “Aim for the leaders if you can. Fire!”

  I carefully aimed at an officer, sabre held aloft, who was rallying his men. He fell clutching his shoulder. I saw Cecil hit the trooper with the guidon and the regimental flag fell. It was only one man but the effect on the others was dramatic. They slowed as the dismay spread through their ranks. “Keep firing! Push them back!”

  We fired even faster at the stationary men who began to stream down the hill. We had beaten off another attack. “Corporal Jones, go and check the dead Yankees for ammunition.” There were dead soldiers less than twenty yards away and they had full pouches. He had just returned with the black gold when they charged for a third time. This time they had dismounted and used the dead horses and men on the slope for cover. The howitzer crew reacted by cutting their fuses shorter so that they exploded in the air over their heads. The effect was devastating; it indiscriminately cut a swathe through the whole brigade and they fell back once more.

  There was a short lull. “Make sure you all drink something.”

  Danny appeared at my shoulder. “You have done well Jack. That was a mad charge before. Even ‘himself’ was impressed.”

  Just then we saw a battery of guns appear at the foot of the hill. They were going to neutralise the effect of our howitzer. “Well Danny, it looks like we are going to have to take some of this medicine.”

  “You take charge of this side. I’ll go and see the colonel.”

  The howitzer tried to fire at the artillery but it was hard to hit such spread out targets. Trooper Ritchie appeared at my shoulder. “Sir if I take a couple of lads closer then we can pick off the gunners.”

  “Not a bad idea. Pick the best ten.” As he ran off I shouted, “Lieutenant Spinelli!”

  Dago appeared next to me. “Sir?”

  I grinned, “Well this is fun eh Dago?”

  “I am just thinking about all the pockets we can pick after this is over.”

  I laughed, he was incorrigible. “I am going to take ten men to pick off the gunners. You take charge here.”

  “Yes sir,but Jack… be careful!”

  “I always am. Come on Ritchie.”

  We ran in pairs down the hill. The Yankee cavalry tried to hit us but we were moving down and towards them. We were hard to hit. When we were a hundred and fifty yards away I shouted, “Down!” I looked and saw that we had lost two troopers.

  “Aim for the gunners.” My first shot pinged off a wheel and the ricochet spun off to strike a sergeant on the arm. I saw a gunner with a linstock fall and the man with the swab drop. One of the guns began to slow its rate of fire. We now had the range and soon we had hit enough of the gunners to make the rest take cover.

  The cavalry commander had had enough and he ordered his own men up the slope to dislodge us. I was about to order a retreat when I saw them begin to fall from shots emanating from our rear. I glanced over my shoulder and saw Dago leading the rest of my troop.

  I shook my head, “I thought I ordered you to stay there on the ridge.”

  “Jed came over so Irish and me thought we would give you a hand sir.”

  I saw the Union cavalry mounting. “Well we had better get back up the hill or w
e will be staying here permanently. Withdraw in pairs!”

  We turned and ran. One man fired while the other raced up the hill a few yards and then covered the other. In this way we made the safety of our own lines but I could see that we had left comrades behind.

  Major McClellan came over. “Well done boys. We have steadied the line.” He pointed at the gunners and the cavalry at the bottom of the hill. “Those boys down there are Irish. They aren’t the Irish Brigade but they are tough fighters. You boys did well.”

  The Union cavalry charged up the hill again. They were tired but there were plenty of them. We barely had time to aim our carbines before they were upon us. I soon eschewed my carbine in favour of my Colts. Suddenly a trooper threw himself from his horse and he landed upon me, knocking the wind from me. He raised his hand to punch me and I put my empty Colt up to catch the blow. He shouted as his hand hit the metal. I brought my knee up between his legs and he rolled off screaming. I whipped my knife from my boot and stabbed him in the throat.

  The Sergeant Major looked at me with concern written all over his face. “You all right sir?”

  I grinned. “I am now. Aim for the horses!” It went against the grain to shoot horses but it would stop them closing and provide an obstacle to any more charges. I took in the scene as, with shaking hands, I reloaded my gun. The tide inexorably slowed as they took more and more casualties.

  Colonel Boswell came over. “How are we for ammunition?”

  I looked at the Sergeant Major who said, “The boys have about ten more volleys sir.”

  “It’s as I thought. Right get your horses. We’ll clear the hill the old fashioned way.”

  We mounted and formed up behind the howitzer. Its short fuses were still causing havoc on the lower slopes. I could see little beyond the hill as the musket and cannon fire had created a pungent cloud of smoke. I had no idea if we were winning or losing. When we were formed up, the colonel ordered the charge sounded. Our horses were rested and we hurtled down the slope with sabres held before us. I knew that we had to save our supply of ammunition in case the charge failed. It didn’t. The gunners had had enough and they jumped on their horses to flee the field. The cavalry horses were blown but they gallantly turned to face us. The only way to counter a charge is by charging yourself and they lacked the horses to do that. We hit a static line and horses and men were knocked aside as the wall of horseflesh and steel hit them.