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Letter from Major General George Meade to his wife

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, 9 P. M., June 5, 18 Since our last battle on the 3d inst. [Cold Harbor] we have been comparatively quiet. The enemy has tried his hand once or twice at the offensive, and in each case has been repulsed and severely punished. This evening after dark, he made a furious attack, but was everywhere repulsed. The sound of the artillery and musketry has just died away. Indeed we are pretty much engaged all the time, from early in the morning late at night. I don't believe the military history of the world can offer a parallel to the protracted and severe fighting which this army has sustained for the last thirty days. You would suppose, with all this severe fighting, our severe losses, constant marches, many in the night, that the physical powers of the men would be exhausted. I have no doubt in time it will tell on them, but as yet they show no evidence of it.

I feel a satisfaction in knowing that my record is clear, and that the results of this campaign are the clearest indications I could wish of sound judgment, both at Williamsport and Mine Run. In every instance that we have attacked the enemy in an entrenched position have failed, except in the case of Hancock's attack at Spottsylvania [sic], which was a surprise discreditable to the enemy. So, likewise whenever the enemy has attacked us in position, he has been repulsed I think Grant has had his eyes opened, and is willing to admit now Virginia and Lee's army is not Tennessee and Bragg's army. Whether the people will ever realize this fact remains to be seen.

Thesis: The Union troops were resilient, even after facing losses and losing battles.
Claim: The Union troops were very resilient because they didn't give up or have a dramatic decline in morale even after facing heavy losses and a difficult battle.
Evidence: In George Meade's letter to his wife he states "You would suppose, with all this severe fighting, our severe losses, constant marches, many in the night, that the physical powers of the men would be exhausted. I have no doubt in time it will tell on them, but as yet they show no evidence of it." This shows the Union troops are perseverant in fighting no matter if they win or lose.
Reasoning: This quote shows the resilience of the Union troops under George Meade because he explains the hardships that the army has faced in a letter to his wife. He says that even after all of this, his men show no signs of being exhausted or giving up.

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This piece of artillery would have been found at Cold Harbor because it would be used by the Confederates. The Confederates had an entrenched position, so they could utilize cannons to take down large numbers of Union soldiers as they attacked. This was what cannons looked like during the Civil War time period.

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In the image pictured there is one visible side of soldiers firing across a field at the opposition. Smoke is in the air from cannons firing and you can see soldiers running in from out of the frame to help fire the artillery.

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This picture shows the Union forces who occupy the high ground, attacking the confederates. In the image shows the beginning of the battle and it is distinguished by the soldiers at the front commanding for the rest of the army to charge. This battle had one of the highest death tolls and even though its only the beginning of the battle pictured, theres still a lot dead or wounded on the ground.

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Welcome to the site of the Battle of Cold Harbor! On June 3, the Union infantry led by Ulysses S. Grant and George Meade attacked entrenched Confederate troops led by Robert E. Lee. Both armies had already suffered many casualties as they had fought around Richmond in two battles, the Battle of the Wilderness and the Battle of Spotsylvania, in the past month. The armies arrived here, ten miles from Richmond, on June 1. Grant wanted to defeat Lee because of their close proximity to the Southern capital. He planned to attack the next day. However, Winfield Hancock's troops that were supposed to be reinforcements did not arrive in time. Grant postponed the attack until June 3rd, which proved to be a big mistake. The Confederates were given time to dig trenches, and therefore had a more strategic and advantageous position than the Union. The Union faced 7,000 casualties in under and hour, and the Confederates only faced 1,500. What made the Union casualties even more devastating was that many soldiers that could have been saved were left on the battlefield for four days after. This caused those soldiers to have to die a slow and painful death, lying in no-man's land between the Union and Confederate lines. This battle was significant because it was Lee's last large-scale field victory, since he was forced to focus on defending Richmond and Petersburg after this battle. Southern artillery officer Edward Porter Alexander called this battle the South's "last, and perhaps our highest tide" because Grant's army probably could not be stopped if they got to Petersburg and Richmond.

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https://www.pbs.org/video/civil-war-battle-cold-harbor/