After the battle of Fredericksburg the Union army went into winter quarters at Falmouth, only a few miles away, while the Confederates took up their encampment for the winter at Fredericksburg.

General Joseph Hooker, who was popularly known as "Fighting Joe Hooker," had succeeded General Burnside in command of the Army of the Potomac, which numbered about 130,000 men, while that of the Confederates numbered about 60,000.

Hooker conceived the idea to divide his army and leave Sedgwick with about 40,000 men to make a feint upon the Confederates, stationed about Fredericksburg, and himself with the remainder of the army to move around Lee's army and take a position at Chancellorsville, a small place in a wilderness country only a few miles from Fredericksburg, and by doing this, take Lee by surprise. These plans of Hooker have been considered by war historians as being well laid if they had been carried out. Lee was on the alert, and had heard of Hooker's plans, and was not to be caught in the trap. Lee, paying little attention to Sedgwick, east of Fredericksburg, had turned to face Hooker. By rapid night marches he met Hooker's army before it reached its destination. His advance columns were pushed back by the Federals, who succeeded in taking the position which was assigned to them, Meade on the left and Slocum on the right, with adequate support in the rear. All was in readiness and had favorable positions when, to the amazement of all the officers, Hooker ordered the whole army to fall back to the position it had occupied the day before, thereby leaving the advantage with Lee, who moved his forces up to the positions which the Federals evacuated and began feeling the Federal lines with some cannonading during the evening of May 1st.

The Confederates were in extreme danger, having one large army in their front and another almost as large as theirs in their rear near Fredericksburg. But Lee decided to make one great and decisive blow at Hooker in front. During the night of May 1st Lee held council with "Stonewall" Jackson and accepted a plan laid out by him for Jackson to take part of the army and move around through the dense wood and rough country and fall upon the right flank of the enemy.

Early on the morning of May 2d the cannonading began its death-song and the infantry was brought into action. Before long Jackson began, with a portion of the army, to move off the field, and Hooker, observing this, believed that Lee's army was in full retreat on Richmond. This movement proved to be the undoing of Hooker's army, as Jackson was making for his right flank. It was about five o'clock in the afternoon when Jackson broke from the woods in a charge upon the unsuspecting troops of Hooker's right which was under Howard.

The approach of Jackson's forces was first intimated to the Federals by the bending of shrubbery, the stampede of rabbits and squirrels, and the flocks of birds in wild flight from the woods. First appeared a few skirmishers, then the rattling of musketry and the incessant roar of cannon. On the Confederates came in their impetuous charge. The charge was so unexpected and terrific that they carried everything before them. The Federal lines were swept as by tidal waves and rolled up like a scroll.

This crowning and final stroke of Jackson's military genius was the result of his own carefully worked-out plan, which had been approved by Lee.

General Hooker was spending the evening at his headquarters at the Chancellor House, rejoicing, as he thought, that Jackson was in full retreat and everything appeared to be going well. Presently the roar of battle became louder and louder on his right and an officer came up at full speed to notify him that his right was being fiercely attacked, was giving away, and would soon be in utter rout. Hooker made haste to the scene of battle and passed through brigade after brigade of his forces in retreat and confusion.

He was successful in having Berry re-form his division and charge the Confederates with fixed bayonets, which partly stopped the Confederates' advance. This gave the Federal artillery a few minutes to prepare itself for action. They finally succeeded in stopping the Confederate advance.

The mighty turmoil was silenced as darkness gathered. The two hostile forces were concealed in the darkness watching each other. Finally, at midnight, the order, "Forward!" was given in subdued tones to Sickle's corps. They stealthily advanced upon the Confederate position and at heavy loss gained the position sought for.

Between Hooker's and Sedgwick's divisions of the army stood the Confederate army flushed with the victory of the day, immediately in front of Sedgwick was Fredericksburg, beyond which loomed Marye's Heights, strongly guarded by Washington's artillery of the Confederates. These Heights were the battleground of a few months before when Burnside tried in vain to drive the Confederates from their crest.

Shortly after midnight Sedgwick began his march against Marye's Heights that was fraught with peril and death. At the foot of the slope were the stone wall and the sunken road, which was the battleground of a few months before in the battle of Fredericksburg. The crest and slopes bristled with Confederate cannon and musket. Sedgwick made his attack directly upon the stone wall in the face of a terrible storm of artillery and musketry. The first assault failed, but the second met with more success, as they succeeded in driving the Confederates from their strong position at the point of the bayonet by their overwhelming numbers. Sedgwick pushed on to attack Lee in the rear, but Lee was aware of his advance and dispatched General Early with a strong force to hold him in check and thus prevent his juncture with Hooker's army at Chancellorsville. Lee's army and that of Hooker's had been engaged since early morning in deadly combat.

While this engagement was at its height General Hooker, while leaning against a pillar on the porch of the Chancellor House, was stunned and felled to the ground and for some time it was thought that he was killed. This was done by a cannon ball, which shattered the pillar against which he was leaning. This injury incapacitated Hooker from active service the balance of the day and he gave orders for his army to retire, which was reluctantly done by his subordinate officers. When his columns began to retire from the field the Confederates increased their artillery fire, which played upon the retreating columns in blue. This fire marked the doom of the old Chancellor House, where Hooker had headquarters. The brick walls were pierced through by cannon balls and shells exploded in the upper rooms, setting the building on fire. Fragments of the demolished chimneys rained down upon the wounded in the lower rooms.

During the entire day's battle there were nineteen women and children, including some slaves, in the cellar where they had taken refuge. They were all removed before the complete destruction of the house by fire.

The long, deep trenches, full of Federal and Confederate dead, told the awful story of Chancellorsville. This scene will never be forgotten by the survivors of the battle. This was one of the greatest battles yet fought on the American Continent, and has gone down in history as being one of the greatest of modern times.

The Union loss was about 17,000, while that of the Confederates was about 13,000.

Late in the evening of the first day's battle General "Stonewall" Jackson was mortally wounded, in which the South suffered incalculable loss. After his brilliant flank march and the evening attack on Hooker's army had been driven home, at half-past eight, Jackson had ridden beyond his lines to reconnoiter for the final advance. By the sudden fire of musketry in his front, he discovered that he was within the enemy's lines. His party, suddenly turning back and riding at full speed, was mistook by his own men for the enemy, and his men, firing a volley of musketry, killed and wounded several of Jackson's party and mortally wounded Jackson by two shots in the left arm and one in his right hand. He was taken from his horse by the officers who were with him, among whom was A.P. Hill. It was found that there was no immediate conveyance for him to be carried within his lines. Presently the enemy discovered the commotion and mistaking it as an advance of the Confederate lines, began to shell the immediate vicinity with grape and canister, which necessitated the party with Jackson to lie down to escape the shower of lead which poured over them. The scene about them was an awful one. The air was pierced by the shrieks of shells and the cries of the wounded. Finally a stretcher was secured and Jackson was carried to the rear. One of the bearers was shot down and his place was taken by another. During the turmoil General W.D. Pender was met, who expressed the fear that his lines must fall back. General Jackson, in a clear voice, "You must hold your ground, General Pender; you must hold your ground to the last, sir." This was his last order to a subordinate officer.

It was first thought that Jackson's wounds would not prove fatal, but he developed pneumonia and gradually grew worse, and on the morning of May 10th it was apparent that he had only a few hours to live; at times he was unconscious and his mind apparently wandered on previous battlefields. During one of his unconscious moments he suddenly cried out, "Order A.P. Hill to prepare for action. Pass the infantry to the front!"

He then became silent and weak, and his last words were: "Let us cross over the river and rest in the shade of the trees."

When Lee heard that Jackson had fallen he said: "Any victory would be dear at such a price." It is thought by many that the result at Gettysburg would have been different had "The Great Flanker" lived to have been there. Henderson, the British war historian, said the fame of "Stonewall" Jackson is no longer the exclusive property of Virginia and the South; it has become the birthright of every man privileged to call himself an American.