Seven Days Battles

The Seven Days Battles are a series of seven battles over seven days from June 25 to July 1, 1862, near Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War.

Confederate General Robert E. Lee drives the invading Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan, away from Richmond and into a retreat down the Virginia Peninsula.

The series of battles is sometimes known erroneously as the Seven Days Campaign, but it is actually the culmination of the Peninsula Campaign, not a separate campaign in its own right.

The Seven Days begin on Wednesday, June 25, 1862, with a Union attack in the minor Battle of Oak Grove, but McClellan quickly loses the initiative as Lee begains a series of attacks at Beaver Dam Creek (Mechanicsville) on June 26, Gaines's Mill on June 27, the minor actions at Garnett's and Golding's Farm on June 27 and 28, and the attack on the Union rear guard at Savage's Station on June 29.

McClellan's Army of the Potomac continues its retreat toward the safety of Harrison's Landing on the James River.

Lee's final opportunity to intercept the Union Army is at the Battle of Glendale on June 30, but poorly executed orders and the delay of Stonewall Jackson's troops allow his enemy to escape to a strong defensive position on Malvern Hill.

At the Battle of Malvern Hill on July 1, Lee launches futile frontal assaults and suffes heavy casualties in the face of strong infantry and artillery defenses.

The Seven Days end with McClellan's army in relative safety next to the James River, having suffered almost  sixteen thousand casualties during the retreat.

Lee's army, which had been on the offensive during the Seven Days, has lost over twenty thousand.

As Lee becomes convinced that McClellan will not resume his threat against Richmond, he moves north for the Northern Virginia Campaign and the Maryland Campaign.

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