BATTLES OF THE WILDERNESS
At once began. An attempt was made to turn the right flank of Lee's
army. The divisions of Heth and Wilcox withstood the assault during
the entire day, and successfully too, as even the Northern accounts admit.
No shouts of victory echoed through the Wilderness that night.
Late in the evening Hancock's corps moved forward and took a position
on the left of the Federal army. At 5 o'clock the next morning
(the 6th) the second day's fighting was begun by Hill's and Longstreet's
corps attacking both flanks of Hancock's position, which in a short time
were turned and forced back. The fighting now became general and
continued throughout the day, which closed with a charge by one of
Lee's columns and the capture of General Seymour and a large portion
of his brigade. Grant's loss was more than 20,000, of which 5,000 were
prisoners. Lee had lost 10,000. This is an appalling aggregate, considering
that it was a mere incidental engagement, in which the employment
of artillery was precluded and strategic maneuver impracticable.
The Federal General Wadsworth had been killed and General Longstreet
was severely wounded. Such were the first two battles of the
Wilderness, the results of which the facts prove to have been in favor
of the Confederates. At the North, however, it was claimed that the
advantage was with the Federal army.
![illustration](https://iiif.lib.virginia.edu/iiif/uva-lib:402988/full/!1600,1600/0/default.jpg")
