The Battle of Cedar Creek Offers Insight into Valley's Final Months

The Battle of Cedar Creek Offers Insight into Valley’s Final Months

Little Phil Sheridan’s Ride during the Battle of Cedar Creek remains one of the most famous vignettes in Civil War history.

By William E. Welsh Out of the mist on the rolling ground of the Shenandoah Valley the bulk of the Confederate Army bore down on the Union left flank on the morning of October 19, 1864. Although outnumbered against an army in a strong defensive position, the cantankerous Lt. Gen. Jubal Early threw his 21,000 veteran graybacks against Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan’s bluecoats at dawn. Like it had at Chancellorsville and the first day at Gettysburg, the Union army quickly unraveled. Little Phil wa