Left thus to his own initiative, Jackson conceived the most brilliant
series of engagements in the history of modern war. He determined to use
his infantry by forced marches to cover in a day the ground usually made
by cavalry and fall on the armies of his opponents one by one before
they could form a juncture.
On May 23, by a swift, silent march of his little army of fifteen
thousand men, he took Banks completely by surprise, crushed and captured
his advance guard at Fort Royal, struck him in the flank and drove him
back into Strassburg, through Winchester, and hurled his shattered army
in confusion and panic across the Potomac on its Washington base.
Desperate alarm swept the Capital of the Union. Stanton, the Secretary
of War, issued a frantic appeal to the Governors of the Northern States
for militia to defend Washington. Panic reigned in the cities of the
North. Governors and mayors issued the most urgent appeals for
enlistments.
Fremont was ordered to move with all possible haste and form a juncture
with a division of McDowell's army and cut off Jackson's line of
retreat.
The wily Confederate General wheeled suddenly and rushed on Fremont
before Shields could reach him. On June 8, at Cross Keys, he crushed
Fremont, turned with sudden eagle swoop and defeated Shields at Port
Republic.
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