The Confederates delayed the march at Big Bethel, Yorktown, and Williamsburg, and although, by May 31, McClellan's forces were within seven miles of the Confederate capital, they were in a very bad strategical position, because the Chickahominy river—with its treacherous swamp land—divided the two wings of the army. To McClellan's great disappointment, the President had detained Gen. McDowell with 40,000 men to cover Wash ington, which made his numbers about equal to those of the Confederates. Gen. Banks in the Shenandoah valley was watching "Stonewall" Jackson's remarkable "foot cavalry," but by defeat ing Banks and threatening Washington, Jackson kept McDowell's division from re-enforcing McClellan. Jackson himself joined the Confederates defending their capital. Meanwhile, President Lin coln called Maj.-Gen. John Pope from the West, placing him in command of the combined armies of Banks and Fremont in the valley, and McDowell at Fredericksburg. These forces were ad vanced towards the Rappahannock.
McClellan was checked at the battle of Seven Pines, or Fair Oaks, where Gen. Johnston, who directed the Confederates, was wounded, and Gen. Robert E. Lee took command of the army. Seeing the advantage of attacking a portion of McClellan's divided detachments, the new commander (with the assistance of Jack son's corps) precipitated a furious assault upon the Union right wing. Then followed the terrible "Seven Days' " fighting, in which McClellan was compelled to retreat (June 26 to July 1) to the James river; ending the backward movement and change of base (from White House on the Pamunkey to Harrison's Land ing on the James) at Malvern Hill, under the protection of the Union gunboats. By a petulant telegram (June 28) the defeated commander incurred the everlasting displeasure of the secretary of War, and by an ill-advised letter to the president from Harri son's Bar, engendered a similar feeling among the members of the cabinet. Yet, after his army had been transported to Alexandria and sent to the aid of Pope, who was signally defeated at Cedar mountain and Second Bull Run, so great was the need of his as sistance that he was called to Washington by Gen. Halleck (mil itary adviser of the President) and verbally ordered to take charge of all the troops retreating to the city. In this President Lincoln concurred.
The Federals were soon well in hand, but there was immediate work for them to do, as Lee had crossed the Potomac, invaded Maryland and seized Hagerstown and Fredericksburg. McClellan put the Union forces in motion towards the invaders, and on Sept. 13, 1862, had the good fortune to come into possession
of an order issued by the Confederate chieftain which had been found by a private of the 27th Indiana Volunteers, wrapped se curely around three cigars. This fully disclosed his plans. An im mediate and rapid advance was ordered; the Confederates were driven through the Blue Ridge at Turner's and Fox's gaps and pursued to Antietam creek, near Sharpsburg, Md., where they offered battle. Although the Confederate army consisted of but 41,50o men, and the Union force was approximately 81,176, Mc Clellan not only fought the battle in detail, engaging not more than two of his six corps simultaneously, but he even held two corps out of the battle almost entirely. On the 18th the Union troops were not permitted to attack, and on the next day Lee safely retreated across the Potomac at Shepherdstown. Mc Clellan's unwillingness to risk battle in spite of superior numbers, coupled with his great delay in following the retreating Confed erates so exasperated the authorities in Washington with his con duct of the campaign that he was subsequently removed from the position of commander-in-chief of the army of the Potomac (Nov. 5 1862). Major-Gen. Burnside was appointed to succeed him, and he was never afterwards tendered a command.
In 1864, McClellan became the Democratic presidential candi date upon a platform which denounced the war as a failure and proposed negotiations with the South for peace, but, as a patriotic soldier, he repudiated the platform although accepting the nomi nation. At the polls Abraham Lincoln was overwhelmingly re elected president, as a result of which McClellan soon sailed for Europe, after resigning his commission in the army. Upon his re turn, the former leader took up his residence in New York city, where (1868-69) he was engaged in superintending the construc tion of an experimental floating battery. In 1871-72 he was engi neer-in-chief of the City of New York's department of docks. Removing to Orange, N.J. (1877-81), he was elected governor of New Jersey upon the Democratic ticket. Although offered a second nomination, he refused it, and spent his later years in travelling abroad and preparing his memoirs. He died suddenly of heart disease, on Oct. 29, 1885, at Mayfield, Orange, New Jersey. Bronze equestrian statues at Philadelphia and Wash ington have been erected to this popular but unfortunate general, who always held the affectionate regard of the enlisted men.