Brandy Station, Battle of
Years: 1863 - 1863
The Battle of Brandy Station, also called the Battle of Fleetwood Hill, is the largest predominantly cavalry engagement of the American Civil War, as well as the largest ever to take place on American soil
It is fought on June 9, 1863, around Brandy Station, Virginia, at the beginning of the Gettysburg Campaign by the Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton against Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's Confederate cavalry.
Pleasonton launches a surprise dawn attack on Stuart's cavalry at Brandy Station.
After an all-day fight in which fortunes change repeatedly, the Federals retire without discovering Gen. Robert E. Lee's infantry camped near Culpeper.
This battle marks the end of the Confederate cavalry's dominance in the East.
From this point in the war, the Federal cavalry will gain strength and confidence