Retreat from Victory

Malvern Hill marks a pivotal Civil War clash where armies contended for Richmond and fate hinged on strategic choices.

Malvern Hill on July 1, 1862, marked the climax of the Seven Days' Battles around Richmond, Virginia. For the first time since the Civil War began, the full might of Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's Union Army of the Potomac and Gen. Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia met on one field. The world watched and wondered as this high-stakes combat played out on the doorstep of the Confederate capital. The Union army emerged victorious with its superior positions and overwhelming artillery firepower, yet McClellan retreated from victory to establish a safe base on the James River. Lee's army secured a default victory simply by holding the battlefield and saving Richmond from capture. Francis Augustín O'Reilly's long-awaited Retreat from Victory: The Battle of Malvern Hill and the End of the Seven Days, July 1, 1862, is the first book-length treatment of this critical and pivotal combat.

O'Reilly examines the singular struggle at Malvern Hill in depth and from a wide variety of perspectives, including its implications for the war, the armies, the opposing governments, the people, and slavery. He pieces together the tactical movements of troops on the battlefield and the intentions of leaders on the front lines and in the halls of government in Washington, D.C., and Richmond, Virginia. Above all, he gives voice to the soldiers, sharing their experiences in combat and on campaign.

Two decades in the making, Retreat from Victory draws on hundreds of primary sources--many previously unused--including official records, diaries, newspapers, and regimental histories. O'Reilly's sound and reasoned conclusions are grounded in his deep archival research and keen understanding of the complex terrain.

This climactic Civil War battle elevated General Lee's career and marked the beginning of the end of General McClellan's. It was a watershed moment when the Civil War transformed from a rebellion into a revolution. The conflict grew exponentially larger and more brutal, and ultimately doomed slavery in America. O'Reilly's Retreat from Victory provides a definitive account of the Battle of Malvern Hill and sets a standard that will endure for the foreseeable future.