The Battle of Buckland Mills, also known as The Buckland Races or Chestnut Hill, was fought on October 19, 1863, between Union and Confederate forces in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. Union cavalry led by Brig. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick were caught in a Confederate ambush and defeated. Near Buckland Mills, on Broad Run, Confederate cavalry commander Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, with Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton's cavalry division, were covering Gen. Robert E. Lee's retirement from his defeat at Bristoe to the

Rappahannock River The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 It traverses the enti ...

. On October 19, they turned on Kilpatrick's pursuing Federal cavalry, while Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee's division charged the Federal flank. Kilpatrick was routed, fleeing five miles to Haymarket and Gainesville. The Confederates derisively called the affair "The Buckland Races", although some Confederate commanders likened it to a fox hunt. The Condeferate forces incurred 41 casualties. The Union forces lost about 261 men, most of which were taken prisoner.

Battlefield preservation

The Civil War Trust (a division of the American Battlefield Trust) and its partners have acquired and preserved of the battlefield.
American Battlefield Trust "Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 25, 2018.

References

* James Truslow Adams, Adams, James Truslow, ''Dictionary of American History'', New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1940.
National Park Service battle description

CWSAC Report Update and Resurvey: Individual Battlefield Profiles
Bristoe campaign Battles of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War Confederate victories of the American Civil War Buckland Mills Battle of Buckland Mills Battle of Buckland Mills Conflicts in 1863 1863 in Virginia October 1863 {{AmericanCivilWar-battle-stub