The Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road (also known as the Second Battle of Fair Oaks) was fought October 27–28, 1864 in Henrico County, Virginia, as part of the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign of the American Civil War.
In combination with movements against the Boydton Plank Road at Petersburg, Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler attacked the Richmond defenses along Darbytown Road with the X Corps. The XVIII Corps marched north to Fair Oaks where it was soundly repulsed by Maj. Gen. Charles W. Field's Confederate division. Confederate forces counterattacked, taking some 600 prisoners. The Richmond defenses remained intact. Of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's offensives north of the James River, this was repulsed most easily. The Medal of Honor was awarded to First Lieutenant William Rufus Shafter for his actions. Union casualties were 1,603, Confederates fewer than 100.
Background
Union
The following Union Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road. It is compiled from the official tabulation of casualties, so includes only units which sustained casualties.
Army of the James
MG Benjamin F. Butler
X Corps
BG Alfred H. Terry
XVIII Corps
MG Godfrey Weitzel
Confederate
The following Confederate army units and commanders fought at the battle.
Army of Northern Virginia
First Corps
LTG James Longstreet
Fourth Corps
Cavalry Corps
Abbreviations used
Military rank
Gen = General
LTG = Lieutenant General
MG = Major General
BG = Brigadier General
Col = Colonel
Ltc = Lieutenant Colonel
Maj = Major
Other
(w) = wounded
(mw) = mortally wounded
(k) = killed in action
(c) = captured
Battle
Notes
References
National Park Service battle description
Salmon, John S. The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. . CWSAC Report Update