The Battle of Malvern Hill was the final battle of the Seven Days Battles of the American Civil War, taking place in Henrico County, Virginia on 1 July 1862 amid George B. McClellan's Peninsula Campaign. The Union general George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac inflicted heavy losses on Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, thwarting a major Confederate counterattack, but also allowing for McClellan and his army to end its "Peninsula Campaign" drive on the Confederate capital of Richmond.
Background[]
While Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia was victorious over George B. McClellan's Union Army of the Potomac at the costly Battle of Gaines' Mill on 27 June 1862, the Battle of Savage's Station on 29 June and the Battles of Glendale and White Oak Swamp on 30 June were inconclusive. McClellan assembled his forces atop Malvern Hill, 3.2 miles north of the James River in Henrico County, where he believed that his army would be under the protection of US Navy gunboats at Harrison's Landing. McClellan posted the largest portion of his army - Edwin V. Sumner's II Corps, two divisions from Samuel P. Heintzelman's III Corps, two divisions from Brigadier-General William B. Franklin's VI Corps, and one division from Major-General Erasmus D. Keyes' IV Corps - to protect the Western Run route towards Harrison's Landing. As McClellan rode off to inspect his army's future resting place at Harrison's Landing, he delegated command of his army to Fitz John Porter.
Meanwhile, Lee sought a final, decisive battle with the demoralized and retreating Army of the Potomac, aiming to scatter the Federals and bring an end to McClellan's Peninsula Campaign. James Longstreet laughed off D.H. Hill's advice not to attack the Union army on the well-defended hill, believing that the Union army was already losing. Lee chose the well-rested commands of D.H. Hill, Stonewall Jackson, and John B. Magruder to spearhead the assault on Malvern Hill, while Longstreet and A.P. Hill's divisions would be held in reserve. Two of Jackson's brigades were commanded by Wade Hampton and Jubal Early, who had recovered from their wounds two months earlier.
Battle[]

The start of the Confederate attack on Malvern Hill
By 1 July 1862, the bulk of the Union expeditionary force had no more strength to continue. The majority of the Union army began embarking at Harrison's Landing a few miles to the south, and Porter's force held their positions on Malvern Hill until McClellan could finalize the tactical withdrawal. The north face of Malvern Hill was the best ground to defend, as the Union artillery could dsee a wide area of open gound and butcher any infantry assaults. The Union command believed that it would be unlikely for the rebels to attack the west side of Malvern Hill, through swamps and rugged terrain, but the Union generals remained cautious. However, the small river and high cliffs on the east side discouraged an attack.

The Confederate army's nighttime assault on Malvern Hill
The Confederate attacks were disorganized, as bad maps and faulty guides caused Magruder's Confederate command to arrive late, Major-General Benjamin Huger was delayed by his excessive caution, and Stonewall had problems collecting Confederate artillery for the attack. Brigadier-General Lewis Armistead launched a minor assault on Malvern Hill before the Confederate States Army launched three charges against the hill. Federal artillery helped the Union defenders repulse attack after attack, and the Confederate infantry assaults - unsupported by artillery, taking place across hundreds of yards of open ground, and facing entrenched Union infantry and artillery defenses - suffered heavy losses. After the battle, McClellan's whole army withdrew to Harrison's Landing, where he remained until 16 August. Despite Lee's defeat, Lee was hailed by the Confederate press as the savior of Richmond, while McClellan was accused of being absent from the battlefield.