The Battle of Rio Hill was a skirmish in the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 in which Union

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 cavalry

Cavalry

Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...

 raided a Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 camp in Albemarle County, Virginia

Albemarle County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 79,236 people, 31,876 households, and 21,070 families residing in the county. The population density was 110 people per square mile . There were 33,720 housing units at an average density of 47 per square mile...

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In the early afternoon of February 26, 1864, Union Brig. Gen.

Brigadier general (United States)

A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...

 George A. Custer and between 1,000 to 3,000 Union soldiers advanced towards Charlottesville

Charlottesville, Virginia

Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...

. This raid was an attempt by the Union to divert attention toward Charlottesville while a separate attempt was made to free prisoners of war being held in Richmond

Richmond, Virginia

Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...

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Custer's orders were to destroy a railroad bridge across the Rivanna River

Rivanna River

The Rivanna River is a tributary of the James River in central Virginia in the United States. The Rivanna's tributaries originate in the Blue Ridge Mountains; via the James River, it is part of the watershed of Chesapeake Bay....

. His only opposition came from Confederate Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart

J.E.B. Stuart

James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a cavalry commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use...

's "Horse Company" and Confederate infantrymen stationed in a camp near the Rivanna River at Carrsbrook

Carrsbrook, Virginia

Carrsbrook is an unincorporated community in Albemarle County, Virginia.Confederate Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's "Horse Company" and Confederate infantrymen were stationed in a camp near the Rivanna River at Carrsbrook during the Civil War. Union Brig. Gen. George A. Custer’s men raided the camp...

. Custer's men raided the camp under fire from Confederate forces commanded by Capt. R. Preston Chew

R. Preston Chew

Roger Preston Chew was a noted horse artillery commander in the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia during the American Civil War. After the war, he was a prominent West Virginia businessman and railroad executive....

 and Captain Marcellus N. Moorman. The Federal troopers looted the camp and set fire to it, after capturing two Confederate soldiers. During the raid, one of the Confederate artillery pieces exploded, and Custer became confused believing that the explosion was actually the reopening of enemy artillery fire. His men fired into each other and then fled from the camp. The Confederate troops regrouped and chased Custer out of Albemarle.

Custer and Philip Sheridan

Philip Sheridan

Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...

 returned to Charlottesville in 1865 and looked after the town from March 3 to March 7, a month before the Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...

 surrendered at Appomattox

Appomattox Court House

The Appomattox Courthouse is the current courthouse in Appomattox, Virginia built in 1892. It is located in the middle of the state about three miles northwest of the Appomattox Court House National Historical Park, once known as Clover Hill - home of the original Old Appomattox Court House...

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