Confederate General Robert E. Lee, commanding the Army of Northern Virginia, rode his gray mount Traveller into the clearing around the burning Chancellor mansion at 10 a.m. on May 3, 1863. The clearing was packed with Lee's triumphant legions, who had just driven the Army of the Potomac from its position. At the moment of triumph they beheld their beloved chieftain, who, they felt, had personally brought them this victory. The Chancellor plain resounded with their thunderous cheers.
Lee, not content with having driven the enemy from Chancellorsville, was already planning the next phase of the attack. For the next two hours he allowed his men some much-needed rest while he made preparations to reopen the offensive. Shortly after noon, he learned that Union Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick had broken through at Fredericksburg and was marching on his rear.
Sedgwick commanded the left wing of the Union Army under Maj. Gen. Joseph 'Fighting Joe Hooker. The left wing was supposed to be Hooker's ace in the hole during the Chancellorsville campaign, holding Lee in his Fredericksburg position while Hooker and the right wing came in on his flank and rear. Instead, Lee had left behind a small force to hold Sedgwick in position while he had raced west to contend with Hooker. From May 1 to 3, the battle had raged between Lee and Hooker at Chancellorsville. Nothing of much consequence had occurred on the Fredericksburg front.
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