Hey everyone, thanks for tuning in to episode 2.

I'm Tracey, and welcome to the podcast.

At the end of the last show, it was the morning of Saturday, December 13, 1862, and the

commander of the Federal's left-grand division, William Franklin, had just been given Ambrose

Burnside's orders for the day.

Franklin was already upset since he had expected to receive Burnside's instructions hours

before this, and now Franklin grew even more agitated since the orders he just received

weren't at all what he'd been expecting.

In his book on the Battle of Frederick Spurred, Franco Riley says Burnside's orders to Franklin

were, quote, an astonishingly vague and rambling directive.

You see, based on their conversation the night before, Franklin had expected to receive

orders indicating that his assault against Prospect Hill on the southern sector of the

battlefield below Frederick Spurred was to be the main union attack on December 13th,

but Burnside's written instructions no longer seemed to reflect that.

Well behind schedule as he was, and already frustrated Franklin decided not to spend

more time asking Burnside for clarification.

Or did he ask the staff officer who had brought the orders if he knew anything of the Army

commander's intentions?

And so Franklin read and re-read them, but was still unable to determine from the imprecise

wording of the orders if Burnside expected him to hold his whole force in readiness to

strike the extreme right of the Confederate line, or if he was simply to make an immediate

demonstration against Prospect Hill with one division.

...