Why didn't the South continue on toward Washington D.C.?

Answer 1

Phil, The answer to your question would vary depending on what time period you are referring to. If you mean after the first battle of Bull Run, the fact is that the Confederate forces came very close to a disastrous defeat themselves that day. They were much too disorganised to mount a pursuit and a single regiment of Federal regulars was able to conduct a successful rear guard action. In subsequent campaigns Lee was defeated at Antietam and Gettysburg and thus could not get near the city. Even if he had been ablle to though, by then it was much too heavily defended to be taken by storm and Lee did not have the resources to conduct a siege. Michael Montagne

I am oing to go ahead and disagree with the above statement. It was because the South just wanted to be left alone. The South didn't want to take over the Federal Government, they just wanted to be left alone. The South also hoped it would show Mr. non-american Lincoln that they could have done it, but chose not to. This was to show that the South just wanted to be left alone and wanted no more bloodshed.

During Lee's 2nd invasion of the North, Lee envisioned entering Washington DC to end the war in favor of the South. If the Southerners could have taken the city they would have. After all, DC was originally carved out of Maryland and Virginia, both were states the South wanted.

I assume the question is concerning the aftermath of the battle of (1st)Manassas/Bull Run in July, 1861. In Battle Cry of Freedom, James M. McPherson said that there was a line of unbloodied reserves put in Centerville on the night of July 21 (after the battle that day). Also, the next day hard rain turned the roads "to soup", and that "Confederate logistics were inadequate for an advance even in good weather" much less with soupy roads. Admittedly there were many who at the time, including Edwin Stanton, Longstreet, Stonewall Jackson, and George McClellan, who said that taking Washington, and thereby winning Southern independence, was a possibility. However, those responses may be motivated by Union paranoia after a loss, and Confederate postwar regret, the latter seeing an untried possibility that might have prevented ultimate defeat in the War Between the States.

THe reason the South didn't overtake Washington D.C. is because they were only defending their own country. The South didn't want to take Washington, so it didn't. Also, the disorderly chaos helped the South win the first Battle of Bull Run. They had not established a color yet. Therefore, the Union soldiers weren't always sure who they were fighting. So if they had decided to continue toward Washington, D.C. they might have been victorious. But since they were only trying to defend their country (the Confederacy) they didn't see the neccesity to overtake the Union capitol.

ANSWER

The South wanted to fight a war where they caused so many casualties to the North that they would just give up and recognize the South as a Country. Also they didn't have the manpower to take the capital.