Federal reinforcements saved the Army of Potomac from disaster

Both sides were rattled and worn out after the brutal initial combat over the Glendale crossroads. Union and Confederate reinforcements hastened into the conflict as the situation was still quite uncertain. First to arrive were more Confederates, who formed a formidable second line of about 10,000 soldiers from the Longstreet and A.P. Hill divisions. The Southerners were on the verge of a breakthrough as they swept into the battered Union elements left over from the initial phase of the battle when new Union troops started to arrive.

More than 12,000 of these men were transferred from the areas that Benjamin Huger and Stonewall Jackson left uninfected. At a crucial juncture in the war, they arrived at the fork in the road and replenished the Union line. The exhausted assailants collapsed on the ground and traded volleys in the dimming light, which caused the Confederate effort to stop. The combat continued until the darkness engulfed them. Despite their early successes, the Confederates were unable to blockade the crucial intersection.