The Battle of the Potomac

Mead was the overall commander in name, undergrant of the army of the Potomac. Mead refused to allow that unit to do the job. Grant basically didn't want to get involved. It was a highly politicized question by this point. Burnside then makes it worse. He doesn't have the guts to choose his best division commander. His very worst division commander, James Ledley, drunk and a coward, draws the short straw.