and himself with over 5,000 casualties he was concerned. He reported his difficult situation to General Hooker and requested the main army assist him. General Hooker, however, replied not to attack unless the main army did the same. Meanwhile, General Lee arrived at McLaws' headquarters at 11 a.m. and McLaws informed him that he did not feel strong enough to launch an attack and asked for reinforcements. Anderson was ordered to bring the other three brigades of his division and position them between McLaws and Early; he then launched additional attacks, which were also defeated. General Benham of the U.S. Engineering Corps had added a bridge at Scott's Dam helping communicate with General Hooker. When the retreat was planned, General Benham on May 4 added a second bridge and he and General Sedgwick agreed to cross at night to avoid losing a large portion of his corps. At 6pm on the 4th of May the final Confederate attack was made and repulsed. The Union 6th Corps began retreating to a pre-planned smaller line closer to the bridges, and began their retreat without losses. Aftermath After dark, Sedgwick sent Hooker a message recommending that the VI Corps retreat across the river. After Hooker sent his approval at 1 a.m., Sedgwick withdrew across two pontoon bridges at Banks' Ford, completing the retreat about 4 a.m. Hearing that Sedgwick had been repulsed, Hooker abandoned the entire campaign, recrossing the main body of the Union army on the night of May 5 into May 6 to the north bank of the Rappahannock River back towards the Federal camp at Falmouth. Notes References Furgurson, Ernest B. Chancellorsville 1863: The Souls of the Brave. New York: Knopf, 1992. . Rogan, George. "Final Federal Assault at Chancellorsville." America's Civil War 11, no. 6 (January 1999): 42–48. Sears, Stephen W. Chancellorsville. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1996. . Further reading Parsons, Philip W. : "The Union Sixth Army Corps in the Chancellorsville Campaign: A Study of the Engagements of Second Fredericksburg, Salem Church, and Banks's Ford, May 3–4, 1863", Jefferson, North Carolina and London. 2006. . Mackowski, Chris, and Kristopher D. White. Chancellorsville's Forgotten Front: The Battles of Second Fredericksburg and Salem Church, May 3, 1863. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2013. . External links National Park Service battle description National Park Service Salem Church and battle description CWSAC Report Update Salem Church Salem Church Salem Church Salem Church