As Lee continued moving troops out of Fredericksburg, they were spotted by Union army balloonists. Joe Hooker, the Union commander, was not one to dither around wondering what his enemy was going to do. Troops were evacuating Fredericksburg — there must be a reason. But those were the troops that were keeping him out of Richmond, the Southern capital. Should he worry about what his opponent was going to do, or should he strike south at Richmond and perhaps end the war before Lee could do anything at all?
Of course, Hooker was defending Washington just as much as Lee was defending Richmond. A counterattack could end up “swapping queens”, with each army occupying the other’s capital city. What would happen then? Hooker’s reputation was in tatters after his loss at Chancellorsville a month ago. What did he have to lose?