The Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1862 made Stonewall Jackson famous. The series of campaigns in the same valley in 1864 is not as widely known, but still very significant.
Sigel's New Market Campaign
In May 1864, Franz Sigel lead a Union army south through the Valley with the objective of Lynchburg. He was met on May 15th near New Market by a patchwork army under John C. Breckenridge that included a battalion of cadets from the Virginia Military Academy (VMI). The Union army was strung out down the valley and defeated by the smaller Confederate forces in a battle that culminated in a charge by the VMI cadets. Sigel's army retreated north in disorder while most of Breckenridge's army went east to reinforce Robert E. Lee.
Hunter's Lynchburg Campaign
Sigel was replaced by David Hunter who soon resumed the offensive. He defeated another patchwork army, this time under Grumble Jones, at Piedmont then occupied Staunton and burned VMI. Hunter was delayed in reaching Lynchburg, arriving on June 17th only to to find a Confederate army under Jubal Early (detached by Lee) already there. Running low on supplies and fearing he was outnumbered, Hunter retreated. However, instead of returning north down the valley, he instead went west into the mountains of West Virginia.
Early's Raid
With the Shenandoah now clear, Early took his army north and crossed into Maryland. Lew Wallace lead a patchwork Union army in delaying action at Monocacy on July 9th. By the time the Confederate army reached Washington DC on July 11th the capital's fortifications had been reinforced from the Army of the Potomac.
Early retreated to the northern Shenandoah Valley and a series of small battles, skirmishes, and cavalry fights ensued, most notably a Union defeat at Kernstown on July 24th and the burning of Chambersburg, PA on July 30th (possibly in retaliation for the burning of VMI).
Sheridan's Valley Campaign
After Kernstown and Chambersburg, Phil Sheridan was sent to clear Early from the valley. After a slow start, Sheridan soundly defeated Early at Third Winchester (also called Opequon) and Fisher's Hill in mid-September. This freed Sheridan's army to spend two weeks laying waste to the upper valley, burning crops, barns, mills, and factories to deny the Shenandoah as a supply source.
Early launched a surprise attack on the Union army at Cedar Creek and initially achieved a major success. However, Sheridan arrived dramatically in the afternoon with reinforcements, rallied the rest of the army, and routed the Confederates.
After Cedar Creek most of Early's army rejoined Lee's army in Petersburg, leaving Sheridan uncontested control of the valley. A final cavalry raid in early 1865 saw the remains of Early's army destroyed at Waynesboro.
Visiting The Sites
The New Market battlefield is now a state historic site with a museum operated by VMI who still honor the fallen cadets in a yearly ceremony. Monocacy and Cedar Creek battlefields are national parks.