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Maryland
Sept. 1862
Let's review: By taking full advantage of Lee's Lost Order, George McClellan has won an overwhelming victory at the Battle of South Mountain. Since he hasn't nearly botched the whole affair as in OTL, he is rewarded with:
1. The successful defense of the Harper's Ferry supply garrison.
2. The death of Stonewall Jackson, one of the CSA's best advantages.
3. The death or desertion of 11,000 of the Army of Northern Virginia.
4. The end of the Southern invasion of the North.
On Sept. 16, as his army reassembled from winning assorted objectives, McClellan decides to give the men a day off. He has seen how much their tremendous effort has paid off, and it left them exhausted. (Lots of hard marching.) He stops at several Union encampments that day and congratulates the soldiers. "Men," he says, "You deserve a break today."
The next day, McClellan decides that since he outnumbers Lee almost 3 to 1 (more like 5 to 2), he'll move the army south to attack Richmond. His forces move out at dawn on the 17th.
Part 6: RecriminationSept. 16, 1862
Army of Northern Virginia
Command Tent
Robert E. Lee looked at his generals. "How did this happen?" he asked.
"Well, sir, I'm guessing that McClellan must have known what we were up to," said McLaws.
"Not possible! He doesn't have the sense God gave my hat!" shouted General Walker.
"No," mused Lee, "but he may have had a good source. There might be a spy in our camp. Or perhaps a copy of my orders was lost." He looked around the tent. All generals claimed to have received Special Order No. 191.
"Sir," put in D.H. Hill, the last to speak, "I did not have any trouble getting it. I got my copy straight from Stonewall himself, God rest his most pious soul." The assembled generals felt the mood darken slightly at Jackson's mention.
Lee's response was furious. "Jackson?! I sent you a copy directly! Where did it go? Major," (turning to an aide) "who was the courier who brought Gen. Hill his copy?
"Sir, that was Lieutenant Frank Drebin."
Grumbles resonated. Drebin was well-known as a bumbler.
"Well, McClellan has to know we're vulnerable now. Richmond is a perfect target for him. We'll be heading south, and hoping to find a good spot to intercept him."
Part 7: Blue Storm RisingSept. and Oct. 1862
Maryland and Virginia
On Sept. 17, McClellan's Northern troops move south. They will encounter a number of battles with the Army of Northern Virginia, most notably 3rd Bull Run/Manassas (Sept. 28), when Lee forced the Union to fall back as McClellan left his right unprotected. After this, the "Young Napoleon" encourages his men.
"This is only a minor setback," he claims. "Rest assured that we will break on through to the other side." The Union troops continue southward, and the Confederate government flees Richmond on Oct. 3, heading south to North Carolina. Richmond, capital of the Confederate States of America, is first entered by Northern soldiers on Oct. 7. The city is taken fairly quickly after that (within a week Union control is secure), as everyone who could put up a good fight has already fled.
The Northern Elections
Nov. 4, 1862
The War Democrats differed from the Republicans over how to run the war. Both of them, however, agreed that the war was right. The fact that McClellan, a War Democrat, has won the biggest victories of the war so far does not go unnoticed. The Democratic Party helps it to get noticed, but people see the connection on their own, too. Within days of the fall of Richmond, prominent pro-Democrat publications in the North are touting their party as "the way to win the war." At the same time, with the Union cause winning handily, Copperheadism is taking a beating. The balance of power within the Democratic Party tilts decisively toward the pro-war faction. When Election Day's returns are fully tallied, the new Congress looks like this:
House R D O ATL 94 84 8 OTL 102 75 9 Senate R D O ATL 34 11 5 OTL 36 9 5
The moderate Republicans are somewhat miffed. The Radical Republicans are infuriated.
Note: The House changes are figured by going into the popular vote returns for 1862 and reversing some of the closer Democratic losses. Specifically, one each in Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, and Iowa; three in Michigan, and two in Ohio. The Senate changes I kept minimal because I can't find the vote totals in state legislatures (my source starts its returns with popular voting for the Senate). However, it is worth noting that there should be some swing toward the Dems in the campaigns for state legislature membership.