When Robert E. Lee made the decision to invade the north in June 1863 he aimed to take the war into enemy territory north of the Potomac River. For a portion of his army, the invasion route would take them back to their native state.
Maryland, southern in one view, northern in another, had contributed its native sons to the Confederate cause. Besides units serving in the cavalry and artillery branches, one infantry regiment also served in the Army of Northern Virginia. The 2nd Maryland Regiment or Battalion (as they only numbered 400 men at the outset of the campaign) was organized when its predecessor the 1st Maryland Regiment disbanded after its year enlistment was up in the summer of 1862.