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Mississippi River in the American Civil War

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The Mississippi was an important military highway that bordered ten states, roughly equally divided between Union and Confederate loyalties.

Both sides soon realised that control of the river was a crucial strategic priority. Confederate general Braxton Bragg said "The river is of more importance to us than all the country together."[1] In April 1862, the Union secured two key points, New Orleans at the mouth of the river and a double-bend on the Kentucky-Tennessee line, leaving only the middle section in Confederate hands. When the major river-ports of Memphis and Vicksburg fell (followed automatically by Port Hudson), the liberation of the Mississippi was complete, and Abraham Lincoln declared "The Father of Waters again goes unvexed to the sea."[2]

This split the Confederacy in two, with the western half forced to operate as a separate department, the Trans-Mississippi Theater, greatly inhibiting supplies and communications, and tilting the odds decisively in favour of the Union.

State loyalties

Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois were solidly pro-Union, despite some ‘Copperhead’ (Peace Democrat) sentiment in the last-named.[3] Missouri was a slave-state, beset with guerrilla fighting throughout the war, with a Confederate government-in-exile.[4] Kentucky, also a slave-state (and Lincoln’s birthplace), was briefly claimed by the Confederacy during a short-lived dual government, but never left the Union.[5] Slave-holding Tennessee was Confederate, though the eastern counties harboured much pro-Union sentiment.[6] Arkansas had initially stayed in the Union, but resented Lincoln’s demand for troops, and seceded.[7] Mississippi was deeply Confederate, as was Louisiana, though in the latter case, New Orleans came under a Union government within a Confederate state, following the fall of the city in April 1862.

Plans for control of the river

See also: Anaconda Plan

At the outbreak of war, the Union General-in-Chief, Winfield Scott, proposed an advance down the Mississippi that would cut the Confederacy in two, though the necessary rivercraft had yet to be built. Along with the policy of blockading the entire Southern coastline, the plan was derided as the ‘Anaconda’, slowly constricting the life out of the Confederacy.[8] Most Union generals believed that the war could be won quickly by an early march on Richmond,[9] while the commander in the west, General Henry Halleck, considered the Tennessee River to be more significant than the Mississippi.[10] Also Winfield Scott would soon be retiring. Eventually, however, the strengths of the plan were increasingly recognised, and it became Union strategy.

As the Confederate Navy had to build almost its entire fleet from scratch,[11][12] its operations on the Mississippi would be largely defensive.

The Battles

New Madrid/Island Number Ten (28 February – 8 April, 1862)

The Confederates had fortified a tight double-bend in the river, with garrisons at New Madrid, Missouri, and Island Number Ten. Union Major-General John Pope arrived unexpectedly, before winter was over, easily took New Madrid, and then ordered two gunboats to run the island batteries, covering his crossing to the east (Tennessee) bank, whereupon the outnumbered enemy surrendered.[13]

New Orleans (16-28 April 1862)

Captain David Farragut of the Union Navy’s West Gulf Blockading Squadron attacked the city’s outer fortifications, Fort Jackson and Fort St. Philip, at first obstructed by a defensive boom. When the boom was broken by gunboats, the fleet forced its way in, opposed by ironclads and fire-rafts, eventually enabling the infantry to occupy the city and set up a Union government for the rest of the war.[14]

Memphis (6 June 1862)

The Memphis garrison had been much depleted, following the Union capture of the rail junction at Corinth, so the Union fleet was opposed only by Confederate gunboats and rams, poorly equipped, which were destroyed in two hours. One Union boat, Queen of the West, was disabled. The Union forces were able to capture and repair four Confederate craft for their own use.[15]

Baton Rouge (5 August 1862)

Confederate area commander Earl Van Dorn had been hoping to re-take Louisiana’s abandoned state capital Baton Rouge. A force under Maj. Gen. John C. Breckinridge attacked at dawn, killing Union commander Thomas Williams, and driving his men into defensive lines, protected by their gunboats. But a Confederate ram had broken down and it became a one-sided naval battle, forcing Breckinridge to withdraw.[16]

Vicksburg (December 26, 1862 - July 4, 1863)

After several failed initiatives, including an attempt to divert the river itself, General U.S. Grant marched down the west (Louisiana) bank, accompanied by gunboats that managed to run the Vicksburg batteries and ferry his army across to the east bank. From there, he pursued the enemy into their lines and besieged them until they surrendered.[17] Vicksburg National Military Park: historic trenches and earthworks, walking trail, emplaced cannons, restored gunboat USS Cairo.

Principal actions:

Diversionary feint to distract the Confederates from sending support downstream to Grand Gulf. A Union fleet moved up the Yazoo, attracting heavy fire, before retreating through the swampy terrain.[18]
After crossing to the east bank at Bruinsburg, Grant drove the Confederates back from one defensive position to the next, establishing a beachhead and forcing the enemy to abandon the port of Grand Gulf.
Grant’s move on the Mississippi state capital caused Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston to evacuate the city, enabling Grant to destroy its factories and rail communications.[19]
Seen as the pivotal battle of the campaign. The Confederates occupied a high vantage-point, led by Brig. Gen. Lloyd Tilghman, who died in action, but Grant swept them off the crest.[20]
Confederates’ last chance to avoid being driven back into their lines. General Pemberton took a position on the river, but was routed by Grant, burning the bridges as he went, but losing many prisoners.[21]

Port Hudson (May 22 – July 9, 1863)

General Nathaniel Banks had been ordered upstream to aid General U.S. Grant who was besieging Vicksburg. His orders were to capture Port Hudson, the only other remaining Confederate stronghold on the river, but his assault failed, and he settled into a siege - at 48 days, the longest in American history up till then. The eventual Confederate surrender completed the liberation of the river.[22] Port Hudson State Historic Site: steep riverside terraces with original artillery emplacements. Museum with displays and maps.

See also

References

  1. ^ Have History Will Travel, Shiloh Day 1, 0.33.
  2. ^ Bruce Catton, The Penguin Book of the American Civil War, (Penguin Book 2369) p.157. Copyright © American Heritage Publishing Co, Inc, 1960.
  3. ^ Peter J. Barry, "Amos Green, Paris, Illinois: Civil War Lawyer, Editorialist, and Copperhead," Journal of Illinois History, Spring 2008, Vol. 11 Issue 1, pp 39-60
  4. ^ Irby, Richard E. Jr. "A Concise History of the Flags of the Confederate States of America and the Sovereign State of Georgia". About North Georgia. Golden Ink. Retrieved 2006-11-29.
  5. ^ Kent Masterson Brown, ed. (2000). The Civil War in Kentucky: Battle for the Bluegrass. Mason City, Iowa: Savas Publishing Company. ISBN 1-882810-47-3. p. 80
  6. ^ White, Robert D. "Messages of the Governors of Tennessee, op cit. p.272: The vote against secession, and against 'Convention' or 'No Convention'" (PDF). Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  7. ^ The War of the Rebellion, a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Ser. I, Vol. 1, Ch. VIII–Reports, page 642, accessed January 24, 2010, http://www.simmonsgames.com/research/authors/USWarDept/ORA/OR-S1-V01-C008R.html
  8. ^ Wolfe, B. Anaconda Plan. (2011, May 9). Retrieved from Encyclopedia Virginia Web. 17 Oct. 2015
  9. ^ Ballard, Ted. First Battle of Bull Run: Staff Ride Guide. Washington, DC: United States Army Center of Military History, 2003. ISBN 978-0-16-068078-6. P.3.
  10. ^ ORA (Official records, armies): War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies. I, v. 10, p. 24.
  11. ^ William S. Dudley, Going South: U.S. Navy Officer Resignations & Dismissals on the Eve of the Civil War. Washington: Naval Historical Foundation, 1981.[1]
  12. ^ Official records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, Series I, Vol. 15, p. 337.
  13. ^ Gerleman, David, "The Campaign for Island No. 10 (February 28, 1862 – April 8, 1862," Essential Civil War Curriculum
  14. ^ Allan Nevins: Ordeal of the Union: War Becomes Revolution, 1862–1863(1960) p. 99.
  15. ^ Groce, W. Todd, Battle of the Rams, North & South - The Official Magazine of the Civil War Society, Issue 4, Page 24.
  16. ^ "CWSAC Battle Summaries - Baton Rouge". American Battlefield Protection Program. U.S. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 28 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-09.
  17. ^ Vicksburg, Mailing Address: 3201 Clay Street; Us, MS 39183 Phone:636-0583 Contact. "History & Culture - Vicksburg National Military Park (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-01-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ NPS Snyder's Bluff
  19. ^ Foote, Shelby (1995) [1963]. The Beleaguered City: The Vicksburg Campaign (Modern Library ed.). New York: The Modern Library. ISBN 0-679-60170-8, p. 183.
  20. ^ Eddington, William. My Civil War Memoirs and Other Reminiscences (PDF). Edwardsville, IL: Madison County Historical Society. pp. 11–12. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  21. ^ Ballard, Michael B. (2004). Vicksburg: The Campaign that Opened the Mississippi. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0-8078-2893-9, pp. 313–316.
  22. ^ Edward Cunningham (1963). The Port Hudson Campaign, 1862-1863. LSU Press. pp. 184–. ISBN 978-0-8071-1925-9.
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