Transcript Vicksburg - MrSparksWiki

Siege of Vicksburg, Miss.
May 22, 1863 - July 4, 1863
Mr. Sparks
Strategic Situation
Importance of Mississippi River and
Vicksburg
• At the time of the Civil
War, the Mississippi River
was the single most
important economic
feature of the continent.
• Confederate forces
closed the river to
navigation, which
threatened to strangle
northern commercial
interests.
Lincoln’s Assessment
• “See what a lot of land these
fellows hold, of which Vicksburg is
the key! The war can never be
brought to a close until that key is
in our pocket.... We can take all
the northern ports of the
Confederacy, and they can defy us
from Vicksburg…. I am acquainted
with that region and know what I
am talking about, and as valuable
as New Orleans will be to us,
Vicksburg will be more so.”
Trans Mississippi Confederacy as a
Supply Source
• Texas led the nation in cattle, with an estimated three
and a half million head
– Virginia and Georgia, the next largest Confederate cattleproducing states, counted slightly more than one million each.
• Texas ranked behind only Tennessee in the number of
horses and mules, fourth in the number of sheep, and
seventh in the production of swine.
• Texas was a significant source of livestock for armies in
the west, but that could only remain the case so long as
those animals could cross the river safely.
• Federal success at Vicksburg would deny the eastern
Confederacy access to these and other supplies
The Anaconda Plan
Splitting the South in Two
• Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas (as well as
the Indian Territory) accounted for almost
half of the Confederacy’s total land mass
• Federal control of the Mississippi River
would isolate the western and eastern
halves of the Confederacy
• So Grant’s mission is to seize Vicksburg in
order to control the Mississippi River and
separate the Confederacy in two
Flashback to Shiloh: Grant in the West
Siege of Vicksburg
May 22, 1863 - July 4, 1863
Ulysses S.
Grant
77,000
John C.
Pemberton
33,000
Ft. Sumter April 12, 1861
Vicksburg
Mississippi
May 22, 1863 - July 4, 1863
The lengthy Battle of Vicksburg began in
Warren County on May 13, 1863. The
North and the South considered Vicksburg
an important stronghold. Union General
Ulysses S. Grant launched massive
assaults on Vicksburg and terrorized the
inhabitants. Confederates achieved a
minimal victory at Milliken’s Bend
against untrained black troops. Federal
troops pushed Confederate forces back as
the size of the Union forces continued to
increase. Confederate General John
Pemberton surrendered to Grant on July 3,
1863.
The Key to the
Mississippi:
Vicksburg
Terrain
• Vicksburg was part of a line of bluffs.
It formed an escarpment
that greatly favored the
defense both on land
and on water.
Big Guns over
the Cliffs
Confederate Defenses
Vicksburg and the Mississippi
• As Union forces moved south toward
Vicksburg in late 1862, the winter and the
wet season began.
– This ended all possibilities of moving forces by land.
– Grant was forced to find an alternative route to reach
Vicksburg.
– Made several failed attempts from December 1862
through April 1863
A New Plan
• Grant would later claim that
he never put much stock in
his failed attempts, but
considered them useful in
keeping the men busy and
creating an illusion of activity
• As April began, the wet
season ended and land
operations were once again
possible
• Grant moved his forces
south, following the west
bank of the Mississippi River
to bypass Vicksburg.
3
1
The Union/Federal Navy
• Navy
– Mississippi River
Squadron commanded
by Flag Officer David
Porter
– About 60 combat
vessels
– 13 ironclads
Union Naval Commander
David Porter
Joint Operations
• Operations carried on by two or more of the
armed forces.
• At Vicksburg, this was the Army and the Navy
Grant Involves Porter in Early
Planning
• “I had had in contemplation the whole winter
the movement by land to a point below
Vicksburg from which to operate– my
recollection was that Admiral Porter was the
first one to whom I mentioned it. The
cooperation of the Navy was absolutely
essential to the success (even to the
contemplation) of such an enterprise.”
People tend to work harder toward a goal when they are involved in
the development of the plan to achieve the goal.
Grant’s New Plan
• After his failed attempts of
Dec 1862 through Mar
1863, Grant decided to
march his army down the
west side of the
Mississippi to a point
below Vicksburg where
river transports could ferry
the men across
• To make this work, the
transports would have to
run past the gauntlet of the
Vicksburg batteries
3
1
Running the Gauntlet
• Union Naval Commander David Porter led seven gunboats
followed by three transports loaded with thousands of men under
the cover of darkness past the Confederate batteries.
– Only one ship was lost
Union Gunboats sneak by at Night
Crossing at Bruinsburg
• Grant received intelligence from a local slave that there was an
unguarded landing site at Bruinsburg, roughly halfway between
Grand Gulf and Rodney Road.
Rodney and Bruinsburg Roads
• Unopposed landing of over 17,000 men
• Largest amphibious operation in American history
until the Allied invasion of Normandy during WWII
• Grant advanced on Rodney and Bruinsburg Roads
toward Port Gibson
Isolation of Vicksburg
• Success at Jackson allowed Grant to
“isolate” Pemberton from support from
Johnson
• Isolate:
– A tactical task given to a unit to seal off (both
physically and psychologically) an enemy
from his sources of support, to deny an
enemy freedom of movement, and prevent an
enemy unit from having contact with other
enemy forces.
Assaults on Vicksburg
• Grant was eager to
finish Pemberton off
and he conducted
assaults on the
Vicksburg defenses
on May 19 and 22
• Both failed and Grant
gave up the idea of
taking Vicksburg by
assault and began
siege tactics
Lessons unlearned by Europeans, WWI
Civilians
• About 3,000 lived in
Vicksburg
• Many took shelter in caves
– Some held up to 200
• Toward the end of the
siege, the daily ration was
“two common biscuits, two
rashers (slices) of bacon, a
few peas and a spoon full
of rice ...”
• Lack of food ends the
siege.
Siege Operations
• The Navy played a big role in the siege
• Porter fired 11,500 projectiles from his ironclads
and mortarboats
• He also landed 13 heavy cannon from his
gunboats for the Army to use as siege artillery
– These fired 4,500 rounds
• The Navy also ensured supplies and
reinforcements reached Grant’s Army without
interference from the Confederates
• After 47 days, Pemberton surrendered
Surrender
• Confederate soldiers had to give up their arms, but
they were the paroled (allowed to go free if they
promised not to fight until properly exchanged later
for Federal prisoners)
• Officers were allowed to keep their side arms,
clothing, and one horse each
• Some 29,500 men were surrendered
– By allowing parole, Grant prevented himself from being
encumbered by so many prisoners
– He also assumed many of the despondent men would
have no interest in fighting again even if exchanged
later…..so he hoped.
Federal Control of the Mississippi
Splits the Confederacy
Grant Gains Victory over the
Mississippi on July 4, 1863
One Day after Gettysburg!!
Aftermath of the
Siege of Vicksburg
• Union Causalities: 5,000 (77,000)
• Confederate Casualties: 3,000 (33,000)
– Confederates Surrendered: 30,000
Up Next…
Gettysburg, PA.