In this episode we focus on the morning of the first day at Gettysburg. Robert E. Lee and George Meade hoped that their actions would entice the other side to battle. In fact, it became a meeting engagement as the leading elements of both armies bumped into each other at Gettysburg. Rather than retreat from adversity, Henry Heth attacked, committing the Army of Northern Viriginia to the offensive. We also spend some time on how to experience the battlefield at Gettysburg. Take a listen!
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We are continuing the story of Gettysburg. As Robert E. Lee headed north, the commanding general of the Army of the Potomac, Joe Hooker, was in trouble. In a whispering campaign in the aftermath of Hooker's defeat at Chancellorsville, the Army, the President, and his administration had lost faith in him and he was replaced by George G. Meade on the eve of Gettysburg. In other issues, Lee, having let General Stuart go on his own cavalry raid, was now blind as his army spreadout across south central Pennsylvania. As Lee struggled to find a position to locate and fix the Army of the Potomac, the fringes of both armies were ready to meet at a little place called Gettysburg.
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We have finally arrived at Gettysburg. In the first of several episodes, we will start by exploring Lee's reasoning behind his extended raid into the keystone state. This was the Confederacy's last major raid into a northern state, so it garners a great deal of attention in the history of the Civil War. While not as critical as it seems, it was nevertheless an important campaign. Lee took advantage of the tide of good fortune in the aftermath of his victory at Chancellorsville and was able to quickly pivot and move the Army of Northern Virginia north. Please take a listen!
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In this episode, we finish up the story of the siege of Vicksburg. Once Grant crossed the Mississippi River with his army, it appeared that Vicksburg was doomed. In a brilliant campaign of maneuver, Grant isolated Vicksburg from the rest of the Confederacy. While worried about General Johnston's army, the Confederates were unable to coordinate a strategy to save the city. After an initial, bloody attempt to breech the city's fortifications, Grant settled in for siege. Worried about the health of his army and the civilian population, Pemberton surrendered to Grant on July 4, 1863. It was a key moment in the war. The Confederacy was split. The South's quest for independence was in jeopardy.
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We are continuing our narrative on the siege of Vicksburg. In this episode we concentrate on the key moment in this campaign - Grant crossing the Mississippi River and capturing the capital of Mississippi, Jackson. In three weeks, Grant's army was able to cut off the primary supply line and communication corridor from Vicksburg to the rest of the Confederacy. In addition, Grant beat back General Pemberton's only attempt to meet Grant outside of the city, the battle of Champion Hill. This was one of Grant's stellar campaigns and would set up the siege of Vicksburg.
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We are continuing our short series on the Vicksburg campaign. In part II, we will focus on the winter of 1862-63. Grant and Sherman were bested by the Confederates in their initial probes toward Vicksburg. Undaunted, Grant attempted a number of schemes to get his army on the eastern short of the Mississippi River. Grant dug a canal and made several attempts to reach Vicksburg through some of the alternative river systems. None of these efforts were successful. In the spring of 1862, Grant ran his fleet past the Confederate river batteries at Vicksburg, gaining a bridgehead and kicking off his campaign.
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One of the most consequential campaign's of the Civil War was U.S. Grant's struggle to capture the Confederate fortress at Vicksburg. As we already know, by mid-1862, Vicksburg was the only remaining major city on the Mississippi River in Confederate hands. As 1862 drew to a close, it became clear that Admiral Farragut's naval forces alone could not defeat the fortifications of Vicksburg. In the last quarter of 1862 Grant and his chief subordinate, Sherman, planned an envelopment of the city from the north and the south. These moves were checked, forcing Grant to consider alternative plans to capture the city.
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Robert E. Lee's greatest victory was against Joseph Hooker at a small crossroads in Virginia called Chancellorsville. Known as 'fighting' Joe Hooker, he formulated a plan that would trap Lee against two arms of the Army of the Potomac. Unfortunately for Hooker, Lee reacted in an unexpected and bold manner. Dividing the Army of Northern Virginia, he kept Union forces at Fredericksburg at bay and flanked Hooker's main force. Hooker lost his nerve and his plan was dashed. While the Army of the Potomac was not destroyed, it set up the conditions that would allow Lee to raid Pennsylvania.
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In our last chronological episode, we ended with Ambrose Burnside's disastrous campaign against Lee's army entrenched above the heights of Fredericksburg, Virginia. Undeterred, Burnside launched another march against the Army of Northern Virginia which was ruined by the weather. Tired of the relentless attacks on his character, Burnside attempted to have his critics removed. Lincoln turned the tables, accepted his resignation and elevated Burnside's vocal critic, Joseph Hooker, to be commanding general of the Army of the Potomac. Hooker unleashed his considerable energy in restoring morale. Take a listen!
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When we think of the Civil War, the titanic struggles that occurred in the mid-Atlantic states and the southeast comes to mind. What is largely forgotten was what was occurring in the American West. From 1862 through the end of the war, there were clashes in the upper Midwest with the Sioux in Minnesota, in the Southwest with the Apache and Navajo and Colorado. The clashes with Tribes that would dominate the actions of the post-Civil War Army can be traced to the Civil War and, in many cases, even before the war. Take a listen!
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Geographically, to this point, most of our focus has been on the campaigns in the Mississippi River Valley and the mid-Atlantic states. In this episode we explore what was happening in the far west. In 1862, a Confederate force launched an offensive into the territory of New Mexico. The plan was bold, but risky. The Confederates were going to depend upon captured supplies to sustain them. After occupying Tucson, Albuquerque, and Santa Fe, it looked like they were going to succeed. Alarmed, reinforcements from Colorado and California halted the Confederate advance at the Battle of Glorieta Pass. Whatever chance the Confederates had, faded. Take a listen!
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In this episode we return to the sea and look at what was going on to stem the tide of Confederate blockade runners and commerce raiders. Knowing that Union commerce was vulnerable, a small number of Confederate raiders made their reputations known around the world. Confederate raiders were enough of a problem to ratchet up insurance rates and cause some worry among Union officials. In the second part of the episode we focus on the various attempts to close the port of Charleston. Take a listen!
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The Civil War was as much as struggle to keep armies supplied as it was to vanquish an adversary. Logistics during the Civil War had many modern qualities, in particular, using railroads to supply and move armies around the country. Both the Union and the Confederacy used their railroad networks to keep their armies fed. Unfortunately, the Confederates were not as well prepared as the Union due to issues with rolling stock and the mileage of track laid. Take a listen to learn about this neglected but important topic.
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The great leveler in the Civil War, or any war for that matter, is getting wounded or killed on the battlefield. In this episode we focus on what was going through a soldier's mind as they prepared for battle. We also discuss the medical establishment and how they handled wounded, and preventing disease. While we tend to see Civil War medicine through the lens of the 21st Century, making the 1860s seem primitive, in fact, the medical establishment made great strides in trauma care. It is a difficult topic to talk about, but necessary. Take a listen!
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In this episode we will return to our mini-series on the experiences of ordinary soldiers with a focus on camp life, food, and recreation. For a majority of the men who served, military life was foreign. Experiences in camp and training molded these men into soldiers. Thankfully, due to a rise in literacy, we have a rich tapestry of memoirs, letters, and diaries that tell the stories of service. Take a listen!
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We are taking a break from battles and leaders and looking at the men who composed the armies of the North and the South during the Civil War. This episode will be the first of several that look at the lives of the ordinary soldiers. It seems appropriate to start with a broad overview of the motivations that compelled men to serve. On the flip side of the coin, we will also discuss conscription in the north and the south. Take a listen!
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1862 started off well for the Union. As the year progressed, their hopes were dashed as the Confederates bested the Army of the Potomac at the gates of Richmond, Virginia, and at the end of the year in front of Fredericksburg. Even with a new commander, Ambrose Burnside, Robert E. Lee proved to be an impressive opponent. In the west, even though Bragg's raid into Kentucky had been pushed back, despite wrestling some border states from the Confederacy, Union efforts had stalled along the Mississippi River and in the mountains of Tennessee. Perhaps 1863 would be decisive?
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When we last covered the western theater, the focus was on the pivotal battle at Shiloh. After focusing on the east, we now return to the west. In the aftermath of Shiloh, Grant was replaced with Henry Halleck. Halleck was far too slow in continuing the advance to Corinth, Mississippi and he was booted up the chain to Washington DC. In the interim, the Confederates took advantage of the stretched Union lines. Braxton Bragg pushed through Tennessee and raided Kentucky. While failing to bring the Commonwealth back into the Confederacy, it temporarily put a halt to the spectacular Union advances that had occurred earlier in the year.
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The bloodiest single day of the Civil War occurred at Antietam, outside of Sharpsburg, Maryland. Despite the intelligence find of lifetime (Lee's orders to his army), General McClellan's caution overtook him as he closed on Lee, wasting an opportunity. Nevertheless, Lee and McClellan clashed along Antietam Creek in September, 1862. McClellan, attacked Lee's army in piecemeal, allowing him to counter each attack one at a time. While McClellan stopped Lee's raid, it was a hollow victory as the Army of Northern Virginia left. Nevertheless, it was a victory, allowing President Lincoln the leverage he needed to end slavery in the Confederacy.
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