The New International Encyclopædia/Vicksburg, Campaign Against

VICKSBURG, Campaign Against. The campaign or series of operations in 1862 and 1863, during the Civil War, which had for its object the capture by the Union troops under Generals Grant and Sherman of Vicksburg, Miss. It was pronounced by Sherman ‘one of the greatest campaigns in history.’ The year 1862 had been fruitful in reverses to the Union cause, and the Washington authorities realized that, both for political and military reasons, redoubled efforts must be made to turn the tide. In the West the great territorial object was the possession of the Mississippi River, which in the autumn of 1862 remained in the hands of the Confederates, who maintained strong garrisons at several points below Memphis—the largest force, under General Pemberton, being stationed at Vicksburg. In October, 1862, the Union forces near the Corinth and Memphis line comprised about 48,000 men under General Grant. He decided to assume the offensive, and having concentrated (November 4th) a part of his command on the Mississippi Central Railroad (which in that vicinity runs parallel to the great river) at Grand Junction, prepared to move upon Vicksburg with an expedition down the Mississippi River under Sherman, and a force under his personal direction advancing by the way of the railroad. Sherman started December 26th with 32,000 men and 60 guns, reached Milliken's Bend, on the Yazoo River, twenty miles from Vicksburg, attacked the Confederate position at Chickasaw Bluffs (q.v.), and was repulsed with a loss of 2000 men. In the meanwhile Grant's communications had been cut by cavalry under Forrest and Van Dorn, the latter having destroyed the Union depot of supplies at Holly Springs, while the former tore up the railroads in Grant's rear, compelling him to retire and recall Sherman. The project of a combined land and water movement upon Vicksburg had failed through the cowardice or incapacity of the commanding officer at Holly Springs, who surrendered the post without striking a blow, and from the unforeseen strength of the Confederate position at Chickasaw Bluffs. McClernand, who had been assigned to command the river expedition from Washington simultaneously with Sherman's advance, but whose order miscarried, now assumed command. Escorted by gunboats under Admiral Porter, he ascended the Arkansas River to Arkansas Post. Here was a strong work known as Fort Hindman, defended by 5000 men and 17 guns under General Churchill. A combined attack of land and naval forces resulted in the capture of the entire garrison on January 11, 1863, of which 200 were killed, the Union loss aggregating 977 killed, wounded, and missing. A new campaign was now planned by Grant to get below Vicksburg and operate from the south. At first he intended to pass around the city through a canal to be cut across the peninsula opposite Vicksburg, but after much labor on the work it was abandoned. An attempt was then made to get in rear of the city by land from the north, several methods being tried and in turn rejected. These attempts to pass around the Confederate right involved tremendous labor in penetrating cypress swamps and enlarging the bayous to enable the gunboats to pass through, and served to illustrate the wonderful ingenuity and resourcefulness of the American soldier. They also illustrated the pertinacity of the commander, which quality eventually enabled him to achieve complete success. Finally it was determined to move the Union land force by a series of bayous running from Milliken's Bend past Richmond to New Carthage, on the west bank of the Mississippi, thirty miles below Vicksburg, while the gunboats ran the batteries protecting the city. This was successfully done on the night of April 18, 1863, by the naval force under Porter, consisting of 8 gunboats, 3 transports, with army supplies, and a number of barges loaded with coal. Although under fire for an hour, during which each vessel was hit, a coal barge or two sunk, and one of the transports burned and abandoned by her crew, but very little damage was done to the vessels and less than a dozen men were wounded, and those only slightly. On the 20th six transports loaded with supplies, protected by cotton bales, and towing twelve coal barges, also ran the batteries, with the loss of one transport. The ensuing operations, which brought Grant's army in rear of Vicksburg and to its final investment, must be referred to very briefly. Within a period of three weeks the battles of Grand Gulf (April 29th), Port Gibson (May 1st), Raymond (May 12th), Jackson (May 14th), Champion's Hill (May 16th), and Big Black Bridge (May 17th), and two assaults upon Vicksburg (May 19th and 22d), occurred. On the last day of March General Pemberton's returns showed an effective strength of 50,000 men. Grant's returns for April gave the actual strength of the forces operating against Vicksburg as 50,000, including the troops guarding his communications. Against the advantage of a naval auxiliary force may be set the superiority of position on the other side and familiarity with the country. It was therefore an even thing between the opposing armies except in point of leaders: on the one side Grant, Sherman, and McPherson; on the other Pemberton and Johnston. The Confederate generals (however able one at least was) were handicapped by divided responsibility and widely separated forces. The casualties on the Confederate side were 8000 in killed, wounded, and missing, and there was also a loss of 88 guns; on the Union side, 3408 men.

Reckoning upon the apparently demoralized condition of his enemy, who had given way precipitately in the affair at Big Black Bridge, Grant on May 19th promptly assaulted the works in his front with a part of his force, but after some hours was obliged to desist and prepare to invest the city completely. After establishing a depot of supplies and strengthening his communications with the Yazoo, Grant determined upon one more effort to dislodge the Confederate garrison. On the 21st he attacked with his entire force. The defenses were armed on the west and north sides with 128 guns, of which 36 were siege pieces; in addition water batteries comprising 44 guns protected the western front. The result again proved the superiority of the defense under such advantages of position. Although Grant's troops got inside the advanced line of works, they could not penetrate farther, and after eight hours' exposure to a severe and continuous fire from the Confederate works the Union troops withdrew with the loss of 4075 men. The siege was now commenced in earnest; 12 miles of trenches and 89 batteries were constructed, armed with 220 guns—most of which were field pieces; in addition at several points, where the hostile lines were separated by a few yards, small mortars were improvised by boring out tough logs and strengthening them with iron bands. After twelve days of incessant bombardment from the gunboats and the land forces, during which the Confederate garrison, cut off from relief and reduced to ‘one biscuit and a mouthful of bacon a day,’ showed signs of mutiny. General Pemberton surrendered on July 4, 1863. The number actually paroled was 29,391 officers and men; 790 refused paroles. The artillery found comprised 172 pieces. The capture of Vicksburg and the simultaneous defeat of Lee at Gettysburg marked the turning point of the war.

Consult: the Official Records; Johnson and Buel (eds. ), Battles and Leaders of the Civil War (New York, 1887); Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant (ib., 1895); Sherman, Memoirs (ib., 1892); Greene, The Mississippi (ib., 1882), in the “Campaigns of the Civil War Series;” Swinton, Twelve Decisive Battles of the War (ib., 1867); and Nicolay and Hay, Abraham Lincoln: A History (ib., 1890).