Battle of Shiloh•April 6-7 1862

Where was the Battle of Shiloh and how did it fit into the Anaconda Plan

• Shiloh is located in Southern Tennessee and it is located upon the Tennessee River, which the Unioh had greater access to after Grant’s victories at Forts Henry and Donelson.

• The Union kept moving South attempting to take over main ports and cities along the Tennessee and the Mississippi

Union War Strategy Across the United States in 1862

Union Movement towards Shiloh

• Protect the East-West Cross Country Railroad of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad

• Prevent the North from taking over Tennessee and encroaching further down Southern land by way of the Tennessee River.

By fighting at Shiloh, what did the Confederacy want to protect?

Numbers of Troops that each side had going into the battle and the leaders within

the Battle of Shiloh • Confederacy- 42,000 troops

led by General Albert Sidney Johnston, and second in-command was General P.G.T. Beauregard.

• Union- Originally on April 6 the Union had 40,000 troops led by Ulysses S. Grant-on the second day, April 7, 1862, 35,000 troops reinforced Grant at Pittsburg Landing, these troops coming from the corps of Don Carlos Buell and Lew Wallace.

What was the initial attack like of the Confederates on the Union troops?

Confederacy caught the Union totally by surprise, some Union troops were not at all dressed for battle.

Some Union troops ran away from the fight by crossing the Tennessee River and some Confederate troops quit by simply leaving their corps and looting Union tents.

April 6, 1862- first day’s fighting

• The Union retreated behind a tree-line where there was a sunken road, this position also backed them up to where the Tennessee River was on their left and Snake Creek on their right.

• This position caused a great amount of firing to take place between Confederates lined in front of the tree-line and Union lined in the forested area. Due to the extensive amount of firing, this area was called the Hornet’s nest.

The Hornet’s Nest at Shiloh

Day 1- What happened to Confederate General Albert Sidney

Johnston? On the afternoon of the

first day of fighting at Shiloh, Johnston was hit in the leg with a bullet, this bullet hit an artery, and he bled to death. If he had not sent his medic to help Union Prisoners of War, his life may have been saved.

General P.G.T. Beauregard took over the command of Johnston’s army at Shiloh.

On the first day of fighting… • Confederates attacked the center

of the Union lines 12 times (in order to isolate the Union troops into two small groups) until finally Union Brigadier General Benjamin Prentiss surrendered his 2,200 troops.

• This act of surrendering actually slowed down the Confederate momentum and allowed Ulysses S. Grant to reinforce and reorganize his troops.

• Before dusk, Confederate Major General Braxton Bragg wanted P.G.T. Beauregard to attack once more, but Beauregard disagreed, which may have been a mistake that could have won him the battle.

On the night after the first day of fighting…

• Union reinforcements of 35,000 troops showed up from the corps of Don Carlos Buell and Lew Wallace, along with the gunboats of the Lexington and the Tyler.

• These ships bombarded the Confederates along with the Torrential rainstorm.

Day 2- April 7, 1862

• Union attacked on April 7, eventually leading to a Confederate withdraw at 2:30. The artillery attack by Buell’s Gunboats and Grant’s infantry devastated the Confederacy and forced a retreat to Corinth, Mississippi.

• Dead, Wounded, Captured- Union lost 13,047 overall, Confederacy lost 10,694 (at the First Bull Run, the total casualties were only 4,800 total)

Significance- what does this Union victory mean?

Shiloh Review•Where is Shiloh- what state?

•What river is the town of shiloh upon?

•What important officer was killed on April 6 at shiloh?

•who showed up on the evening of april 6 to assist grant?

•How will this victory effect the rest of the war?

Seven Days’ Battles- June 25-July 1, 1862

Why did the Seven Days’ Battles occur?

• McClellan, during the summer of 1862, had been encroaching upon Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital.

• Robert E. Lee had taken over as the Confederate Commander after Joseph Johnston was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines on May 31.

Where was McClellan at the onset of the Seven Days’ Battles?

• McClellan had 125,000 troops located on the Chickahominy River just northeast of Richmond. The Chickahominy is also a tributary to the James River that runs through Richmond, VA. McClellan himself had some troops at D.C. holding a defense of the capital.

• McClellan also was requesting from Lincoln for another 50,000 to 100,000 more troops

What was Robert E. Lee’s attack plan in the Seven Days Battle?

• McClellan had placed Fitz-John Porter between Richmond and D.C. with 25,000 troops, isolated from the rest of the federal troops. Robert E. Lee ordered A.P. Hill, James Longstreet, and D.H. Hill to meet up with “Stonewall” Jackson north of the Chickahominy to attack Fitz-John Porter’s isolated Federal 25,000 troops.

• Robert E. Lee left Major General John B. Magruder with 22,000 troops in Richmond.

How did the 1st battle of the Seven Days occur and what was the result at

Mechanicsville (June 25)? • Confederate Maj. General A.P. Hill

refused to wait for the troops of “Stonewall” Jackson, who had been lost due to bad conditions and a faulty map.

• The Confederates, led by A.P. Hill, D.H. Hill, and Longstreet, attacked the Union troops led by Fitz-John Porter, who were entrenched upon a high bank and were not fazed by the uncoordinated attack (uncoordinated due to A.P. Hill’s lack of patience to wait for Jackson). The Confederates lost 1,600 in the fighting at Mechanicsville.

How did the battle at Gaine’s Mill (June 27) erupt?

• Union Major General Fitz-John Porter, fresh off of a slight victory at Mechanicsville, was ordered by George McClellan to fall back 6 miles to give McClellan’s troops cover to move South from Washington D.C. to Harrison’s Landing on the James River. Confederate Major General A.P. Hill, along with Longstreet and D.H. Hill gave chase to Fitz-John Porter and attacked Porter’s troops at Gaine’s Mill, where Porter’s troops entrenched themselves on the high ground with Boatswain’s Swamp in front of them.

• Confederates managed to break the middle of the Union line and Porter retreated over the Chickahominy River.

What was the cause of the Battle of Savage’s Station (June 29)?

Robert E. Lee ordered Maj. General John B. Magruder to investigate the movements of McClellan as McClellan was moving from D.C. to Harrison’s Landing on the James River. Magruder caught up with McClellan at Savage’s Station, which is directly east of Richmond. The Union had a hospital at Savage’s Station and a fight occurred here between the Union and Magruder’s Confederate forces, but at dark the Union troops left Savage’s Station, leaving 2,500 soldiers behind at the hospital.

Battle of Glendale (June 30)

Robert E. Lee ordered A.P. Hill, James Longstreet, and “Stonewall”Jackson to make an attack on McClellan’s troops. The Confederacy was outnumbered 40,000 to 18,000 at Glendale but fought hard, and, at nightfall, the Union retreated to Malvern Hill.

Why? McClellan had sent for gunboats to give them cover at Malvern Hill positioned in the James River.

Malvern Hill (July 1) • Union was set on the

high ground at Malvern Hill, and the only places left for the Confederacy to attack from were from open fields. As the Confederates approached, they were picked off by Union Artillery, and Confederates lost 5,000 in a day.

• On July 2, McClellan may have easily finished off the Confederacy and taken over Richmond, but, instead, he chose to withdraw to his new fort at Harrison’s Landing

Total Casualties of the Seven Days and the Significance of the Battles

• Union- 15,849

• Confederates- 20,614

• **What is the Significance?

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