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Tactics of the civil war
Ulysses s grant, role and attributions of the civil war
Editorial from the battle of vicksburg
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Asses the role of Ulysses S. Grant in the victory of the union
Ulysses S. Grant played a crucial role in the victory of the union in the American civil war. Ulysses S. Grant, later to become the 18th president of the United States, commanded union forces during the civil war as a general and general in chief.
The greatest assets that Ulysses S. Grant brought to the union forces were his incredible strategic mind, his determination, his willingness to fight and his ability to win. Throughout the war grant steered the union to victory many major battles both before and after her was assigned general in chief of the union army.
Grant produced the first two major union victories of the war in February of 1862 by capturing fort hennery on the Tennessee river and fort Donnellson on the Cumberland river, these victories gave a brief display of Grants calm determination to succeed and on only his terms, thus Grant became somewhat of a hero when Simon Buckner called for terms of surrender and yielded to Grants "no terms but unconditional and immediate surrender". This surrender of 14000 confederate men resulted in grants immediate promotion to major general of volunteers.
In the April of 1962 Grant was violently surprised in an attack by confederate generals A. Johnston and P. Beauguard at the battle of Shiloh. In a battle that was to become the bloodiest up to that date in American history, with 23,000 casualties, Grant refused to retreat, he eventually managed to stabilize his line and with the help of reinforcements produced a counterattack and turned a severe loss into a victory.
Grant received heavy criticism for his decisions at Shiloh but Lincoln defended him stating "I can't spare this man, he fights"
One of Grants greatest military success of the war was the siege of Vicksburg, July-August 1863. Grant spent the winter of 62-63 attempting and failing multiple operations to gain access to the town, Grant crossed the Mississippi and headed for Jackson, he took a great risk and cut away from his supplies to sever the railroad to Vicksburg effectively cutting the confederate garrison off from reinforcements. Grant now defeated the confederate army at Champion Hill and then pursued the retreating army to the garrison at Vicksburg. The six week siege began. On the 4th of July 1863, being cut off and with no possibility of relief confederate general John Pemberton surrendered.
This union victory in conjunction with the battle of Gettysburg the previous day is considered the turning point in the war.
In 1863, the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, was awoken to the beginning of what was to be the turning point of the Civil War for the Union. It began as a small skirmish, but by its end it involved so many Americans to which would become one of the bloodiest battles ever taken place on Unites States soil. The Battle of Gettysburg was not only a turning point in the war.
The battle of Gettysburg occurred over three hot summer days, July 1 to July 3, 1863, around the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It began as a meeting engagement, but by its end involved approximately 170,000 Americans. The battle is considered to be the turning point in the American Civil War and is one of the most studied battles in American history. The events that took place at Gettysburg had a tremendous impact on the outcome of the Civil War and the fate of the United States. It is far easier for us in the present than it was for those at Gettysburg, to look back and determine the path that the leaders should have taken.
As a General in the war, Grant won multiple battles including: Vicksburg, Shiloh, Chattanooga, and Petersburg. Vicksburg was one of his best battles. Although he was outnumbered, Grant still managed to lead his men to victory. Vicksburg was one of the main battles that turned the war around, giving the Union Army the upper hand. All of these major battles lead to the defeat and surrender of Robert E. Lee at the Appomattox Court House in 1865.
Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America, showed weaknesses within his leadership which may have contributed to the confederacy’s loss and the unions win . Davis failed in three vital ways. These ways were: his relations with other confederate authorities and with the people, as well as in his fundamental concept of his job as president and in his organization and specific handling of his role as commander in chief . Davis failed in maintaining communication with leaders and with his people, often unable to admit when he is wrong which led to lack organization in his role . In addition, Davis was a conservative leader, not a revolutionary one which meant that his strength was often in protocol and convention rather than in innovation . Studying each of these aspects that represented a weakness in Jefferson Davis’s leadership, Lincoln in comparison provided more admirable and outstanding qualities within his leadership which in many ways affected the outcome of the war
...e Confederate forces. A Union attack on Petersburg on April 2, 1865 forced Lee to retreat from Richmond and go west. His forces were surrounded. Lee with overwhelming odds surrendered to Grant on April 9th 1865 at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. After Lee surrendered to Grant other Confederate armies followed and the war came to an end.
...ew the war he was fighting was not an epic Napoleonic battle but a war of attrition. He proceeded with his plan to slowly shrink Confederate territory and destroy Lee's army to the point that the South could no longer mount a viable defense. Eventually Grant succeeded and Lee's men were all that remained of the Confederate army. Grant surrounded them in trenches at Richmond until Lee was forced to surrender.
In November Grant tested Confederate strength at Columbus by landing troops across the Mississippi River at Belmont, Missouri. The drawn battle that followed sent him back to Cairo still eager to advance, but not necessarily along the Mississippi River. Knowing of the poor location of Fort Henry, he wanted to use Union gunboats to advantage, and foresaw that the fall of Fort Henry would open the Tennessee River as far north as Alabama. Winning reluctant permission from his superior, Major General Henry W. Halleck, Grant moved south in early February. The flooded Fort Henry fell to the gunboats on February 6, 1862 and most of the garrison fled to Fort Donelson, which was eleven miles away. Grant then followed, after sending the gunboats back down the Tennessee and over to the Cumberland. In St. Louis, Halleck, a "military bureaucrat par excellence", took no official insight of Grant’s plans.
The Battle of Cold Harbor in spring of 1864 was one of General Ulysses S. Grant’s worst offensive defeats during the Civil War. Grant failed to describe his mission command to his subordinate, direct his units to correct movement, understand his operational environment, and lead his army with a coordinated plan. Grant had a stronger, bigger, and better-equipped army than his enemy, but his failure in the mission command process led to fatal mistakes before and during the battle. Due to failed leadership, the Union preparation for this war was so poor that it suffered nearly 7,000 casualties in under an hour, making it one of the most brutal confrontations of the Civil War.
At the outbreak of the American Civil War, Grant was appointed colonel, and soon afterward brigadier general, of the Illinois Volunteers, and in September 1861 he seized Paducah, Kentucky. After an indecisive raid on Belmont, Missouri, he gained fame when in February 1862, in conjunction with the navy; he succeeded in reducing Forts Henry and Donelson, Tennessee, forcing General Simon B. Buckner to accept unconditional surrender. The Confederates surprised Grant at Shiloh, but he held his ground and then moved on to Corinth. In 1863 he established his reputation as a strategist in the brilliant campaign against Vicksburg, Mississippi, which took place on July 4. After being appointed commander in the West, he defeated Braxton Bragg at Chattanooga. Grant's victories made him so prominent that he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general and in February 1864 was given command of all Union armies.
The Unions had lost and the Confederates won this battle under the General Braxton Bragg. After the battle ended, Bragg was told to take troops to Chattanooga. Confederates required Chattanooga since it was one of the last spots to have entry to send and get men and supplies through the railroad. The union troops were surrounded by the Confederate troops. Ulysses S. Grant knew the Confederates had a preference since they were situated at a higher height and were looking down on the Union troops in Chattanooga. General Thomas was put in command of the troops in Chattanooga. Later on, Grant knew he had to defeat the Confederates at once. His first area was to assault Browns Ferry, which he did on October 27- 28. During the nights of October 27-28, two powers were sent to take control of Browns Ferry. One was sent by walking crosswise over Moccasin Point and the other was sent down the waterway to astonish the Confederates. “From the Pontoon Bridge already in place at Chattanooga, a road led directly westward across Moccasin Point for two miles until it hit the river again at Brown’s Ferry (Korn, 89).” This road was in the far distance from the confederates on Lookout Mountain which enabled the Federals to take Brown’s Ferry easily. “Outflanked and outnumbered, Confederate General Longstreet was forced to retreat to Lookout Mountain (Korn, 91).” At
On the Morning of April 6, 1862, General Albert Sidney Johnson lead 40,000 Confederate soldiers through a forest in southwestern Tennessee near Pittsburg Landing, The Shiloh church, and the Tennessee River, until they came upon their destination, a Union camp. The Union soldiers were taken by surprise as it was early in the morning. Some men were still sleeping, eating breakfast, or just emerging from their tents. Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and his men were driven out of their camps back towards the river and the church. Grant refused to lose. He ordered his men to not move an inch at all costs and to form a battle line, which became known as the “Hornets Nest.” The Confederate general Johnson was killed the first day of battle, and Pierre GT Beauregard took his place the next day. The counterattack and the higher Union majority of troops forced the Confederates back, and the “Hornets Nest” remained intact. As the battle came to a close, it was a Union victory. However, it came at a high price: about 23,746 casualties in total were estimated. Approximately 13,047 Union, and 13,724
The power of the federal government can also be seen during Lincoln’s presidency at the time of the Civil War. He swayed the entire purpose of the war to something far off from what had been the initial purpose. From fighting for the preservation of the Union, Northerners readily began to accept that the abolition of slavery was the cause of the war for them, not the Union. Lincoln and his power made this happen.
On April 12 1861, Confederate troops attacked Fort Sumter in Charleston and this event started the Civil War. Once Ulysses heard of the news, he quickly left his position as clerk at his family store to volunteer for military service in the Union army. He was first offered a position recruiting and training volunteer troops in Illinois and he accepted although he wanted field command in the actual army. On June 14, 1861, Grant was assigned colonel of the 21st Illinois Infantry, but on August 9th President Abraham Lincoln promoted Grant to Brigadier General. Ulysses’ first battle was on November 17th, 1861 when Grant and his army attacked Fort Belmont but was counterattacked and had to fall back. Although no one really won this battle, it was good experience for Grant and his troops. Grant’s first major victories took place in February 1862. On Feb. 6th, Grant, along with the help of Union Navy Flag Officer Andrew H. Foote, took over Fort Henry easily and ten days later defeated Confederate General Gideon J. Pillow at Fort Donelson. After these victories, Lincoln promotes Grant as Major General of Volunteers and gets the nickname “Unconditional Surrender”. Grant’s advancement on Fort Henry and Donel...
Abraham Lincoln was one of the greatest presidents to ever serve in office in the history of the U.S., serving from 1860 to 1865. A self-educated attorney from Illinois, he proved himself to be a brilliant leader throughout the Civil War period. Although President Abraham Lincoln faced the biggest crisis in American history, he saved the nation by preserving the Union during the Civil War, boosting the economy, by fighting for the abolition of slavery, and by boosting the Northern economy.
The Civil War that took place in the United States from 1861 to 1865 could have easily swung either way at several points during the conflict. There is however several reasons that the North would emerge victorious from this bloody war that pit brother against brother. Some of the main contributing factors are superior industrial capabilities, more efficient logistical support, greater naval power, and a largely lopsided population in favor of the Union. Also one of the advantages the Union had was that of an experienced government, an advantage that very well might have been one of the greatest contributing factors to their success. There are many reasons factors that lead to the North's victory, and each of these elements in and amongst themselves was extremely vital to the effectiveness of the Northern military forces. Had any one of these factors not been in place the outcome of the war could have been significantly different, and the United States as we know it today could be quite a different place to live.