120 he laid out the rules of destruction and conduct for the march. To regular foraging parties must be instructed the gathering of provisions and forage at any distance from the road traveled. to the Sea, the most destructive campaign against a civilian population during the Civil War (1861-65), began in Atlanta on November 15, 1864, and concluded in Savannah on December 21, 1864. Fowler, John D. and David B. Parker, eds. Background In the wake of his successful campaign to capture Atlanta, Major General William T. Sherman began making plans for a march against Savannah. As for horses, mules, wagons, &c., belonging to the inhabitants, the cavalry and artillery may appropriate freely and without limit, discriminating, however, between the rich, who are usually hostile, and the poor or industrious, usually neutral or friendly. Professor Anne J. Bailey of Georgia College and State University has called the March to the Sea the "most destructive campaign against a civilian population during the Civil War." Promoted by Sherman by two steps in rank to colonel after the fall of Savannah, he continued in that capacity in the war's concluding Carolinas Campaign as Sherman headed northwards from Savannah to link up with Grant and the Army of the Potomac in Virginia and to cut another swath through South and North Carolina. Such broad generalizations may assuage wounde… On December 20, he led his men across the Savannah River on a makeshift pontoon bridge. Sherman recounted in his memoirs the scene when he left at 7 a.m. the following day: ... We rode out of Atlanta by the Decatur road, filled by the marching troops and wagons of the Fourteenth Corps; and reaching the hill, just outside of the old rebel works, we naturally paused to look back upon the scenes of our past battles. Gen. William H. Jackson, had approximately 10,000 troopers. The March to the Sea for Floyd Legion started with a skirmish at Buckhead, just south of Madison, on Nov. 19, 1864, and ended in Savannah on Dec. 10, 1864. Kilpatrick abandoned his plans to destroy the railroad bridge and he also learned that the prisoners had been moved from Camp Lawton, so he rejoined the army at Louisville. "[10] The 300-mile (480 km) march began on November 15. Early in the war, the North had maintained a conciliatory policy toward the south; there were, in fact, explicit orders to leave families enough to survive on. Standard histories of Major General William T. Shermans celebrated March to the Sea invariably portray the Confederacys response as inconsequential. The first real resistance was felt by Howard's right wing at the Battle of Griswoldville on November 22. Iowa State University thesis, 2011. He also continued to supervise destruction of Confederate infrastructure. The March. Wikipedia lists the casualties for both sides as "?". When you were about leaving Atlanta for the Atlantic coast, I was anxious, if not fearful; but feeling that you were the better judge, and remembering that 'nothing risked, nothing gained,' I did not interfere. [4] Sherman therefore planned an operation that has been compared to the modern principles of scorched earth warfare. The explicit plan was to cut the south in two. It confiscated 9.5 million pounds of corn and 10.5 million pounds of fodder, and destroyed uncounted cotton gins and mills. On December 4, Kilpatrick's cavalry routed Wheeler's at the Battle of Waynesboro. The March to the Sea. There was almost no opposition. The link between Georgia's civilian farms and Sherman's March to the Sea was intimate. Grant's armies in Virginia continued in a stalemate against Robert E. Lee's army, besieged in Petersburg, Virginia. The march was made easier by able assistants such as Orlando Metcalfe Poe, chief of the bridge building and demolition team. Learn shermans march with free interactive flashcards. For all of the ink written about Sherman and the way he burned, scorched and killed between Atlanta and Savannah, the monstrous event lasted only 22 days. On May 9, a cavalry force of over 10,000 troopers with 32 artillery pieces rode to the southeast to move behind Lee's army, intending to disrupt Lee's supply lines by destroying railroad tracks and supplies, to distract General Lee by threatening … Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the U.S. Confederate States presidential election of 1861, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sherman%27s_March_to_the_Sea&oldid=993929872, Campaigns of the Western Theater of the American Civil War, Military operations of the American Civil War in Georgia (U.S. state), Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2020, Articles needing additional references from December 2015, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. [20] A Confederate officer estimated that 10,000 liberated slaves followed Sherman's army, and hundreds died of "hunger, disease, or exposure" along the way. Wheeler and some infantry struck in a rearguard action at Ball's Ferry on November 24 and November 25. "[24] David J. Eicher wrote that "Sherman had accomplished an amazing task. Sherman's March to the Sea is the name commonly given to the Savannah Campaign conducted around Georgia during November and December 1864 by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army in the American Civil War. While Howard's wing was delayed near Ball's Bluff, the 1st Alabama Cavalry (a Federal regiment) engaged Confederate pickets. [6] The twisted and broken railroad rails that the troops heated over fires and wrapped around tree trunks and left behind became known as "Sherman's neckties". In 2011 a historical marker was erected there by the Georgia Historical Society to commemorate the African Americans who had risked so much for freedom.[28]. The Moral and Legal Dimensions of Sherman's Last Campaigns. When Sherman completed his march, he offered the captured city of Savannah to Abraham Lincoln as a Christmas present. As the army would be out of touch with the North throughout the campaign, Sherman gave explicit orders, Sherman's Special Field Orders, No. Minimal. Mark E. Neely rejects the notion that the Civil War was a "total war. The Cavalry Corps of Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler, reinforced by a brigade under Brig. Southern predictions that the Union forces would become lost or decimated by hunger and guerilla attacks were proven false. Away off in the distance, on the McDonough road, was the rear of Howard's column, the gun-barrels glistening in the sun, the white-topped wagons stretching away to the south; and right before us the Fourteenth Corps, marching steadily and rapidly, with a cheery look and swinging pace, that made light of the thousand miles that lay between us and Richmond. The March to the Sea had two wings: the right wing (15th and 17th corps) headed by Major General Oliver Howard was to move south toward Macon; the left wing (14th and 20th corps), headed by Major General Henry Slocum, would move on a parallel route toward Augusta. Ohioan William Tecumseh Sherman, a general in the Union army during the American Civil War, is best known for his March to the Sea. Johnson's commitment to the Union, and Lincoln's desire for a nonpartisan, pro-war ticket, persuaded Lincoln to support Johnson for VP on the Union Party ticket in the 1864 election. Sherman’s March to the Sea: frightened Georgia's civilian population into abandoning the Confederate cause. He humiliated Southerners and became a scapegoat of Southern wrath, the one to blame for what became of the Confederacy - from Reconstruction’s failures, a regional malaise in … Nevin, David, and the Editors of Time-Life Books. After sending Thomas and Schofield back to Tennessee, Sherman had 62,000 soldiers. VI. The cavalry captured two Confederate guns at Lovejoy's Station, and then two more and 50 prisoners at Bear Creek Station. Sherman was blocked from linking up with the U.S. Navy as he had planned, so he dispatched cavalry to Fort McAllister, guarding the Ogeechee River, in hopes of unblocking his route and obtaining supplies awaiting him on the Navy ships. Should you entertain the proposition, I am prepared to grant liberal terms to the inhabitants and garrison; but should I be forced to resort to assault, or the slower and surer process of starvation, I shall then feel justified in resorting to the harshest measures, and shall make little effort to restrain my army—burning to avenge the national wrong which they attach to Savannah and other large cities which have been so prominent in dragging our country into civil war. [27] It was widely popular among US soldiers of 20th-century wars. ", Western Theater of the American Civil War, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "The Civil War This Week: Oct 27-Nov 2, 1864", "Capital Destruction and Economic Growth: The Effects of Sherman's March, 1850-1920", "Historical markers illustrate overlooked stories", Today in Georgia History: March to the Sea, Today in Georgia History: Sherman in Savannah, National Park Service battle descriptions for the Savannah Campaign, National Park Service report on preservation and historic boundaries at the Savannah Campaign battlefields, New Georgia Encyclopedia article on the March, Noah Andre Trudeau Webcast Author Lecture, Georgia Public Broadcasting: 37 weeks - Sherman on the March, Georgia Constitutional Convention of 1861, List of Union Civil War monuments and memorials, List of memorials to the Grand Army of the Republic, List of Confederate monuments and memorials, Removal of Confederate monuments and memorials. Sherman's March to the Sea: 150 years later, its legacy has many stories to tell Sherman's bummers (foragers) in S.C. (Library of Congress) (Part 3) ... even though it meant civilian casualties) could be important components to a successful strategy. Sherman came to dislike the song, in part because he was never one to rejoice over a fallen foe, and in part because it was played at almost every public appearance that he attended. VII. There were only a few Confederate cavalry and Georgia militia to oppose him. The campaign began with Sherman's troops leaving the captured city of Atlanta on November 15 and ended with the capture of the port of Savannah on December 21. Confederate Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood was threatening Sherman's supply line from Chattanooga, and Sherman detached two armies under Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas to deal with Hood in the Franklin-Nashville Campaign. Elements of the decline in agriculture persisted through 1920."[26]. Confederate Maj. Gen. Wheeler's cavalry struck Brig. According to historian Jacqueline Campbell, the enslaved people often felt betrayed, as they “suffered along with their owners, complicating their decision of whether to flee with or from Union troops.” A Confederate officer cited by Campbell estimated that of some 10,000 enslaved people who trailed along with Sherman’s armies, hundreds died of “hunger, disease, or exposure,” as the Union officers took no actions to help them, (Campbell 2003). Sherman swore to “make Georgia howl,” and in his Special Field Order No. V. To army corps commanders alone is entrusted the power to destroy mills, houses, cotton-gins, &c., and for them this general principle is laid down: In districts and neighborhoods where the army is unmolested no destruction of such property should be permitted; but should guerrillas or bushwhackers molest our march, or should the inhabitants burn bridges, obstruct roads, or otherwise manifest local hostility, then army commanders should order and enforce a devastation more or less relentless according to the measure of such hostility. The March attracted a huge number of refugees, to whom Sherman assigned land with his Special Field Orders No. The 360-mile march extended from Atlanta in central Georgia to Savannah on the Atlantic coast and lasted from November 12 to December 22, 1864. Hardee decided not to surrender but to escape. "Sherman's March to the Sea". William T. Sherman. During the campaign, the Confederate War Department brought in additional men from Florida and the Carolinas, but they never were able to increase their effective force beyond 13,000.[8]. They often felt betrayed, as they "suffered along with their owners, complicating their decision of whether to flee with or from Union troops". Sherman left Chattanooga in May 1864 and captured the vital railroad and supply center of Atlanta. Kilpatrick was ordered to make a feint toward Augusta before destroying the railroad bridge at Brier Creek and moving to liberate the Camp Lawton prisoner of war camp at Millen. The campaign began with Sherman's troops leaving the captured city of Atlanta, … Some people lost their homes and belongings during Sherman`s 300 mile march from Atlanta to the sea (Savannah), what personal belongings that may have escaped detection and remained was most likely taken by foraging parties and stragglers who were in the rear of Sherman`s 62,000 man army, after the main … "[7] There were about 13,000 men remaining at Lovejoy's Station, south of Atlanta. [13], Sherman telegraphed to President Lincoln, "I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the City of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty heavy guns and plenty of ammunition and about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton. [9] Still, Grant trusted Sherman's assessment and on November 2, 1864, he sent Sherman a telegram stating simply, "Go as you propose. SHERMAN’S MARCH From November 15 until December 21, 1864, Union General William T. Sherman led some 60,000 soldiers on a 285-mile march from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia. I'm pretty sure that the union had 2100 injuries/casualties and that the confederacy had 1000 roughly. Abandoning Atlanta's railhead and telegraph lines was a high-risk operation. It was a campaign launched to make clear to the women, children and elderly of the South that the North could and would This page was last edited on 13 December 2020, at 06:23. The army will forage liberally on the country during the march. Behind us lay Atlanta, smouldering and in ruins, the black smoke rising high in air, and hanging like a pall over the ruined city. Eventually, Sherman left Major General George H. Thomas to chase Hood and returned to Atlanta to begin his march to Savannah. Not only does it afford the obvious and immediate military advantages, but, in showing to the world that your army could be divided, putting the stronger part to an important new service, and yet leaving enough to vanquish the old opposing force of the whole - Hood’s army - it brings those who sat in darkness to see a great light. And taking the work of General Thomas into the count, as it should be taken, it is indeed a great success. The infantry brigade of Brig. In the fall of 1864, the Union General William Tecumseh ("Cump") Sherman took 60,000 men and pillaged his way through Georgia's civilian farmsteads. On September 1, 1864, Sherman and his army captured Atlanta, Georgia, an important transportation center in … They destroyed the bridge across the Oconee River and then turned south.[11]. how much civilian life was lost in sherman's march to the sea? '", "Sherman's March Through Georgia: A Reappraisal of the Right Wing. At the Battle of Buck Head Creek on November 28, Kilpatrick was surprised and nearly captured, but the 5th Ohio Cavalry halted Wheeler's advance, and Wheeler was later stopped decisively by Union barricades at Reynolds's Plantation. He argues: Military campaign during the American Civil War. By using ThoughtCo, you accept our, Burning Atlanta and the Start of the March, American Civil War: Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest, American Civil War: Andersonville Prison Camp, American Civil War: Major General George H. Thomas, Sherman's March to the Sea in the American Civil War, American Civil War : War in the West, 1863-1865, American Civil War: General William T. Sherman, American Civil War: Major General John Buford, American Civil War: Major General John C. Frémont, American Civil War: Major General Carl Schurz, American Civil War: Major General Patrick Cleburne, American Civil War: Battle of Bentonville, American Civil War: Battle of Jonesboro (Jonesborough), American Civil War: General Joseph E. Johnston, American Civil War: Major General Joseph Wheeler, American Civil War: Lieutenant General John Bell Hood, "'We Have Surely Done a Big Work': The Diary of a Hoosier Soldier on Sherman's 'March to the Sea. ", "Scalawags and Scoundrels? The following is an excerpt from the general's orders: ... IV. I suppose it will be safer if I leave General Grant and yourself to decide. Sherman’s March to the Sea devastated Georgia and the Confederacy. The campaign began with Sherman's troops leaving the captured city of Atlantaon November 15 and ended with the capture of th… Sherman's soldiers did not destroy any of the towns in their path, but they stole food and livestock and burned the houses and barns of people who tried to fight back. Gen. John P. Hatch from Hilton Head, hoping to assist Sherman's arrival near Savannah by securing the Charleston and Savannah Railroad. He is the author of "The Everything American Presidents Book" and "Colonial Life: Government. Appomattox: The Battle of Appomattox … He and the Union Army's commander, Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, believed that the Civil War would come to an end only if the Confederacy's strategic capacity for warfare was decisively broken. Sherman's March to the Sea (also known as the Savannah Campaign or simply Sherman's March) was a military campaign of the American Civil War conducted through Georgia from November 15 until December 21, 1864, by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army. Several small actions followed. Foraging parties may also take mules or horses to replace the jaded animals of their trains, or to serve as pack-mules for the regiments or brigades. --Civilian witness regarding General William T. Sherman and his March to the Sea Following the Battle of Averasboro, North Carolina , March 15th & 16th, 1865, eighteen year old Janie Smith (July 26, 1846 - August 15th, 1882) penned on scraps of wallpaper a letter to her friend Janie Robeson in Bladen County . Foragers, known as "bummers", would provide food seized from local farms for the Army while they destroyed the railroads and the manufacturing and agricultural infrastructure of Georgia. Historian David J. Eicher wrote, “Sherman had accomplished an amazing task. Choose from 82 different sets of shermans march flashcards on Quizlet. ... Sherman's march … The second objective of the campaign was more traditional. Even those enslaved at the time held varying opinions of Sherman and his troops. While thousands viewed Sherman as a great liberator and followed his armies to Savannah, others complained of suffering from the Union army’s invasive tactics. Now, the undertaking being a success, the honor is yours; for I believe none of us went further than to acquiesce. ... From what I remember the actual civilian casualties numbered around 100. Slocum's wing, accompanied by Sherman, moved to the east, in the direction of Augusta. On November 25–26 at Sandersville, Wheeler struck at Slocum's advance guard. Maj. Gen. Gustavus W. Smith's Georgia militia had about 3,050 soldiers, most of whom were boys and elderly men. The Union suffered another 18,400 casualties and the Confederates another 12,000. Sherman's March to the Sea. Both U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and General Ulysses S. Grant had serious reservations about Sherman's plans. the civilian population. "[14] On December 26, the president replied in a letter:[15]. It started with Sherman’s army leaving the decimated city of Atlanta on … Former Southern Brigadier General Clement A. Evans asserted, for example, that there was no force available to obstruct Shermans soldiers. To this end, each brigade commander will organize a good and sufficient foraging party, under the command of one or more discreet officers, who will gather, near the route traveled, corn or forage of any kind, meat of any kind, vegetables, corn-meal, or whatever is needed by the command, aiming at all times to keep in the wagons at least ten day's provisions for the command and three days' forage. Soldiers must not enter the dwellings of the inhabitants, or commit any trespass, but during a halt or a camp they may be permitted to gather turnips, apples, and other vegetables, and to drive in stock of their camp. Sherman's 60,000 soldiers would have to march quickly. The campaign was designed by Grant and Sherman to be similar to Grant's innovative and successful Vicksburg Campaign and Sherman's Meridian Campaign, in that Sherman's armies would reduce their need for traditional supply lines by "living off the land" after consuming their 20 days of rations. 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