Strike The Tent...
07 February 2006
  Today in Civil War History
1862 Confederates order reinforcements to Fort Donelson



One day after the fall of Fort Henry on the Tennessee River, Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston, commander of Rebel forces in the west, orders 15,000 reinforcements to Fort Donelson. This fort lay on the Cumberland River just a few miles from Fort Henry. Johnston's decision turned out to be a mistake, as many of the troops were captured when the Fort Donelson fell to the Yankees on February 16.

During the fall and winter of 1861 to 1862, the Union army and navy penetrated through Kentucky and into Tennessee. Led by General Ulysses S. Grant, the Yankees were gaining crucial advantages by controlling parts of the major rivers in the upper South. Johnston sought to stop the bleeding of lost Confederate territory by strengthening the garrison inside Fort Donelson. In retrospect, his mistake was in not providing enough support to Donelson. Johnston wanted to buy time so he could gather his forces from eastern Kentucky and Tennessee to Nashville, which lay south and east of Fort Donelson. If Johnston had concentrated his force at Donelson, he would have had a significant advantage over Grant. Instead, Grant surrounded the fort and sent a squadron to attack from the river. On February 16, the Yankees cut off the fort from the south and forced the surrender of 15,000 Confederates.

After the fall of Fort Donelson, Johnston gathered his remaining forces to northern Mississippi. On April 6 at Shiloh, the western armies clashed in one of the most destructive battles of the war. Johnston was killed in the Confederate defeat.
 
Comments: Post a Comment



<< Home
A Reference & Research Destination With Peer-Reviewed Sources, Published By an Amatuer Civil War Enthusiast.

Name:
Location: Gordonville, Pennsylvania, United States
Civil War Top 100 Top Blogs

Powered by Blogger

ARCHIVES
January 2006 / February 2006 / March 2006 / April 2006 / May 2006 / June 2006 / July 2006 / August 2006 / September 2006 / October 2006 / November 2006 / January 2007 / March 2007 / April 2007 / October 2007 / May 2008 / January 2009 / March 2009 / January 2010 / February 2010 / March 2010 / April 2010 / May 2010 / June 2010 / August 2010 / September 2010 / October 2010 / November 2010 / January 2011 / February 2011 / March 2011 / April 2011 / May 2011 / June 2011 / July 2011 / August 2011 / September 2011 / October 2011 / November 2011 / January 2012 / February 2012 / March 2012 / May 2012 / June 2012 / July 2012 / November 2012 / January 2013 / December 2013 / February 2014 /