"[37], According to a 2022 American Economic Journal study which sought to measure the medium- and long-term economic impact of Sherman's March, "the capital destruction induced by the March led to a large contraction in agricultural investment, farming asset prices, and manufacturing activity. Sherman's March to Sea. The former slaves grew increasingly hesitant about getting too close to the white soldiers, who might be their source of freedom, but who often treated them with harshness and disrespect. Politicians hurried to escape the city, and its civilian inhabitants were infuriated when Shermans men celebrated Thanksgiving there and mockingly re-enacted a legislative session to vote Georgia back into the Union. [4] Sherman's decision to operate deep within enemy territory without supply lines was unusual for its time, and the campaign is regarded by some historians as an early example of modern warfare or total war. Join us online July 24-26! He destroyed much of the South's potential and psychology to wage war. As one Georgia woman wrote in her diary: like Demons they rush in! Shermans March to the Sea was an American Civil War campaign lasting from November 15 to December 21, 1864, in which Union Major General William Tecumseh Sherman led troops through the Confederate state of Georgia, pillaging the countryside and destroying both military outposts and civilian properties. On December 9, however, tragedy struck Brig. In planning for the march, Sherman used livestock and crop production data from the 1860 census to lead his troops through areas where he believed they would be able to forage most effectively. Federal troops sprinted the 600-yard stretch to the forts walls, and within 15 minutes they had captured the structure. Field Order No. Lt. Gen. William J. Hardee commanded the undermanned Department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, and Maj. Gen. Gustavus W. Smith led the small Georgia state militia. On September 21, 1864, Confederate Gen. John B. Barrett, John G. (1960) "Sherman and Total War in the Carolinas". Updated: October 4, 2018 | Original: February 22, 2010, 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. 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. This caused Sherman, who was trying to move quickly and live off the land, to worry about their impact on his speed and the supply of food meant for his soldiers. To that end, Shermans troops marched south toward Savannah in two wings, about 30 miles apart. Howard's infantry marched through Jonesboro to Gordon, southwest of the state capital, Milledgeville. Stay up-to-date on the American Battlefield Trust's battlefield preservation efforts, travel tips, upcoming events, history content and more. Sherman's March to the Sea With the full support of both Lincoln and Grant, Sherman devised an unusual plan. His armies sustained more than 1,300 casualties, with the Confederacy suffering roughly 2,300. When they reached the assigned campsite in the evening, each man hooked his tent half to anothers, pitched it, and then prepared the only full meal of the day over a fire. Rockwell. Sherman had completely uprooted his army and marched it unassisted through enemy territory. His focus on crushing civilian morale presaged the bloody World Wars of the 20th century. Thousands who had been deceived by their lying papers into the belief that we were being whipped all the time, realized the truth, and have no appetite for a repetition of the same experience. On January 16, 1865, during the Civil War (1861-65), Union general William T. Sherman issued his Special Field Order No. I know that this recent movement of mine through Georgia has had a wonderful effect in this respect. The March to the Sea and Beyond: Sherman's Troops in the Savannah and Carolinas Campaigns. He had for a long time hated the idea of having to kill and maim Confederates, many of whom had been pre-war friends. Following the March to the Sea, Sherman's army headed north for the Carolinas Campaign. The violence abated only after Sherman threatened to shoot an equal number of his own captives. In fact, his true destination was the Georgia capital of Milledgeville. The 62,000-man army usually spent the night in tents, the campsites stretching in all directions. The general himself was a model of deportment. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. Sung from the point of view of a Union soldier, the lyrics detail the freeing of slaves and punishing the Confederacy for starting the war. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). [31], Sherman's scorched earth policies have always been highly controversial, and Sherman's memory has long been reviled by many Southerners. And taking the work of General Thomas into the count, as it should be taken, it is indeed a great success. The approach was backbreaking, but simple: rails were torn from the ties, which were stacked to make a bonfire beneath them. The full story, however, is not this simple. Sherman's March to the Sea, (November 15-December 21, 1864) American Civil War campaign that concluded Union operations in the Confederate state of Georgia. Although beef cattle trudged along with his army, and he had his men fill their haversacks with food before they left, he knew that they could live off the Georgia land. Sherman dutifully complied with the letters of protection he received, from both North and South, regardless of social standing. Georgia, stretching before Shermans army with its red clay hills and sandy terrain, was the largest of the Confederate states. On the left, Maj. Gen. Henry W. Slocum commanded the Army of Georgia. More seriously, the soldiers damaged state buildings and destroyed books and manuscripts before leaving Milledgeville on November 24. Maj. Gen. Gustavus W. Smith's Georgia militia had about 3,050 soldiers, most of whom were boys and elderly men. The . HISTORY.com works with a wide range of writers and editors to create accurate and informative content. Since spreading terror farther afield only intensified the impact of his March to the Sea, all of this suited Shermans purposes perfectly. Subscribe to the American Battlefield Trust's quarterly email series of curated stories for the curious-minded sort! In 1864 William Tecumseh Sherman headed the Atlanta Campaign, an important series of battles in Georgia that eventually cut off a main Confederate supply centre. 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 William Tecumseh Sherman, major general of the Union Army.The campaign began on November 15 with Sherman's troops leaving Atlanta, recently taken by Union forces, and ended with the . Sherman wanted to keep his movements as secret as possible; he cut telegraph lines to prevent intelligence reports from reaching the enemy (or his superiors in Washington). The long line of fugitive slaves, some 650 of them, was ordered to await a signal before crossing. "Sherman's March to the Sea". "[24] On December 26, the president replied in a letter:[25]. March to the Sea. Infrastructure. At the culmination of the March to the Sea, William Tecumseh Shermans forces surrounded Savannah, Georgia, after capturing Fort McCallister, a crucial element in the citys southern defense. [23][bettersourceneeded], 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. Abraham 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, also about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton.. It was just such a conflict of interest that caused one of the most horrific events of the campaign. VI. The city was hardly burned to the ground, as Gone with the Wind implies. 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. On it was Byers' poem. It was a strange end to a destructive month, but perhaps it should not have been unexpected. Confederate Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood was threatening Chattanooga, and Sherman detached two armies under Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas to deal with Hood in the FranklinNashville campaign. But what next? 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. It seized 5,000 horses, 4,000 mules, and 13,000 head of cattle. Subsequent historians have objected to the comparison, arguing that Sherman's tactics were not as severe or indiscriminate. Sherman's . Sign up to receive the latest information on the American Battlefield Trust's efforts to blaze The Liberty Trail in South Carolina. Shermans army reached the sea, took Fort McAllister and re-tied itself to a naval supply line. At the same time, Slocum's left wing approached the state capital at Milledgeville, prompting the hasty departure of Governor Joseph Brown and the state legislature. Not only was Shermans army vastly larger and superior to the Confederate military, but he also outmaneuvered the few Confederate forces and kept them uncertain about his destination. Letter, Sherman to Henry W. Halleck, December 24, 1864. Some band, by accident, struck up the anthem of "John Brown's Body"; the men caught up the strain, and never before or since have I heard the chorus of "Glory, glory, hallelujah!" The two cavalry units clashed again at nearby Waynesboro on December 4. Confederate political and military leaders Gov. Sherman was charged with three armies totaling some 100,000 men: the Army of the Cumberland, the Army of the Tennessee, and the Army of the Ohio. Seeing their terror and desperation, some Federals began throwing logs and anything else they could find toward the drowning people. Almost miraculously, damage and destruction immediately ceased. And so, in Atlanta, Sherman instituted tactics later generations of American war leaders would use in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Although clearly headed eastward, Sherman was determined to conceal his movements from Confederate eyes. Although many of the houses were damaged and a minority put to the torch and totally destroyed others were left essentially untouched, an unpredictability that became a source of great fear. William Tecumseh Sherman's early military career was a near disaster, having to be temporarily relieved of command. The ensuing campaign and siege occupied most of the summer, with Sherman finally forcing a surrender on September 2. Slavery. The destruction of Georgia displayed the unfettered might of the Union war machine. The field order also permitted able-bodied Black labourers to join the march, but commanding officers were instructed to remain cognizant of supplies intended for their army group. They destroyed the bridge across the Oconee River and then turned south.[21]. These orders have been depicted in popular culture as the origin of the "40 acres and a mule" promise. Wheelers 3,500 man Confederate cavalry tried to hinder Shermans army, but Brig. There was glory to die in Picketts Charge at Gettysburg, but only humiliation to have ones barn burned, silverware taken, house damaged or destroyed, or horses added to the enemy cavalry. Davis, who was no stranger to scandal he was arrested for murdering fellow Union general William Nelson in August 1862, but escaped court martial took a great deal of blame for this horror, but Sherman defended him. At the Battle of Honey Hill on November 30, Hatch fought a vigorous battle against G.W. Photos Library of Congress, Colorized by MADS MADSEN of Colorized History. But Sherman prevailed upon his commanding officer, who, in turn, convinced the president. [12], When Sherman had prepared his forces for the Atlanta Campaign, which immediately preceded the March to the Sea, he took rigorous steps to insure that only the most physically fit men were accepted, that every man in the army could march for long distances and would fight without reservations. Although his formal orders (excerpted below) specified control over destruction of infrastructure in areas in which his army was unmolested by guerrilla activity, he recognized that supplying an army through liberal foraging would have a destructive effect on the morale of the civilian population it encountered in its wide sweep through the state.[10]. Wheelers horsemen descended on the Federal column at Sandersonville on November 2526, and on November 28 they sprang an attack on Kilpatricks Union cavalry at Buckhead Creek. 120 had permitted Black labourers to accompany the column, despite being a potential drain on resources and slowing the armys pace. Though he had his reservations about the plan, Grant gave his official approval on November 7. He entered the Confederate psyche and remains in some minds to the present day. Sometimes the slaves would volunteer information, and other times the foragers would force it out of them. On November 23, Slocum's troops captured the city and held a mock legislative session in the capitol building, jokingly voting Georgia back into the Union.[22]. When Sherman began his March to the Sea on November 15, 1864, there were less than 200 prisoners in the stockade and less than 2,000 in the hospital. Sherman's March To The Sea: Gen. William T. Sherman. 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. How did Shermans March to the Sea conclude? On November 15, 62,000 men split into two infantry wings (actually four parallel corps columns) with screening cavalry to protect the main bodies as they spread across the landscape departed Atlanta. The Yankees were not only fighting hostile armies, but a hostile people, Sherman explained; as a result, they needed to make old and young, rich and poor, feel the hard hand of war., General Shermans troops captured Atlanta on September 2, 1864. Many scholars of military history contend that his psychological warfare was one of the first modern examples of total war. Observing the movements of Howards right wing, Confederate Lieut. 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 days' provisions for the command and three days' forage. The March to the Sea. To sustain it, we must war upon and destroy the organized rebel forces,must cut off their supplies, destroy their communicationsand produce among the people of Georgia a thorough conviction of the personal misery which attends war, and the utter helplessness and inability of their rulers to protect themIf that terror and grief and even want shall help to paralyze their husbands and fathers who are fighting usit is mercy in the end.. Neeley, Mark E., Jr. (1991) "Was the Civil War a Total War?". Sherman wasted no time. 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