A Deluge of Victories

Greetings Cosmic Americans!

"A Deluge of Victories" in the West is how the New York Tribune characterized February through May, 1862. During these months, Union forces gained control of 1,000 miles of navigable rivers, conquered 30,000 miles of enemy territory, captured a state capital and the South's largest city, and put 30,000 Confederate soldiers out of action. As one might imagine - these events elevated morale in the North.

In the South, the situation to many seemed bleak indeed. The now famous diarist, Mary Boykin Chesnut, had this to say about the troubling times:

Battle after battle - disaster after disaster...How could I sleep? The power they are bringing to bear against our country is tremendous...Every morning's paper enough to kill a well woman of age a strong and hearty one...New Orleans gone - and with it the Confederacy. Are we not cut in two? I have nothing to chronicle but disasters...The reality is hideous.

Things were not going so well for the Rebels in the East either. For Confederates, the threat of McClellan's army against Richmond loomed larger than disasters in the West. Things were going so well for the Unites States, in fact, that many northerners forecast an inevitable - and speedy - victory. U. S. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton even closed recruiting offices across the North. He were clearly not anticipating any future turn of events. Ahhhh how things can suddenly change...

Peace,

Keith

 

Bad News in the West

Greetings Cosmic Americans

As we rocket toward June, 2012 I would like to point out just how bad things were for the Confederacy 150 years ago..especially in the western theater. I do so not to explore the vast details of the military operation in the first handful of months in 1862, but to ponder with great interest the tenacity of the Confederate population. Despite some of the worst possible news they held firmly to their cause.

So here is the bad news roll call for 1862:

February - Forts Henry and Donelson fall to Union forces through a combined US Army and Navy operation. Nashville, a major Confederate industrial center, also falls to Union forces

April - Confederates suffer crushing loss at Shiloh, Albert Sidney Johnson, a man to whom people looked for military victories, is dead. PGT Beauregard relieves himself of command due to illness, US navy captures New Orleans

May - Corinth, a vital rail center in Mississippi, falls to Union forces.

June - Memphis, a major port city on the Mississippi River, falls to Union forces.

So...the Confederate losses piled up pretty high in the West in the first half of 1862. Two of the biggest cities in the South - gone. The upper and lower reaches of the Mississippi River - gone. Vital shipping, communication, rail, and industrial centers - gone. The two highest ranking Confederates in the West - dead or incapacitated. Jefferson Davis was at something of a loss for what to do, and the situation was not looking so great in the East either for much of 1862...Joseph E. Johnston slowly retreating toward Richmond, with George B. McClellan cautiously following. The only bright spot for the Confederacy at this point was Stonewall's aggressive maneuvers in the Shenandoah Valley. Of course, we know that militarily, events would soon change dramatically with the ascension of Robert E. Lee in the East and the battles of late June.  But we'll have to wait for another post for that. Until then, if anyone is attending sesquicentennial events in the western theater - please send a full report.

Peace,

Keith

[caption id="attachment_2729" align="aligncenter" width="694" caption="The annihilation of the Rebel fleet - June 6, 1862"][/caption]

Spirit of the South

Greetings Cosmic Americans!

How were things shaping up for the Confederate cause by April 1862...one year into the war? Meh - not so great. Both the battles of Shiloh and Ft. Pulaski ended in Confederate defeat. By the middle of the month, Union forces were in motion against New Orleans and the Virginia Peninsula. Stonewall was kicking up a fuss in the Shenandoah Valley but otherwise, things looked pretty bleak.

Still - I believe there were signs that spirits were high, especially in the press. Here is a little snippet from the Richmond Times-Dispatch from April 17, 1862 concerning Confederate patriotism and sympathy for the cause across the Potomac in Georgetown.

We learn that on a recent occasion in Georgetown when the clergyman of one of the churches read the prayer of thanksgiving for Northern victories, most of the congregation rose from their knees, and some of them left the church. The flame of patriotism is still burning brightly in the very strongholds of despotism.

In a matter of months, Robert E. Lee would take the helm of Rebel forces outside of Richmond and really give the Confederate populace something to cheer about. But for now....a little patriotism would have to go a long way.

Peace,

keith