On the first day the Confederates were pushed back. Belmont Manson was the scene for many preparations for this battle. Updates? Hood devised a plan to march into Tennessee and defeat Thomas's force while it was geograp… Confederate Redoubts #1-#5 fell as the Federals outflanked and overwhelmed the left of Hood’s line. They finally recuperated at Tupelo, Mississippi, with little more than half of the men that had fought at Nashville. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. The Confederate left was anchored on Compton’s Hill. Photograph by George N. Barnard. The last significant military offensive of the Civil War by the South, the major part of the battle took place on Dec. 15-16, 1864, marking its 152nd anniversary this month. The Battle of Nashville On the afternoon of December 16 , 1864, Union troops led by General George H. Thomas devastated Confederate forces at Nashville, Tennessee. It all started here at Kelley’s Point. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Photograph by George N. Barnard. The Army of Tennessee pursued Schofield’s forces to Franklin, Tennessee, where they found that the Federal troops had entrenched themselves. Outnumbered by a factor of more than two-to-one, Hood resolutely and mistakenly stuck to the offensive. This time the diversion was more successful. What remained of Hood’s army retreated two miles further south during the night and established a new defensive line. Col. William Shy of the 20th Tennessee died defending the hill, and the prominence was renamed in his honor. The missed opportunity at Spring Hill gave way to a disaster on an epic scale at Franklin, and now the Confederate Army of Tennessee faced the united and fortified Armies of the Ohio and of the Cumberland near Nashville. The epic last major battle of the American Civil War: The Battle of Nashville December 1864. In due time a renewed assault on Overton’s Hill caused a complete rout of the Confederates. Battle of Nashville. The 55,000 men of Thomas’s force suffered just 3,061 casualties. On the Confederate left, Thomas swung the bulk of his forces out of the defensive of Nashville in a grand-wheeling offensive. Hood had also served under some of the most famous generals in the south: Lee, Longstreet, Johnston, and Jackson. No army on the continent ever played on any field to so large and so sullen an audience.” Nashville residents came out to watch the fight; Federal Colonel Isaac R. Sherwood recalled, “All the hills in our rear were black with human beings watching the battle, but silent. Divisions of the American Battlefield Trust: The American Battlefield Trust is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. B. Smith was captured. He had observed Hood’s advance from afar while amassing a fighting force of his own that numbered around 55,000 troops, far more than Hood’s army. After a brief period of pursuit, Sherman decided to disengage and to conduct instead his March to the Sea, leaving the matter of Hood's army and the defense of Tennessee to Thomas. Hood altered his orders yet again: he would cross the Tennessee River and retake Nashville, posing a threat to Union-held Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio. Ordered to assault Peach Orchard Hill during the battle, after many white Union regiments had failed, the 13th U.S.C.T. In the meantime, much of the Confederate cavalry had been dispatched to engage Union forces at Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The Battle of Nashville, which occurred on December 15 and 16, 1864, effectively ended the Civil War in the Western theater. Davis directed him to cut off Sherman’s supply lines to the north, pitching a defensive battle if Sherman followed and striking the Union general if he instead advanced south. Donate today to preserve battlefields in America and protect the legacy of our nation’s defining conflicts. At 4:15 p.m. a Federal assault at the angle on top of the hill broke the Confederate line. The Union victory effectively ended Southern resistance in … Please select which sections you would like to print: While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. For James Wilson, the coming battle would prove whether he could live up to the faith that Grant and Sherman had placed in him. This way, he was certain that Sherman would engage him. The battle of Nashville. He moved his army north and east in the direction of the Tennessee capital, but racing against him was a Union army retreating from Pulaski, Tennessee, with Maj. Gen. John Schofield at its head. Hood. For two weeks the “Rock of Chickamauga” drafted and revised his strategy to confront Hood. Hood attempted to retake Nashville from an occupying Federal army, despite having a significant numerical disadvantage. Fortified Union railroad bridge across Cumberland River, Nashville, Tenn., 1864. The 13th U.S.C.T. The next day Hood reformed his battered line around Shy’s Hill to the west and Overton’s Hill to the east. The following Union Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Nashville of the American Civil War. Myles Hudson was an Editorial Intern at Encyclopædia Britannica. The Southerners defending Peach Orchard Hill repulsed the four-brigade Union attack, but they could not spare any reinforcements to bolster other parts of their lines. Battle of Nashville: Enemies Front and Rear. Federal Identification Number (EIN): 54-1426643. Benson Bobrick's "The Battle of Nashville" is a superb, informative and fast-paced read. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Cloud Hotel on the night of December 12, 1864. was killed and Gen.T. Hood first engaged Schofield on November 29 at Spring Hill, Tennessee, just north of the Duck River. In fact, Sherman had no intentions of engaging Hood. Grant was on the verge of sacking Thomas before word arrived that Thomas was on the move. While the Confederate general’s strategy had grown more rash and careless with each defeat, Thomas was known for his careful and deliberate planning. The Battle of Nashville, Tennessee, fought December 15–16, 1864, shattered the Confederate Army of Tennessee and marked the end of major Confederate offensives in the Western theater during the Civil War. Confederate: 4,450. Confederate General John Bell Hood participated in some of the most brutal and iconic actions of the Civil War, including the breakthrough at Gaines’ Mill, the hellacious fighting at the Cornfield Gen. John B. Gen. John McArthur, on his own initiative, ordered his three brigades to charge the hill. In six months of campaigning, the Army of Tennessee had lost nearly 75% of its fighting force and ceased to be a serious threat to the Federals. Thomas renewed the attack on the afternoon of December 16. Corrections? In the shadows of the setting sun, Brig. Thomas’s methodical assault on Hood’s besieging force saw the virtual destruction of the Army of Tennessee. Battle of Nashville, (December 15–16, 1864), American Civil War engagement in which Confederate Lieut. Jefferson Davis southwest of Atlanta in Palmetto, Georgia. Hood reached Nashville on December 2 and began to stake out a position south of the city, hoping to draw the Union forces into a costly attack. It is at once both a biography of General George H. Thomas and a chronology of the American Civil War. The Battle of Nashville occurred on December 15-16, 1864 south of Nashville, Tennessee. The Union force was a conglomerate of units from several different departments provisionally attached to George H. Thomas’ Department of the Cumberland. In this lesson, we will examine the Battle of Nashville, which took place on December 15 and 16, 1864. Battle of Nashville — Shy's Hill. "The Battle of Nashville: Recollections of Confederate and Union Soldiers" by award-winning historian Col. Lochlainn Seabrook. The Battle of Nashville was the last major offensive action of the Confederate States of America. A secure Tennessee and a shattered Confederate army meant that the Union was closer than ever to winning the war. Hood’s men began to break, and by nightfall his men had retreated to take up new defensive positions two miles south of their original fieldworks. Still determined to retake Nashville for the Confederacy, Hood and his 30,000 bloodied men limped their way to the southern outskirts of the city. The Majority of our funds go directly to Preservation and Education. The reality of the situation passed Hood by, and he was simply grasping at non-existent straws. McArthur’s attack broke the Confederate line and soon threatened to sweep up Hood’s whole army. The Battle of Nashville (15–16 December 1864) was a dramatic winter conflict in which Gen. George H. Thomas, with a hastily organized army of heterogeneous troops, moved out of Nashville and fell upon the Confederate forces of Gen. John B. During that time, however, his superiors grew impatient. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. The Union victory at Nashville shattered Hood's Army of Tennessee and effectively ended the war in Tennessee. The Battle of Nashville. On December 13 he sent another major general to assume command of Thomas’s army if he had not mounted an assault by the time he arrived in Nashville. was comprised of 20 officers and 556 men, most of whom had been enslaved in Tennessee. Thomas delayed the attack for nearly two weeks, citing freezing temperatures, full-blown ice storms, and limited cavalry support, but his superiors were unimpressed. Covered cannon on the steps of the capitol, Nashville, Tennessee, photograph by George N. Barnard, 1864. The battle of Nashville, fought December 15-16, 1864, continued the destruction of the Confederate Army of Tennessee. Hood’s disastrous loss of Atlanta in September 1864 sent him and his Army of Tennessee on the run. Hood ordered his army off of the field, ending offensive operations. With the Confederates in position outside Nashville, it would only be a matter of time before the two sides would meet in a desperate engagement that very well determine the outcome of the campaign. December 16, 1864 – Major General George H. Thomas renewed his Federal assault on the weakened and demoralized Confederate Army of Tennessee south of Nashville. Order of battle compiled from the army organization during the battle. Phone: (615) 405-9000 Email: Send Email Address: The Battle of Nashville Trust P.O. Union troops behind the lines, Nashville, Tennessee, December 16, 1864. Hood had arranged his troops into a four-mile-long line straddling four of the roads to the south of Nashville. The battle, between approximately 22,000 Union troops led by Major General George Henry Thomas and 40,000 Confederate troops led by Lieutenant General John Bell Hood, was considered a major Union victory in the Western Theater of the Civil War (the area west of the Appalachian Mountains). They set up camp on December 2. Union Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas commanded the Federal troops stationed there. Of the 30,000 Confederate troops engaged at Nashville, an estimated 6,000 were casualties. Battle of Nashville (December 15–16, 1864), American Civil War engagement in which Confederate Lieutenant General John B. Show your pride in battlefield preservation by shopping in our store. Battle of Nashville - Background: Though badly defeated at the Battle of Franklin, Confederate General John Bell Hood continued pressing north through Tennessee in early December 1864 with the goal of attacking Nashville. The Battle of Nashville: Day Two. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. The Battle of Franklin was fought on the last day of November 1864 some 15 miles away from Belmont. Pres. When Hood learned of this development in the morning, he was furious. The replacement was not needed, though: Thomas mobilized his forces on December 15. 1.2K likes. The Battle of Nashville. At the same time, his main assault fell on a cluster of redoubts on the Confederate left. Due to a series of blunders at the Battle of Spring Hill and a catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Franklin in the closing days of November, 1864, Confederate General John Bell Hood failed to prevent a dangerous concentration of Union forces in Nashville, Tennessee. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. The IV Corps and the District of Etowah were permanently attached to … Like Atlanta, its commercial importance and status as a railroad hub contributed to its value for both the Union and the Confederacy. Your tax-deductible gift will help us to preserve this irreplaceable twice-hallowed ground at Gaines' Mill and Cold Harbor — forever. Hood devised a plan to march into Tennessee and defeat Thomas's force while it was geograp… While the Confederate general meandered through Alabama before crossing the Tennessee on October 31, Sherman began his famous March to the Sea. The first attempt to take Overton’s Hill failed, but by 4:00 pm Shy’s Hill belonged to the Union, and Confederate troops on Overton’s Hill began to waver. Instead, Hood set his sights squarely on recapturing Nashville. Thomas’s plan of attack entailed pinning down Hood’s right flank while a larger force of infantry and cavalry surged over the redoubts and decimated the Confederate left. He followed the pattern of the first day, hoping to pin the Confederate right while smashing the left. He succeeded in keeping the Confederate right flank at bay until noon, when the main Union force advanced on Hood’s redoubts to the left. The Battle of Nashville was a battle of the American Civil War. The troops were pieced together from undersized units of the Army of Georgia, Army of the Tennessee, United States Colored Troops, and other seemingly homeless units. He intended to sever Schofield’s access to the Nashville road, but communication between Hood and his subordinates broke down and Schofield slipped past the Confederates during the night. The battle had begun the day before when Thomas initiated an attack after waiting some two … Hood relinquished his command in shame. The regiment lost 40 percent of its men, the highest casualty rate of the battle of Nashville. As Bobrick points out, General Thomas was is certainly one of America's "unsung heroes," and arguably the best military commander to fight in the Civil War. Nashville Civil War Sites pertaining to the Battle of Nashville and the nearby Battle of Franklin and Battle of Stones River are around the Nashville area. and Union soldiers clashed in the Battle of Nashville that represents the end of large-scale fighting west of the coastal states. The diversionary assault force was a true hodgepodge of units and men. Abraham Lincoln and General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sent letter after letter urging Thomas to crush the Army of Tennessee with haste. Since mid-July of 1864, though, this proud general’s name was linked to Confederate disaster after disaster, and in the waning weeks of 1864, he was leading an unrelenting campaign. He possibly hoped to lure Sherman as far as the Tennessee River. The Battle of Nashville was a two-day battle in the Franklin-Nashville Campaign that represented the end of large-scale fighting west of the coastal states in the American Civil War. Photograph by George N. Barnard. Railroad yard and depot with locomotives; the capitol in the distance, Nashville, Tenn., 1864. … Hood followed up his defeat in the Atlanta Campaign by moving northwest to disrupt the supply lines of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman from Chattanooga, hoping to challenge Sherman into a battle that could be fought to Hood's advantage. After a brief period of pursuit, Sherman decided to disengage and to conduct instead his March to the Sea, leaving the matter of Hood's army and the defense of Tennessee to Thomas. BATTLE MAP | American Battlefield Trust’s map of the Battle of Nashville, Tennessee on December 15... BATTLE MAP | American Battlefield Trust’s map of the Battle of Nashville, Tennessee on December 16... See the entire Civil War unfold, from Fort Sumter to Appomattox and beyond, on our animated map,... On the night of November 28, 1864, Lieut. December 16, 2019 WalterCoffey Military, Tennessee Leave a comment. Hood delayed for three weeks at Florence before learning of Georgia’s devastation, and thereafter he abandoned hope of drawing Sherman north. This page was last changed on 23 August 2018, at 08:33. Battle of Franklin (1864), chromolithograph by Kurz & Allison, 1891. 304 likes. The tactics used in this military operation are very similar to the strategy used in Operation Desert Storm, where horse-power was replaced by air-power. The battle at Peach Orchard Hill was a resounding victory for Hood’s troops, but it was the only one within the Battle of Nashville for the Confederacy. Box 190493, Nashville, TN 37219 DESCRIPTION The consequences of the Battle of Nashville, which took place December 15-16, 1864, are still being debated, but one thing is certain: the Union victory there marked a major turning point in the War of 1861. In the summer of 1920, Tennessee found itself in the position of being the 36th state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment. Hood attempted to retake Nashville, Tennessee, from an occupying Federal army, despite having a significant numerical disadvantage. Col. W. M. Shy, 20th Tenn. Inf. The Confederates ran from Union soldiers for 10 days, stopping to breathe only after crossing into Alabama and over the Tennessee River. the battle of nashville - thomas attacks the confe... the battle of nashville - the opening shots of dec... the battle of nashville - the naval battle of bell... the battle of nashville - the big freeze; the strategic importance of nashville in the civil... november 13. The Union victory at Nashville shattered Hood's Army of Tennessee and effectively ended the war in Tennessee. They erected a series of earthen redoubts on their left flank to defend against an inevitable Union sally. The overall Federal commander in Nashville, Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas, received telegrams from Ulysses S. Grant and Abraham Lincoln urging him to strike the Confederate army. While Hood followed these orders at the start, in October he informed the president that he aimed to cut off the supply lines between Dalton and Resaca, much farther into north Georgia than originally planned. It was fought on December 15 and 16, 1864. Hood’s next steps were to try to weaken Sherman’s army without engaging him in the open field, as the Army of Tennessee had been too badly mauled to survive such a battle. Nashville had been occupied by the Union since the early months of 1862. The Battle of Nashville was a two-day battle in the Franklin-Nashville Campaign that represented the end of large-scale fighting in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. There Davis informed Hood that he was relieved of overall command of the Department of the West, although he was permitted to retain control of the Army of Tennessee. Arriving outside the city on December 2 with his Army of Tennessee, Hood assumed a defensive position to the south as he lacked the manpower to assault Nashville … Nashville, Tennessee was the final battleground of the debate over suffrage for women. Union forces advanced on both hills. Confederate General John Bell Hood participated in some of the most brutal and iconic actions of the Civil War, including the breakthrough at Gaines’ Mill, the hellacious fighting at the Cornfield at Antietam, and the drive to Snodgrass Hill at Chickamauga. On December 15, Thomas launched a demonstration on the Confederate right across the line of the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad. At 6:00 am Maj. Gen. James Steedman led the first phase of the assault against the Army of Tennessee. For the Union’s part, Thomas’s victory gave Sherman freedom to devote his full attention to razing the Georgia countryside. Hood followed up his defeat in the Atlanta Campaign by moving northwest to disrupt the supply lines of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman from Chattanooga, hoping to challenge Sherman into a battle that could be fought to Hood's advantage. The decisive Union victory shattered Hood’s army and effectively ended Southern resistance in Tennessee for the remainder of the war. His grand strategy included the taking of Tennessee’s capital, Nashville, and then moving farther north into his home state of Kentucky to gather provisions and volunteers, and then planned to turn east to join Robert E. Lee’s beleaguered forces in Virginia. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 53,000 acres in 24 states! Our Battle of Nashville page includes history articles, battle maps, photos of the battlefield and the latest preservation news for this important 1864 Civil War battle in Tennessee. Hood rendezvoused with Confederate Pres. On this hill was fought the decisive encounter of the Battle of Nashville December 16, 1864. When Thomas informed them that he was hampered by terrible winter weather, Grant was not convinced. Omissions? Every purchase supports the mission. Major General George H. Thomas, 48-year-old commander of the Department of the Cumberland, and Brigadier General James H. Wilson, the 27-year-old chief of cavalry of the Military Division of the Mississippi, sat huddled over supper at Nashville’s St. Hood ordered a mass retreat south to Franklin. Hood seized Dalton on October 13 and Sherman soon followed, but, when the Confederate general wheeled south and west toward Gadsden, Alabama, Sherman did not pursue him. Yet, this force performed its job and struck the Confederate right, although the action failed to draw Hood’s attention for long. The State Capitol Building, Nashville. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Nashville, Military History Encyclopedia on the Web - Battle of Nashville, Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture - Battle of Nashville, America's Story from America's Library - Battle of Nashville. Hood ordered a hasty frontal assault, and, although he forced Schofield’s army to retreat to Nashville, he lost 6 generals and over 6,000 soldiers in the process. However, he would not be deterred. Following the Union victory at Shiloh , Federal troops quickly managed to besiege the town of... Help Fund Western Theater Online Education, Preserve 95 Acres at Three 1864 Civil War Battlefields, Kentuckians: Support Battlefield Preservation Legislation, Virginians: Support Battlefield Preservation Legislation, Franklin-Nashville Campaign - September - December 1864. Atlanta was a major railroad terminal and supply depot, and losing that city to Union Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman jeopardized the Confederacy’s entire western campaign. Following Nashville, the fall of the Southern Confederacy was now only a matter of time. Donations to the Trust are tax deductible to the full extent allowable under the law.
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