Chattanooga Campaign December 31, November 26, 1863

Objectives Learn why the North wanted control of central Tennessee. Learn how Bragg defeated Rosecrans at Chickamauga. Learn how Grant was able to drive Bragg out of Tennessee.

Union Strategy After successfully securing the Ohio, upper Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, the Union plans called for driving the Confederate Army of Tennessee out of the state so Georgia could be invaded.

William S. Rosecrans In charge of the Union Army of the Cumberland was William Starke Rosecrans. A devote Catholic, he had a priest travel with him and the army.

Braxton Bragg Commanding the Confederate Army of Tennessee was Braxton Bragg. Veteran of the Mexican War, Bragg was one of the least like command officers in the entire south.

Stones River/Murfreesburough The two armies clashed near Murfreesburough Tennessee along the banks of the Stones River. After three days of fighting which proved inconclusive, Bragg withdrew southward.

Bragg’s Retreat After month’s of delay, Rosecrans was ordered to push Bragg out of Tennessee. On June 24 the Army of the Cumberland began is push. Bragg kept backing up until he reached Chattanooga.

Chattanooga Located on the Tennessee River in southeastern Tennessee, Chattanooga was a strategic meeting place of roads, rail, and river, the three r’s of transportation in the 1800s.

Chickamauga As Rosecrans moved closer to Chattanooga, Bragg retreated into Northern Georgia near o meandering stream known as Chickamauga.

“River of Death” Chickamauga is believed to be an old Cherokee name meaning “River of Death”. Bragg had amassed 67,000 troops, including thousands from Virginia commanded by James Longstreet. This was the greatest number of soldiers any Confederate general had during the western war.

Fighting Begins On September 18, a patrol commanded by Nathan Bedford Forrest, encountered Union forces near a bridge crossing the creek. Soon, thousands on both sides were thrown into the battle.

Rosecrans’ Outburst That evening after the fighting, Rosecrans berated General Tomas J. Wood for not moving his troops more rapidly when he was ordered to.

Rosecrans’ Blunder During the second day, while inspecting the lines, Rosecrans thought their was a gap in the Union line. He ordered General Wood to fill. Wood knew there was no gap. But remembering the night before, he immediate took soldiers from his line to fill a gap that did not exist, creating one instead.

Longstreet’s Charge Just as Wood’s men left, Longstreet’s Virginians poured through the gap created. They were now on the flank and attacked in both directions.

Union Retreat The Union Army of The Cumberland was in full retreat. It was about to be routed When George Henry Thomas made a stand allowing the army to escape. When reported in the newspapers that Thomas was standing “like a rock”, he got the nickname, “The Rock of Chickamauga”.

Grant Takes Command On October 16, Grant is put in charge of all western armies. He replaces Rosecrans with Thomas, and then maps out the strategy to drive Bragg from Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge.

Lookout Mountain Known as the “Battle Above the Clouds” because of the fog, Union troops commanded by Joseph Hooker drove the southerners from the Mountain top.

Missionary Ridge On November 26, Union forces advance on Confederate positions. They are stuck part way up the hill. Without orders they continue their attack. Grant is furious. But they succeed in capturing the hill.

Bragg Withdraws Driven out of Tennessee, Bragg took his army into the mountains of Northern Georgia to wait and see what would happen next.

Result By the end of 1863, the war in the west was a lop-sided Union affair. Vicksburg had been seized, the Confederacy had been cut in two. The Army of the Cumberland had driven Braxton Bragg from Tennessee. Chattanooga, a key transportation hub, was in Union hands. The Union Army was poised to invade Northern Georgia and the war industries around Atlanta.