1. Vicksburg
Joint Operations

2. Joint Operations
Operations carried on by two or more of the armed forces
At Vicksburg, this was the Army and the Navy

3. Joint Operations in the Civil War
Limited experience prior to 1861
Yorktown (1781)
Vera Cruz (1847)
Grant had experience at Forts Henry and Donelson in which Captain Andrew Foote’s gunboats bombed Fort Henry into submission and Grant occupied it

4. Forts Henry and Donelson
Showed that in the absence of unified command or meaningful joint doctrine, the conception and execution of joint operations totally depended on ad hoc actions by the responsible commanders, and therefore their personal chemistry and communications
Grant and Foote were totally different individuals but they worked well together

5. Forts Henry and Donelson
The command arrangements that did exist on the Army side hampered rather than encouraged successful joint operations
Foote’s instructions from the Navy Department were to cooperate, but he was not formally subordinated to the Army
Therefore Grant’s departmental commander, MG Henry Halleck, really only commanded half of the joint operation
Furthermore, Halleck’s style of command made matters worse
Halleck at first rejected Grant’s plan, but approved it after Foote lent his endorsement

6. Unity of Command vs. Unity of Effort
All forces operate under one responsible commander who possesses requisite authority to direct forces in pursuit of a common unified purpose
Unity of Effort
Coordination and cooperation among all forces, not necessarily part of the same command structure toward a commonly recognized objective

7. Vicksburg Would Require Unity of Effort
“Although unity of command was not formalized by regulation, Grant worked hard to ensure that good relations, constant communication, and division of labor fostered unity of effort.”
Joint Military Operations Historical Collection, Chapter1, “Vicksburg”

8. Grant Involves Porter in Early Planning
“I had had in contemplation the whole winter the movement by land to a point below Vicksburg from which to operate– my recollection was that Admiral Porter was the first one to whom I mentioned it. The cooperation of the Navy was absolutely essential to the success (even to the contemplation) of such an enterprise.”

9. Joint Operations in the Vicksburg Campaign
Running the Gauntlet
Grand Gulf
Bruinsburg
Siege
Logistics
“Running the Gauntlet At Vicksburg”
by Don Stivers. Admiral Porter's fleet steams past the Confederate batteries at Vicksburg.

10. Running the Gauntlet
Grant decided to shift Porter’s fleet to the south of Vicksburg
Once in place they could protect and transport any troops Grant moved there

11. Running the Gauntlet
To assist Porter with any damage his fleet suffered in running the gauntlet, Sherman positioned four small craft below Vicksburg and “manned them with soldiers, ready to pick up any of the disabled wrecks as they passed by”
As Porter’s Benton passed by, Sherman was able to briefly confer with Porter
One of Sherman’s yawls picked up the pilot of the Henry Clay floating on a plank after his vessel had been hit

12. Grand Gulf On 29 April, Grant attempted a crossing at Grand Gulf
The plan was for Porter to silence the Confederate batteries at Grand Gulf, followed by a rapid landing of McClernand’s Corps to seize the fortifications and secure a foothold for the rest of the Army

13. Bruinsburg
After a five and a half hour exchange of fire, the Confederates still held Grand Gulf
Grant stopped the operation and decided to try a different landing site
After consulting Porter, Grant decided to run the fleet past Grand Gulf while McClernand marched his force past along a concealed route
By dawn the Army and Navy were at Bruinsburg where Grant crossed unopposed
By May 6, more than 33,000 troops had made the crossing

14. Siege Operations
Porter fired 11,500 projectiles from his ironclads and mortarboats
He also landed 13 heavy cannon from his gunboats for the Army to use as siege artillery
These fired 4,500 rounds

15. Logistics
The Navy ensured supplies and reinforcements reached Grant’s Army without interference from the Confederates
As Grant's army neared Vicksburg, Porter established a logistic base just north of Vicksburg on the Yazoo River at Johnson’s Plantation
This initiative led to supplies being on the ground by May 18 when Grant’s army reached the outer works around the city.
At the same time, Porter’s gunboats reduced the Warrenton batteries just a few miles below the city and enabled Grant’s logisticians to move the lower supply base from Grand Gulf to Warrenton.
These two bases cut the overland wagon haul to a maximum of six miles for units manning the siege lines.

16. Next
Dec 1862-Apr 1863 Attempts
Cutting the Levees at Providence