Fort Henry and Fort Donelson

Today we add articles on the capture of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson. These two Confederate forts guarded the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers in northern Tennessee and were an important part of the Confederate defensive line in the west. Their capture by a force commanded by U. S. Grant punctured that line and secured most of northern Tennessee for the Union.

The battles of Sherman's March to Atlanta

The most dramatic Union successes of 1864 were won by General Sherman. He began the year with the march on Atlanta, fighting battles at Resaca (13-15 May), New Hope Church (25-27 May) and Keneshaw Mountain (27 June) on the way. At Atlanta he fought off Confederate attacks (Battles of Peachtree Creek, 20 July and Atlanta, 22 July). Once he was at Atlanta, Sherman made two attempts to cut off the city's last rail connections. His first attempt failed (Ezra Church, 28 July), but a second attack with almost his entire army brushed aside a Confederate army rushed south to stop him (Battle of Jonesborough, 31 August). Atlanta was evacuated, and on 2 September Union forces occupied the city. The news of the capture of Atlanta played an important role in ensuring the reelection of President Lincoln, and left the heart of the Confederacy exposed to Union invasion.

Braxton Bragg and the Confederate Invasion of Kentucky

Today we add a biography of General Braxton Bragg, one of the more argumentative Confederate generals of the civil war. We support that with an article on his most important campaign, the Confederate invasion of Kentucky in 1862, and with articles on the Battle of Richmond (30 August 1862), capture of Munfordville (13-17 September 1862) and the Battle of Perryville (8 October 1862), key moments during that campaign.

Iuka, Corinth and Hatchie Bridge

The least well known of the three Confederate offensives of 1862 was the attempted invasion of Western Tennessee and Kentucky. After avoiding a trap at the battle of Iuka (19 September 1862), being repulsed after two days of fighting at Corinth (3-4 October 1862) and narrowly avoiding being cut off at Hatchie Bridge (5 October), this attempted invasion ended without even leaving Mississippi.