Shiloh

Battle of Shiloh

April 6th - 7th 1862

The Battle of Shiloh was a monumental affair between two of the leading commanders of their time in the Civil War. For the Union there was the impenetrable General Grant, the man who would eventually lead the north to victory in the war. On the other side there was a relatively new leader in the Confederate ranks, General P.T.G. Beauregard. Both had their sights on bigger and better but this little hamlet in the hills of Tennessee would prove to be a pivotal breaking point for the war.

The Confederates started the battle by attacking the Union army at Pittsburgh Landing. The southerners were lead by General Johnston, who would lose his life later that day and be replaced by Beauregard. General Grant's Union boys dig in deep and fought well against the southern advancement.

The fighting was described as intense and very costly with the loss of life being in the thousands each hour. The amount of lead in the air that day was said to have "blocked out the sun" at times. The battle raged on with neither side gaining much in the terms of area obtained until the reinforcements from General Buell's army of the Union arrived. This tipped the scales of the battle and the Union was now in a position to launch a counter attack, and launch they did. Under the leadership of the talented military commander General Grant, the north pushed the south away from the landing and sealed the day for the victory.

General Johnston was lost to a stray Federal bullet during the first day of battle and was replaced by the capable services of General Beauregard. The counter attack sent the Confederates all the way to the neighboring town of Corinth to regroup and rethink their battle plans. By that time the battle was over.

The Union has survived but not before taking extremely heavy losses. The actual numbers of men lost have been reported as high as 13,000, which, at that time of the war, was unheard of. The high loss of life overshadowed the victory by the Union and sent the war into high gear. Before the battle of Shiloh, the Union had thought that they could easily end the war and limit the loss of life. This was unfortunately not going to be the case.

The Confederates had their share of life lost as well, their casualty number was high at 10,000, and this also sent the clearest of messages that the war would not be over anytime soon. The south had no false illusions of a quick and easy war. They knew all too well about the schematics of the Civil War.

The north had everything in its favor including manpower, industrial fortitude, geographical superiority and sea power. What the south possessed was man for man a better fighter, the best generals, and the assistance of foreign countries, if not in man power than in supplies and direction. The battle of Shiloh was the start of the bloodiest time in American history and would cost the country everything it loved.

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