DK - The American Civil War

GRANT TAKES FORTS HENRY AND DONELSON

decide whether to attempt a defense of
Fort Donelson and with what strength.
When Fort Henry fell, he withdrew his
forces from Kentucky to Nashville, but
instead of concentrating all his troops
there, he sent 12,000 men to reinforce
Fort Donelson. Command of the fort
was placed in the hands of John Floyd,
a controversial secretary of war in the
Buchanan government before the war.

First attacks on Fort Donelson
General Halleck’s intention after the fall
of Fort Henry was to hold what had
been gained. Grant had finally arrived
at Fort Henry on February 14 after a

AFTER

The loss of Fort Donelson undermined

the Confederate strategic position in the

Western theater, leading to the loss of all

of Kentucky and most of Tennessee.

CONFEDERATE WITHDRAWALS

With Grant advancing down the Tennessee River

and under pressure from Buell’s Army of the

Ohio, Albert Johnston abandoned Nashville

on February 23, handing the Tennessee state

capital to the Union without a fight. The

Confederate stronghold at Columbus on the

Mississippi was abandoned shortly after. The

withdrawn Confederate forces concentrated at

Corinth, Mississippi. From there a counter-

offensive was mounted that led to the Battle

of Shiloh at Pittsburg Landing 106–107 ❯❯.

UNION VICTORY AT PEA RIDGE

Shortly after Fort Donelson, the Confederacy

suffered another defeat in the Western theater.

At the Battle of Pea Ridge, fought in northern

Arkansas on March 6–8, 1862, a Confederate

army under Major General Earl Van Dorn was

decisively defeated by a smaller Union force

commanded by Brigadier General Samuel Curtis.

difficult march, but set off for Fort

Donelson as soon as he could. There he

was reinforced by a further 10,000

troops sent by Halleck, giving him clear

numerical superiority over the fort’s

defenders—25,000 Union soldiers faced

16,000 Confederates. The Confederate

strongpoint was not a fort in the

conventional sense. It was a 15-acre

(6-hectare) encampment defended on

the river side by batteries of heavy

guns dug into the high cliffs

and on the landward side

by field fortifications that

exploited the rugged

terrain of wooded

slopes and ravines.

The first attempt

on the fort was made

by Foote’s flotilla, but

the accurate fire from

the high-placed shore

batteries, directed

downward to crash

through the ships’

decks, disabled the

Union vessels one by

one. There followed an

attack on the landward

side of the fort, led by

one of Grant’s divisional

commanders, John

McClernand, but this

was also repulsed. Grant faced the

uncomfortable prospect of a long siege

in harsh winter weather. His men

settled down opposite the Confederate

Grant looking over the battlefield
On horseback, Ulysses Grant surveys the scene
at snowy Fort Donelson on February 15, 1862.
Some 2,500 Union soldiers and around 1,500
Confederates were killed or wounded in the battle.

trenches in conditions of considerable

hardship, some without overcoats or

blankets, sleeping on the bare ground

in freezing rain and snow.

Attempted breakout

The Confederate commanders, however,

had already decided that their position

was hopeless. Floyd decided to attempt a

breakout that would enable his force to

rejoin General Albert S. Johnston at

Nashville. The bulk of the

defenders, under Brigadier

General Gideon Pillow,

were concentrated in

front of McClernand’s

division on the Union

right, and at dawn on

February 15 they

attacked with their

blood-chilling rebel

yell. By chance, Grant

had left to consult

with Foote some

way down river. With

no one to coordinate

a Union response,

McClernand’s troops

were driven back,

taking heavy

casualties. The

Confederate cavalry,

under Colonel Nathan

Bedford Forrest, distinguished itself in a

series of flanking attacks. For the Union

side, Brigadier General Lew Wallace

(future author of Ben Hur) reinforced

the flank and held a vital hill line.

The opportunity was there for

Pillow to complete the breakout,

but, shocked by the condition of

his troops, he withdrew back to

the trenches. When Grant arrived

at the battle, he pointed out to

his badly shaken officers that if

many of their own troops were

demoralized, the Confederates,

having fallen back, must be even

more so. Grant ordered an assault

on the center of the Confederate

line, which he reasoned must have

been weakened to provide troops

for the flank breakout. Colonel

James Tuttle’s 2nd Iowa Regiment

duly penetrated the Confederate

defenses, while, on the right,

Wallace regained all the ground lost

earlier in the day. That night, in a

rush to save their own troops, Floyd

and Pillow slipped away under cover

of darkness. Forrest escaped with

700 troopers by riding through the

Union lines. Command devolved to

Brigadier General Simon Bolivar

Buckner. The next morning, Buckner’s

request for terms was met by Grant’s

demand for “immediate surrender.”

Buckner had no choice but to

comply, passing into captivity

along with more than 12,000 other

Confederate soldiers.

General Buckner’s tunic

A few Confederate generals wore this style of pleated

tunic rather than the usual double-breasted frock coat.

The wealthy Buckner had been a friend of Grant’s before

the war and had helped him out of financial difficulties.

James Tuttle

Colonel James Tuttle led the 2nd Iowa

Regiment in the final assault on Fort

Donelson and planted the Union flag

inside the Confederate earthworks.