Download Battle of Vicksburg 1863

Name
Date
Battle of Vicksburg 1863
By Mary L. Bushong
The city of Vicksburg in Mississippi was considered the hinge point
between the two halves of the Civil War: the east and the west. General
Ulysses S. Grant, of the Union army, was convinced that the key to
winning the war was the control of Vicksburg which sat right on the
banks of the Mississippi River. His first expeditions were failures, but
Grant didn't give up.
Finally, he devised a complicated plan. First, Grant marched his troops
some 25 miles south of Vicksburg. They crossed through swamps and
bayous [pronounced BY-yoos]. There, Union gunboats met them. They
had run past the gun batteries at Vicksburg on a moonless night to aid
the army. Their job was to ferry the entire Union force across the
Mississippi River.
After crossing, Grant realized that he had to control Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, before he could get to his
destination. It was an important railway center which could help move troops and supplies to Vicksburg. On May
14, 1863, he took the city. Before it was captured though, Confederate General Joe Johnston sent a message to
General Pemberton in Vicksburg. He wanted them to cede the city and retreat so the Confederate force there would
not be captured.
General Pemberton was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He agreed with Johnston's evaluation of the
situation, but he also had direct orders from President Davis to hold the city. He chose to obey his orders at first but
then decided it might be better to get out. He moved too late.
As Pemberton was marching south from Vicksburg, he met up with the Union army. They engaged forces, and the
Confederates were soon pushed back. They ended up retreating back to the city, behind the earthworks they had
constructed there. By May 22, the Union army made ready to siege the city and continued to assault the defenses.
Grant in turn now had 75,000 men in another 15 miles of trenches they had dug around the city. No help could
reach the city with food or aid while the Union army barraged it day and night with artillery. When June 1 came, it
was obvious that the city could not hold out much longer.
While they were assaulting Vicksburg, the Union soldiers were also building a sap. A sap is a tunnel or trench
used by soldiers to avoid enemy fire while they approach their target. In this case, it was a large, fortified mound
near the city. The Union soldiers dug their mine right up to it and then, on the afternoon of May 25, it was blown
up, leaving a crater where a fortification had been.
After securing the crater with great loss of life under fire, a new tunnel was started. This one would lead right up
to the side of the fort. It was exploded on July 1, leaving a large portion of the fort in disrepair. In the face of such a
breech, it was obvious that the Union had won. Pemberton asked for Grant's terms of surrender.
At first, Grant required an unconditional surrender, but when that was rejected, he was willing to talk. Finally it
was decided that most of the Confederate soldiers would be paroled after being disarmed. They would be free to go
home, but many broke parole to join up with forces to the south. On July 4, it was agreed, and almost 30,000
officers and soldiers surrendered. That left the city and civilians in the hands of the Union.
Less than a week later, Port Hudson to the south fell to Union forces, and the Union army had control of the
Mississippi River all the way to New Orleans. Grant had achieved his purpose in splitting the two halves of the
Confederacy completely apart.
Name
Date
Battle of Vicksburg 1863
Questions
1. Why was Vicksburg considered "the key" to winning the Civil War?
A. It had a strong position on the Mississippi River.
B. It was shaped like a key.
C. It was a major Confederate position.
D. The loop in the river there looked like a lock.
2. Union gunboats could go anywhere on the river.
A. False
B. True
3. Pemberton started to obey his orders to stay at the city and then changed his mind and tried to leave. What
effect, if any, did this have on the outcome of the battle?
4. What did it mean when Joe Johnston told Pemberton to "cede" the city?
A. Plant seeds
B. Defend
C. Booby-trap
D. Give up
5. What happened when Pemberton marched his men out of the city and southward?
6. What are sappers?
A. Those that drink tree sap.
B. Miners
C. Weaklings
D. Tree tappers
7. The city of Jackson, Mississippi was important because of the railway.
A. True
B. False
8. General Grant's goal in the Vicksburg campaign was to:
A. Split the Confederacy in half.
B. Control Vicksburg.
C. Control the Mississippi River.
D. Beat the Confederate troops there.
Name
Date
General Pemberton was faced with the decision of obeying an order to hold the city of Vicksburg or saving his
army to fight where he might be able to win. He chose to obey orders. How would you have handled the
situation?
General Grant was determined to get control of the whole Mississippi River. This would effectively split the
Confederacy into two pieces. How would that affect their ability to fight the war?