Battle of Belmont (November 7, 1861) Part III: Grant on the Run

 

Grant had finally given his men a battle. They had for the most part acquitted themselves well, though discipline broke down once they reached Camp Johnston. They had tasted victory. Now they would taste defeat and its consequences.

 

Comic strip I found (https://emergingcivilwar.com/2021/08/05/the-battle-of-belmont-as-told-in-a-comic-strip/)

From Advance to Withdrawal

One consequence of the Federals’ premature celebration in Camp Johnston was that the Confederates, lying along the riverbank to the northeast, had time to collect and rally themselves.[1] Though he groused about it in his memoirs, Grant did not mention his force’s breakdown in discipline in report. He instead claimed that Belmont was on low ground and would be battered by enemy cannon fire. With no wagons to carry all the captured goods, he ordered the camp set on fire. The Federals carried with them captured horses and dragged off three artillery pieces. Just after the flame started the Confederates opened fire from across the river. They reasoned that since the camp was coming on fire there was no Confederates there. One shell from the Lady Polk, one of the larger pieces, struck the ground and caused Grant’s horse to whinny and rear up.[2]

When the Confederates later returned they found burned bodies of wounded men left behind in the tents. They believed the Federals had murdered them upon discovery and then left their corpses to burn alongside their dwellings. More likely the Federals failed to notice them or forgot them, so that they were burned alive. In addition to the rumors that they had bayoneted many of the wounded, this incensed and drove the Confederates. [3]

Battle of Belmont (November 7, 1861) Part II: Grant on the Attack

 

The Battle of Belmont can be divided into two phases: The Federals on the attack and the Federals on the retreat. This section covers the former. It was Grant’s first significant battle and the only one where he would be around the front line. Despite this, he is fairly absent from the drive on Belmont. Even in Nathaniel C. Hughes’ comprehensive study of the battle it is usually McClernand or Dougherty who make the wider decisions. Grant appears to have been content to devise the general battle plan and then let his subordinates take initiative. Most accounts place him staying in close proximity to Dougherty, and he did come under fire many times, with one horse shot out from under him. Likely he gave general directions to his brigade commanders and approved their choices, which were sound up to the taking of Camp Johnston.

Battle of Belmont (November 7, 1861) Part I: The Set-Up

In late 1861 Grant sported a longer beard. This photo also shows him well-dressed. This is a stark difference from the more humbly-dressed and shorter-bearded soldier that most are familiar with.

In most of the years between his departure from the Army and his return in the Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant had become a sad, obscure figure. His attempts to forge a career consistently came to naught, and in 1861 he was working as a clerk at his father’s store. Thanks to his West Point background and Mexican War experience, he suddenly became valued when war erupted. Even then it took special help from Illinois Congressman Elihu Washburne to get him a commission as colonel.

Grant quickly settled back into the role as an army officer. He performed creditably in Missouri, whipping his regiment into shape, fostering good relations with the civilians of a divided state, and looking for scattered pro-Confederate militia to defeat or drive off. Though he had fought no considerable battle, he got a promotion to brigadier-general and command over the District of Southeast Missouri. Soon one of America’s most famous generals would have his first battle as commander.

 

Where Three States Meet

Grant’s jurisdiction was not just southeast Missouri, but the southern tip of Illinois and possibly the Kentucky shore on the Mississippi River.  At first it seemed that his main opponent was General M. Jeff Thompson. Thompson commanded a division of the Confederate-aligned Missouri State Guard. Instead of uniting with Price’s main army of militia, Thompson waged guerilla-style warfare in his part of Missouri. As for Kentucky, both sides of the Civil War wooed it, but the border slave state remained inflexibly neutral. Union and Confederate forces struggled to restrain their desires to plant troops in the state. Whoever violated Kentucky’s neutrality first could send it into the arms of the opposition (see my post on Mill Springs for more background on this situation). Fortunately for the Union, the Confederate commanders in western Tennessee were not the Southern Cause’s best.          

                                Gideon Pillow                                                             Leonidas Polk

One of them was General Gideon Pillow. Pillow was the only general which Grant openly despised in his recollections of the war. Pillow was of aggressive temperament and yearned for glory. In the summer of 1861 he planned to fortify Columbus, Kentucky. With its high banks, Columbus provided an ideal place to control traffic along the northern Mississippi. It was also close to Cairo, Illinois, which stood at the junction of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. North and south of Columbus stood 150 foot high bluffs. To the south were the Chalk Bluffs. To the north were ones with strains of iron. These were called the Iron Banks, and stood between Columbus and any Union thrust from Cairo.

The Battle of Mill Springs Part III: General Thomas' First Victory

 

The Federal Counter-Attack

General George Thomas arrived to find Manson’s two regiments and Wolford’s Cavalry fighting an assault from a cornfield, their right about to be overlapped. Wolford rode up to him and shouted, “General, the men in your front are nearly out of ammunition!” Thomas responded, “Tell them to hold their line; that McCook is coming up on their right.” He furthermore made sure that the 9^th Ohio, his best trained regiment, would anchor the critical right flank. The 9^th Ohio consisted of German immigrants who had served in European armies. Colonel Robert McCook, their brigade commander, had in fact once personally created and led their regiment. He believed that a unit made up entirely of German military veterans would be among the best in the army. General George McClellan, who managed the Ohio and western Virginia theater at the start of the war, agreed and once stated that the 9^th Ohio was the best he had “seen in either Europe or America.” In addition to advancing the infantry, Thomas masterfully redeployed his artillery. The general hurried forward Captain Kenny’s battery and placed it on the left of the 4^th Kentucky. Kenny’s gunners “opened an efficient fire.” The bulk of the 10^th Indiana replenished its ammunition. Now Thomas sent them to the left of the 4^th Kentucky.[1]

The timing of Thomas’ arrival contributed to a controversy that arose after the battle. In his report Thomas said he arrived to find the 10^th Indiana standing close to their camp while the 4^th Kansas was fighting at the front. Colonel McCook negatively reported that the 2^nd Minnesota found its path obstructed by scattered Indianans, all in need of ammunition. By contrast Manson claimed that the 10^th Indiana held the enemy in check for an hour. He got this information from Kise, colonel of the 10^th Indiana. Because Kise’s report contradicted other regimental reports, he actually faced a court-martial for falsifying his report. Veterans of the 10^th Indiana, their own honor at stake, denied these accusations. Their regimental history of course made the boast that “for an hour and a quarter the regiment fought and no help from the rear.” Stuart W. Sanders, who wrote the sesquicentennial history of the battle, offered an explanation as to why the reports contradicted each other. He believes that other regiments tried to prop up their own roles in the fight while also evading criticism for not reinforcing Kise earlier. He points out that letters from soldiers right after the battle, as well as enemy reports, clearly established that the 10^th Indiana held Zollicoffer at bay for at least 45 minutes. My limited research for this post leads me to agree, as several Confederate reports clearly mentioned that their advances were checked by the 10^th Indiana. Also in the Hoosiers’ defense they were in desperate need of ammunition and in little condition to be holding the front at that point. They were close to camp because that was where more ammunition could be found.[2]

The Battle of Mill Springs Part II: Manson vs. Zollicoffer

 Order of Battle

Union

Brigadier-General George Thomas

            Second Brigade: Colonel Mahlon D. Manson

                        10^th Indiana: Lieutenant-Colonel William C. Kise

                        4^th Kentucky: Colonel Speed Smith Fry

                        Company C of the 14^th Ohio: Captain J.W. Brown

            Third Brigade: Colonel Robert L. McCook

                        2^nd Minnesota: Colonel Horatio Phillips Van Cleve

                        9^th Ohio: Major Gustave Kammerling

            Twelfth Brigade: Colonel Samuel P. Carter

                        12^th Kentucky: Colonel William A. Hoskins

                        1^st Tennessee: Colonel Robert K. Byrd

                        2^nd Tennessee: Colonel James P.T. Carter

                        1^st Kentucky Cavalry: Colonel Frank L. Wolford

            Battery B, 1^st Ohio Artillery: Captain William E. Standart

            Battery C, 1^st Ohio Artillery: Captain Dennis Kenny, Jr.

            9^th Ohio Battery: Captain Henry S. Wetmore

 

Confederate

Major-General George B. Crittenden

            First Brigade: Brigadier-General Felix K. Zollicoffer

                        15^th Mississippi Rifles: Colonel W.S. Statham

                        19^th Tennessee: Colonel David H. Cummings

                        20^th Tennessee: Colonel Joel A. Battle

                        25^th Tennessee: Colonel Sidney S. Stanton

                        Tennessee Cavalry Company: Captain William S. Bledsoe

                        Tennessee Cavalry Company: Captain Q.C. “Ned” Sanders

                        Kentucky Cavalry Company: Captain B.E. Roberts

                        Tennessee Battery: Captain Arthur M. Rutledge

            Second Brigade: Brigadier-General William H. Carroll

                        16^th Alabama: Colonel William B. Wood

                        17^th Tennessee: Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas C.H. Miller

                        28^th Tennessee: Colonel John P. Murray

                        29^th Tennessee Infantry: Colonel Samuel Powell

                        Caswell Artillery: Captain Hugh L.W. McClunk

                        4^th Tennessee Cavalry Battalion: Lieutenant-Colonel Benjamin M. Branner

                        5^th Tennessee Cavalry Battalion: Lieutenant-Colonel George R. McClellan[1]

 

Overall, the coming battle would see 4,400 men under General George H. Thomas take on 5,900 under General George B. Crittenden. Unlike many other major battles the Confederates held a considerable numerical advantage, and the Union forces were not fully consolidated yet. Thomas commanded a somewhat disparate force which had yet to really operate together on campaign. One note of interest is that this battle for Kentucky saw more of that state’s men on the Federal side. These would see themselves as fighting off an invasion and thus have strong motivations. The Confederate army was almost entirely Tennessean.

The Battle of Mill Springs Part I: The Contested Border

 

Early in the Civil War the Union and Confederate armies tried to win over the more indecisive border areas separating North and South. A key early victory could convince tens of thousands of fence-sitters to firmly pledge allegiance to one side. In Kentucky’s case, the battle that cemented Kentucky’s stay in the Union was a battle north of Mill Springs. The Battle of Mill Springs is the widely accepted name of the battle, used at both the battlefield site and its official website. However the battle sported a record number of names based on the various locations around the battlefield: The Battle of Beech Grove, the Battle of Cliff Creek, the Battle of the Cumberland, of Fishing Creek, Logan’s Crossroads, Logan’s Fields, Somerset, Webb’s Crossroads, and more. In fact, Mill Springs was south of the Cumberland River, while the fighting occurred on the north side.[1] This was also the first major battle for General George H. Thomas, one of the Union’s most revered generals.

 

Kentucky Shifts Union

It initially looked like Kentucky, birthplace of both the Union and Confederate presidents, would join the Confederate cause. John C. Breckinridge, former vice-president and failed pro-Southern Democrat presidential candidate, held considerable influence over the state and Governor Beriah Magoffin was sympathetic to secession. The Kentucky State Guard under General Simon B. Buckner was also mostly composed of secessionists while the Unionists had no comparable military force. However, enough Unionists existed in the state legislature to force a compromise stance of neutrality. Political observers pointed out that by taking a different course from the Northern states, Kentucky still affirmed the South’s goal of state sovereignty. President Lincoln agreed that the state held considerable Confederate sympathies, but pointed out that at least its residents were not actively fighting the Union. On the other hand Kentucky still traded horses, mules, salt and even ammunition to the Confederacy.