Siege of Savannah (1864)
| Siege of Savannah | |
|---|---|
| Part of the American Civil War | |
Map showing the investment and siege of Savannah, Georgia by General Sherman's army, December 1864 | |
| Operational scope | Strategic offensive |
| Location | 32°04′54.3″N 81°05′39.7″W / 32.081750°N 81.094361°W |
| Commanded by | Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman |
| Objective | Capture of Savannah |
| Date | December 9 – 21, 1864 (1 week and 5 days) |
| Executed by | Army of the Tennessee and Army of Georgia |
| Outcome | Union victory |
Savannah Location within Georgia | |
The siege of Savannah (December 9 – 21, 1864) occurred at the conclusion of the Savannah campaign, when Union armies under the command of Major-General William T. Sherman successfully besieged the Confederate city of Savannah during the American Civil War.
Prelude
Arriving in eastern Georgia, Major-General William T. Sherman discovered that Confederate Lieutenant-General William J. Hardee held fortified Savannah with 15,000 men.[1] A skillful Confederate defense at Honey Hill kept the railroad open to Charleston, South Carolina.[2]
The Siege
On December 13th, Major-General William T. Sherman stormed Fort McAllister at the mouth of the Ogeechee River, 15 miles from Savannah. On the 16th, the Confederate forces were strengthened by the arrival of Brigadier-General Ferguson's brigade of dismounted cavalry.[1] Then, establishing communications with the Union naval forces under the command of Rear-Admiral John A. Dahlgren, Sherman began an investment of the city. With his lines of communication about to be cut, Hardee evacuated Savannah on the night of the 20th of December,[1] and Sherman moved in on December 21st, presenting the city in a shipborne and telegraph message as a "Christmas gift" to United States President Abraham Lincoln.[3]
References
- ^ a b c Jones, Charles C. (1890). The Siege and Evacuation of Savannah, Georgia, in December 1864: an Address Delivered Before the Confederate Survivors' Association, in Augusta, Georgia, on the Occasion of its Twelfth Annual Reunion on Memorial Day, April 26th, 1890. Augusta, Ga.: Chronicle Publishing Company. pp. 25–26. OCLC 1045069475. OL 6954130M – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Concise Dictionary of American History. New York: Charles Schribner's Sons. 1983. p. 930. ISBN 0-684-17321-2. OL 3505553M.
- ^ Dupuy, R. Ernest; Dupuy, Trevor N. (1993). The Harper Encyclopedia of Military History: from 3500 B.C. to the Present (4th ed.). New York: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 0-06-270056-1. OL 1715499M.
Further reading
- Jones, Charles C. (1874). The Siege of Savannah in December, 1864, and the Confederate Operations in Georgia and the Third Military District of South Carolina During General Sherman's March from Atlanta to the Sea. Albany, N. Y.: Joel Munsell. OCLC 1084957628. OL 6915627M – via Internet Archive.
External links
- Media related to Siege of Savannah at Wikimedia Commons
- Battle of Savannah at EBSCO
- Evacuation of Savannah at the Historical Marker Database
- Fall of Savannah at C-SPAN
- NCWM Snapshot - "The Fight for and Surrender of Savannah" on YouTube