American Civil War Fortifications (3)

Introduction

The Mississippi River played a decisive role in the American Civil War, and mastery of this major artery, and its tributaries, was recognized by both Union and Confederate authorities as the major factor in any strategy for winning the war in the West. Not only would control of this mighty river provide a means for the movement of troops and war materials, it also offered access to world markets for industrial and agricultural products for both the North or the South. The lower river valley was bounded for hundreds of miles on its east side from Kentucky through Tennessee and Mississippi by a line of high bluffs and ridges. As the river wound southward towards Louisiana through its lower basin, it occasionally looped against the base of this escarpment at places such as Columbus, the First and Second Chickasaw Bluffs, Memphis, Vicksburg, Grand Gulf, and Port Hudson. With only a small navy, the Confederacy had to rely on fortifications to maintain its hold on the Mississippi River.

Hence they concentrated their forces in earthworks on the numerous high bluffs overlooking the river. These were virtually unassailable to foot soldiers, while naval guns on river-borne warships could not elevate high enough to fire on them. Meanwhile, the defenders found it easier to rain down an effective fire from above.

The Confederate fortifications that controlled the lower Mississippi Valley were put to the test in the lengthy Federal campaign of 1862-63, which was based on the “Anaconda Plan” devised in 1861 by General-in-Chief Winfield Scott. Aimed at strangling the South into submission via a naval blockade at sea and the capture of the entire length of the Mississippi River using a fleet of gunboats supported by the army, this plan would also cut off the Confederate states of Arkansas, western Louisiana and Texas and block the vital trade route from Matamoras, Mexico, which crossed the Mississippi at Vicksburg, and ran via railroad to Richmond, Virginia.

Vicksburg became a fortress city. Known as the “Gibraltar of the Confederacy,” its capture was seen by President Abraham Lincoln as “the key” to Union victory in the war. Standing high above the east bank of the Mississippi about 300 miles from the river exit into the Gulf of Mexico, and surrounded by difficult terrain for any attacking force, it presented a formidable obstacle to the forces of General Ulysses S. Grant in 1863. Its defenses boasted a network of fortifications, including the Stockade Redan, the Great Redoubt, and the Second Texas Lunette. The initial Federal attacks on May 19 and 22, 1863 failed to breach these defenses and take the city, and a state of siege ensued which saw the creation of a complex system of trenches, tunnels, mines, and batteries to invest the place. As the siege wore on, the conditions for the defenders worsened and Confederate forces, amounting to approximately 29,500, finally surrendered on July 4, 1863. Nearly 3,500 were killed or wounded in both armies during the 47-day siege. Combined with Lee's failure to break through the Union lines on Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg the day before, the Federal capture of Vicksburg was seen as a defining moment that led to the ultimate triumph of the Union in 1865. With the fall of Port Hudson five days later, Federal forces were in control of the entire length of the Mississippi. The Anaconda Plan was on its way to realization and Lincoln wrote on August 26, 1863: “The Father of Waters again goes unvexed to the sea.”