Vicksburg May 18- July 4, 1863 This overlaps Gettysburg (the bloodiest battle) It’s also a BURG

Background First Union attempt to capture Vicksburg happened in 1862 The Union kept failing and eventually moved on They returned in 1863 Largest amphibious operation ever conducted by Americans prior to WWII

Confederate strategy Protect river fortress at Vicksburg Use the geography to keep Vicksburg as a Confederate territory

Union strategy Surprise amphibious landing Push inland quickly Strategy was way ahead of its time and will be used in Normandy during WWII

Confederate general John C. Pemberton Born in Philadelphia in 1814 Was roommates at West Point with General Meade Married Martha Thompson, from Virginia Resigned from the Union army because of his wife Served in the Confederacy in South Carolina Was ordered to keep Vicksburg for the Confederacy After his loss, the Confederacy branded him a traitor Returned north after the war Died in Philadelphia in 1881

Union general Ulysses S. Grant Known as Sam by his friends Served with distinction before the Civil War When he wasn’t at war, he drank heavily Was quickly promoted during the war Earned the nickname “Unconditional Surrender” Grant Was Secretary of War and then President after the Civil War Died at 63 Buried in New York in the largest mausoleum in the country

battle Union victories at Champion Hill and Big Black Bridge weakened the Confederacy Grant sieged the city of Vicksburg Civilians and soldiers endured Union occupation for 47 days Pemberton surrendered on July 4, 1863

maps

Result Pemberton had no choice but to surrender Grant tried to force him to unconditionally surrender, but Pemberton would not agree The two men met and agreed to a cease fire That night, Grant offered parole to Pemberton and his army The Confederacy surrendered the next day UNION VICTORY

Battle facts Total Soldiers Engaged: 110,000 Total Casualties: 37,402 Union: 77,000 Confederate: 33,000 Total Casualties: 37,402 Union: 4,910 Killed: 806 Wounded: 3,904 Missing: 164 Confederate: 32,492 Killed: 805 Wounded: 1,938 Missing: 29,620

Fun facts Confederate guerilla soldiers hid in bushes and attacked a laundry boat, which led to the start of this campaign The capture of Vicksburg split the Confederacy in half Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis both saw Vicksburg as the key to the Confederacy Because the Confederacy surrendered on July 4, 1883, the town of Vicksburg did not celebrate Independence Day for 81 years http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/vicksburg/maps/vicksburg-animated- map.html