The Battle of Vicksburg

Podcast Transcript

The best-known battles of the American Civil War, such as Gettysburg, Antietam, Shiloh, and Bull Run, all occurred in the eastern theater.

However, one of the most important battles, from both a strategic and tactical standpoint, took place in the west.

It was one of the most brilliantly led battles of the entire conflict, and it vaulted into prominence a man who would go on to lead the Union to victory and ultimately the Presidency.

Learn more about the Battle of Vicksburg and how it changed the course of the Civil War on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.

As I mentioned in the introduction, most of the famous battles of the Civil War occurred in the East. This was where the largest armies were, as well as most of the population and the capital cities.

In terms of sheer numbers, battles like Gettysburg, Antietam, Shiloh, and Bull Run were some of the biggest battles of the conflict, and they deserve attention.

These battles were, in many respects, reminiscent of the large set-piece battles that Europe saw during the Napoleonic Wars decades earlier. That might be a bit of an oversimplification, but I think it’s largely true.

What happened in the Western Theater of the War is often overlooked, but it was just as important. The battles fought in the West tended to be different, given the different objectives the Union was pursuing, and this was especially true with the Battle of Vicksburg.

In a previous episode, I covered Operation Anaconda, which was the Union’s overarching strategy for the war. Conceived by General Winfield Scott, the plan was to surround and cut off the Confederacy from the rest of the world, and itself.

One major element of Operation Anaconda was the blockade of major ports in the South to prevent Confederate ships from trading with Europe.

The other major element of the plan was controlling the Mississippi River. By controlling the Mississippi, it took the largest inland waterway out of the rebels’ hands and also completely cut off Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana from the rest of the Confederacy.

The Union Campaign on the Mississippi had gone well. By early 1863, they had captured New Orleans and Memphis, making Vicksburg the last major Confederate stronghold on the river.

Vicksburg, Mississippi, is situated on high bluffs overlooking a sharp bend in the river. Its fortifications and strategic location made it nearly invulnerable to a direct river assault. Confederate President Jefferson Davis called it “the nail head that holds the South’s two halves together.”

For the Confederacy, losing Vicksburg would be catastrophic; for the Union, capturing it would be a game-changing victory.

The Union general in command of the Vicksburg operation was someone you are probably familiar with: Ulysses S Grant.

Grant had made several attempts to capture Vicksburg throughout late 1862 and early 1863, but initial efforts were stymied.

The Overland Campaign took place in November and December 1862. However, supply line issues and Confederate cavalry raids forced Grant to withdraw.

In the Bayou Expeditions from January to March 1863, Grant attempted various routes through the bayous and waterways around Vicksburg, all of which failed due to natural obstacles and Confederate resistance.

Grant also attempted to build a canal that would bypass Vicksburg entirely, but that effort was unsuccessful.

Grant finally realized that a direct assault was not feasible without isolating the city first.

In April 1863, Grant devised a risky but ingenious plan.

The first stage of the plan was to have Union Naval forces under Admiral David Porter run past the Vicksburg batteries at night to transport part of Grant’s army across the Mississippi to the south of the city.

Grant would march another part of the army down the western bank of the Mississippi and cross south of Vicksburg at Bruinsburg, where the Union controlled the river. Bruinsburg is about 25 miles south of Vicksburg.

Finally, once Grant crossed the river, he would work his way inland, living off the land, to cut off Vicksburg from the rest of Mississippi.

On April 30th, Grant and his forces crossed the river and proceeded to win a series of battles.

On May 1, the Union secured a beachhead at Port Gibson.

On May 12, Grant defeated a Confederate force at Raymond, Mississippi.

On the 14th, Grant captured Jackson, the Mississippi state capital, to prevent reinforcements from reaching Vicksburg.

On May 16, the largest and bloodiest battle of the campaign, at Champion Hill, resulted in a decisive Union victory.

Finally, on May 17, the Big Black River Bridge was taken in the final battle before Vicksburg, forcing Confederates back to their defensive lines.

On May 18th, with Vicksburg now surrounded, Confederate Lieutenant General John C. Pemberton retreated into the city’s defensive works.

The Union Army at this time numbered 35,000 men and would eventually be reinforced to over 70,000. Pemberton’s defenders numbered approximately 30,000 inside the city.

Grant attempted two major assaults on May 19 and 22, but both were repulsed with heavy Union casualties.

Realizing that continued frontal assaults would be too costly, Grant shifted to a classic siege operation. His forces built extensive trenches and fortifications around the city, steadily closing in and cutting off all supplies and reinforcements.

From the very beginning, Union artillery bombarded the city almost continuously, turning homes, businesses, churches, and public buildings into rubble.

The Confederate defensive works, the earthen forts and trenches radiating around Vicksburg’s perimeter, were relentlessly shelled, and sharpshooters made movement during the day dangerous for soldiers and civilians alike.

Food quickly became the greatest concern. Vicksburg had been partially stocked in preparation for a siege, but not nearly enough to withstand a prolonged encirclement by a vastly larger army.

The rations were initially supplemented by local sources — livestock, gardens, and remaining stores of food — but these were rapidly exhausted. Confederate soldiers were soon reduced to quarter rations, and civilians fared even worse.

Cornmeal became everyone’s staple diet, but as supplies dwindled further, the people of Vicksburg were forced to find substitutes: mules, horses, dogs, and even rats became part of their diet.

Multiple contemporary accounts describe families boiling shoe leather to make it edible. Flour was so scarce that it was replaced with ground corn husks or acorns. Coffee, a Southern favorite, disappeared entirely, replaced by bitter brews made from parched corn or chicory.

Disease spread rapidly under these conditions. The crowded city, combined with the scarcity of clean water and food, became a breeding ground for illnesses such as dysentery, typhoid fever, malaria, and scurvy.

The Confederate army was already weakened by malnutrition and poor sanitation, but the civilians, particularly children and the elderly, were even more vulnerable.

Medical supplies were practically nonexistent, and hospitals were overwhelmed, using torn cloth or even paper as bandages. The dead, both military and civilian, could not always be buried properly due to the constant shelling. Shallow graves or mass burials became common, with little ceremony.

In order to escape the incessant artillery fire from Grant’s forces, which rained shells into the heart of the city night and day, many civilians took to living underground. They dug caves into the bluffs and hills surrounding Vicksburg, creating entire networks of improvised underground dwellings.

These caves ranged from simple dugouts to complex burrows large enough to house multiple families. Although life in the caves was difficult and claustrophobic, they offered protection from the shelling. People referred to them grimly as “Prairie Dog Villages.”

Inside these caves, residents endured stifling heat, darkness, pests, and the constant fear that a direct hit could collapse their shelter. Despite these hazards, many families lived in these caves for weeks on end, emerging only under the cover of night to scavenge supplies or check on their homes.

The Confederate forces manning the defenses were stretched thin and increasingly demoralized. Pemberton tried to maintain morale and discipline, but desertions began to rise. Soldiers were exhausted, hungry, and sick, and they understood that no relief force was coming.

General Joseph E. Johnston, who commanded Confederate forces east of Vicksburg, was slow and cautious in mounting any attempt at relief, and by the time he made serious efforts, it was too late to save the city. Letters from soldiers and civilians captured a deepening sense of abandonment and hopelessness as the siege dragged on through June.

The fall of Vicksburg came not with a final Union assault but with Pemberton recognizing that continued resistance was futile. By July 1, his men were so weakened that they could no longer mount effective counterattacks, and there was almost no food left.

After discussions with his generals and with the city’s civilian leadership, who implored him to end the suffering, Pemberton sought negotiations.

On July 3, under a flag of truce, he met with Grant. Grant initially demanded unconditional surrender, but then agreed to parole the Confederate soldiers rather than imprison them.

The terms allowed the Confederates to be released on the condition that they would not take up arms again unless formally exchanged, though many would later rejoin the fight regardless.

When Vicksburg formally surrendered on July 4, 1863, the Union army took control of the devastated city. Paroled Confederate soldiers were marched out and sent home. Many were so malnourished and sick that they could barely walk.

The Union also captured 172 cannons.

Civilians emerged from their caves to find their city in ruins. Even after the siege ended, survival remained a grim challenge for them. Supplies were slow to arrive, and many families faced continued hunger and disease in the months that followed.

The ramifications of the Union taking Vicksburg were far-reaching.

With the taking of Vicksburg, Port Hudson, Louisiana, which was the only other Confederate-controlled city on the river, surrendered immediately. That gave the Union complete control of the Mississippi River from the headwaters to the sea.

Operation Anaconda’s goal, to completely surround the Confederacy, was, for all practical purposes, achieved.

The Confederacy was now fully divided into two. This division severely disrupted the flow of troops, food, cattle, and other critical supplies that had previously moved eastward to support Confederate armies.

Although some supplies still trickled across via tenuous routes, the separation made coordination extremely difficult and isolated large numbers of potential Confederate recruits. It weakened the Confederacy’s ability to sustain prolonged resistance.

The loss of Vicksburg also had a serious impact on the morale of both the North and the South.

What no one around Vicksburg knew at the time was that on July 3, the day before the surrender, the Union had won the Battle of Gettysburg.

Politically and psychologically, the loss of Vicksburg shattered Confederate morale, as it demonstrated that the Union strategy of dividing and conquering the South was succeeding. It also boosted Northern confidence, reinforcing belief in ultimate victory and strengthening support for President Lincoln’s leadership and war policies.

Gettysburg and Vicksburg were a one-two punch that the South would never recover from.

The victory at Vicksburg dramatically elevated General Ulysses S. Grant’s standing both within the Union Army and among political leaders in Washington. Prior to Vicksburg, Grant had already demonstrated his aggressive and relentless style of warfare in battles such as Fort Donelson and Shiloh.

However, the capture of Vicksburg proved his ability to conduct complex operations involving joint land and naval forces, strategic maneuvering, siege warfare, and managing large armies across difficult terrain. His success ended any lingering doubts about his competence, silenced many of his critics, and showcased his capacity for independent command over a major theater of operations.

As a result, Grant was promoted to major general in the regular army—the highest rank at the time—and was eventually appointed General-in-Chief of all Union armies in early 1864, a position from which he would orchestrate the final campaigns that led to the Confederacy’s surrender.

…and of course, eventually led him to win the presidency.

As for the City of Vicksburg, they didn’t forget what happened to them during the siege. For decades afterward, Vicksburg bore the memory of its suffering, and the city refused to celebrate Independence Day, the day the city was surrendered, for nearly 80 years.

The Battle of Vicksburg might not have been the greatest battle of the Civil War, but it was enormously important. It completed Operation Anaconda, it split the Confederacy in two, totally swung the momentum for both sides, and set Ulysses S Grant on a path that would eventually lead to the White House.