Battle Of Shiloh Essay

The Battle of Shiloh was horrific for both sides of the civil war. The Union successfully managed to push the Confederacy back, however this would not be possible without the reinforcements of the Army of Ohio. The bloody battle began on April 6th in Pittsburgh Landing on the Tennessee river. Grant, commander of the Federal forces, awaited the Army of Ohio as his men were outnumbered. Aware that the Union had split men and reinforcements were on the way Johnston, the commander for the Confederate forces, set an early attack into play. He was planning to begin on the 4th however it did not work out due to natural causes. They met the Union men in Shiloh on the 6th and attacked. Not quite prepared, Grant supplied his men with an irrelevant amount

They were led by General Buell who marched with the men across the country then they took a ferry up the river to move even faster. It was rumored that many of the men went right to the front lines, brave as could be. The battle went on for two days with the Confederacy pushing back hard. Union forces strengthened up and pushed back and successfully won. They pushed the opposition back as far as Corinth. The Ohioans lost many men alongside the Union. A total of 20,000 casualties was the result of the

Buell was extremely prepared. Not only did the Army of Ohio manage to assist push back the Confederates but they also took the life of Johnston, the opposition's leader. Because of the change of power mid battle, the unorganized forces lost track of their initial battle plan. The Ohioans took advantage of this and pushed back from their previously extended lines. Johnston's successor, Beauregard, was very certain he had control of the situation. He was not aware that Buell's men had arrived. They wrapped around the Tennessee river and advanced slowly. The troops managed to split from there. They split into several divisions and took over the important area. They set up in the “Hornets' Nest” and continued the fight there, slightly away from the front lines. It was so fierce that the nickname was given because the passing bullets sounded like hornets. This fell through howevewr because Grant's men had left part of their cover exposed. Buell's men launched a separate attack from Grant's but kept organized to work together still. This was a strong enough counter attack to expose some of Sherman's camps behind enemy lines. The disarray and lack of cohesion on the confederate lines was also a contribution to their losses. Buell ordered the divisions at the front line to push even harder and the battle went on for a handful of hours. He was determined to keep a strong