The Anaconda Plan

[Drex]

Yes, inquiring minds want to know.

[Erik Rutins]

I'd guess he's heading to New Orleans, the AI is a bit touchy about that city. [;)]

[Greyhunterlp]

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins

I'd guess he's heading to New Orleans, the AI is a bit touchy about that city. [;)]

not just the AI. I'm itching to send troops down that way.....

Great AAR - glad I'm not the only one writing one, and its always great to see other peoples playing styles. (mine tends to be a little erratic)

[d714]

APRIL 1862, Union VP -4, Conf VP +5

12,000 confederate troops are garrisoned in Memphis and the river fortress of Island #10. Grant has several options – to encircle and starve out the fortifications, to lay siege with his long range artillery (and, possibly, to bring in his newly constructed gun boats from up river), or to attack. With Jackson liable to relieve any siege very quickly, Grant feels he has no option but to attack while the numbers are in his favor. Not that it will be without risk, the rebels have had almost ten months to fortify their positions. He has no doubt he will take the fort with his overwhelming numbers, but he expects casualties to be heavy.

The order is given for direct assault, with the Army of the West moving in line to the first of three fortifications in the clear April morning. Before noon, cavalry screening the right flank suddenly see a brigade of confederates across a country road. Four more brigades appear. Grant can hardly believe his luck – possibly 75% of the confederate garrison in the entire area appear to be engaging in some sort of recon in force, marching north away from their works and deadly artillery.

[d714]

APRIL 1862 continued, Union VP -4, Conf VP +5

Grant quickly sets a trap. Three divisions move right to envelope the unlucky rebels. Sherman and half of his 19th division move south to cut-off the enemy from the safety of his forts or the cover of his guns directly to the south of the main battle. Some of Sherman’s brigades do receive fire from the forts, but the range is too far to be a decisive factor in this fight. Grant’s own artillery is set up to fire across the road and rake the pinned down rebels.. The battle is over after two hours of hard fighting. Confederates fight well at first, but then rout in confusion as Union troops fire into there flanks. 3 brigades surrender, and a few escape after taking horrendous casualties. Total confederate casualties are 6,500, the union has lost 1,500. Island #10 falls without one union troop having to storm its works.

[d714]

LATE APRIL 1862, Union VP 1, Conf VP 0

In contrast to the dark period earlier in the year when Grant’s army was plagued by disease and what seemed an enemy of unimaginable strength, Grant’s luck has turned to gold. Jackson has still not appeared, although sources indicate he may be to the south along the Mississippi. What has held him up – disease, weather, he does not know, but he intends to take all advantage of it. Several weeks after the fall of Island #10 he reaches the outskirts of Memphis. Grant again chooses a direct attack. This time the confederates do not leave their works, but there are just not enough of them to effectively man their guns against 85,000 union troops. Memphis falls easily after the loss of only 348 union troops. 2,200 confederates are killed or captured. The Mississippi River, down to the Tennesse/Missisippi border, is now in Union hands.

Washington is so elated at the news that other less positive news is overshadowed. Reynolds is bogged down in a slow siege in New Orleans, Lyon appears lost in Arkansas, and the Army of Ohio (really only a glorified division), threatened by Beauregard in Chattanooga, retreats from its camp outside Knoxville, back over the Cumberland Gap, to Kentucky.

[Drex]

excellent tactics and in choosing direct assualt. You're on a roll

[d714]

MAY 1862, Union VP 4, Conf VP 0

If Banks has a counterpart in the Confederacy, it is General Sterling Price. Former Congressman and Governor of Union held Missouri; he has both a personal score against the Union and a political agenda for the post-war Confederate government. His glory and vengeance will come in forcefully removing Banks’ Army of Kentucky from Tennessee.

Banks is taking casualties in his siege of Fort Donelson, but his reinforcements are easily replacing his losses. After Grant and Jackson, he has the largest corps in the Western theater at 40,000 strong. He is unprepared however when a division of gray backs commanded by Price moves in to lift the siege in early May. Facing a force of 26,000, Banks still has the numerical advantage. But this confederate force includes two brigades of cavalry, a battery of artillery, and, fighting within site of their homesteads, are highly motivated in their desire to drive the yankee invaders from the south..

Price, as eager as Banks to meet the enemy, probes with his cavalry until they run head-on into advancing Union troops. Here the union runs into some geographic challenges. Forced into somewhat of a narrow corridor by the borders of two rivers, Banks cannot exploit his advantage of arms to full advantage by extending his line. He orders his 13th division to cut south across the marshy river in an attempt to flank Price. The going is slow, but they use the township of Cassvile as cover to move around the enemy.

[d714]

MAY 1862 continued, Union VP 4, Conf VP 0


At first the Union advance smartly and in order, repelling the cavalry and finally moving far enough away from the river to allow then to extend there lines. Boys in blue from the 13th division, along with the Indiana Volunteers, move south in an attempt to envelope the rebels. Banks has a good position, but Price and his rebels are just to mean and stubborn to leave. The rebel forces open up with close range artillery fire on the Union right, and for the first time both armies learn what canister fire can accomplish within range. Blue coats under this deadly fire soon run to the rear, leaving there dead behind. As the day progresses one union brigade after another falls back, fought out, depleted, and discouraged. Finally Banks calls it a day, retreating back to Bowling Green, where most of his Army are on the run to anyways. Losses number 3,497 on the union side vs. 2,987 confederates.

[d714]

LATE MAY 1862, Union VP 1, Conf VP 3

Jackson finally appears. Reynolds, his siege force languishing in the humid swamps outside of New Orleans, awakens in mid May to find Jackson and 175,000 rebels in attack range. Reynolds has little choice - leave or be wiped out; he boards his offshore fleet with his remaining 15,000 and returns to Annapolis. After 3 months, he has accomplished very little damage to the confederate forts or forces, and leaves almost 3,000 New Englanders behind, buried in the shallow wet Louisiana soil.

Lincoln has not given up on him. He informs Reynolds that he will lead a new invasion fleet, this time in corps strength and with adequate siege equipment, back to New Orleans or to Charleston. His invasion was not in vain, as it allowed Grant to take Memphis.

Meanwhile, the Army of the Ohio is ordered to reinforce Banks’ Army of Kentucky in order to regain the recent Tennessee losses. Grant, hearing of the retreat in New Orleans, moves south to the Mississippi junction with the Arkansas river, hoping to in time link up with the Little Rock bound SE expedition. But expects Jackson to move back north.

Somewhat forgotten about with all the activity in the west. Doubleday appears as a new 4 star general. A personal friend of Lincoln, he has risen quickly through the ranks, being a captain during the fall of Fort Sumter over a year ago. Moving a well equipped army out of the Shenandoah (McDowell’s old command), he sets siege to Lynchburg.

[d714]

JUNE 1862, Union VP 1, Conf VP 3

The SW Expedition finally arrives outside of Little Rock and Lyon prepares his siege works. Grant sends Lyon his gunboats to shell the hapless city into submission.

Banks, recovering from his set back in the Cumberland, moves into the upper Tennessee River. Now, reinforced with the 18,000 strong Army of the Ohio, he intends to change strategies – move down the Tennessee River to the Cumberland, and finally, to Nashville. And after that, into the heart of the south. Always the optimist - he expects to be in Mobile on the Gulf Coast before Grant can even take Vicksburg.

After a year in planning and operations, Lincoln at least sees some of his “Anaconda Plan” fall into place. Grant is halfway down the Mississippi, and, with 5 fleets operating, all rebel ports facing the Atlantic are now blockaded.

[d714]

LATE JUNE 1862, Union VP 1, Conf VP 3

Vicksburg and the adjacent forts in that area is Grant's next objective. He has no notion that this siege will go as easy as Memphis. However, now his troops are better trained, better armed, battle tested, and reinforced to over 100,000 in number. He will not move yet, waiting for Lyon to occupy Little Rock and move up to support him.

Jackson’s forces are sighted north of the Red River in Louisiana. Grant can only speculate on the elusive Virginian’s strategy – moving around Grant to relieve Little Rock (moving without rail or river transportation channels, Grant cannot see how he will make it on time), or is he hedging his bets by staying within striking distance of both New Orleans and Vicksburg.

Reynolds, now commanding a much stronger corps of 40,000 preparing for another amphibious invasion, is impatiently waiting the foundries of the northeast to forge siege weapons. Lack of proper planning by Washington’s army procurement staff has not helped, the soonest these heavy artillery pieces can be ready is early September. Three more months! Reynolds has other ideas – train brigades of engineer sappers. He now only waits a fleet arrival and sealed orders from the president of the objective – Charleston or, again, New Orleans.

[d714]

JULY 1862, Union VP 1, Conf VP 3

Banks has underestimated the ferocious nature of Price and his confederate “Western Army” to the south, thinking that Price’s division would not dare move against a corps reinforced by a separate division. At least, on paper, they are a corps and a separate division. What Banks has are soldiers weary from a march across Tennessee and Kentucky; soldiers demoralized from retreats in from Tennessee; and soldiers living in mud trenches outside of Fort Henry. Disease and march attrition have both taken their tolls. Banks should have over 60,000 troops at full strength, what he does have is 43,000. The rest on sick roll, or back home, or dead. Some brigades are down to 900 strength.

Price does attack. And Banks again, along with the eager Ohioans, moves into line. This time, with flat open Kentucky valley ground in front of him, he has room to maneuver. It takes him most of the day to move into what he thinks is an advantageous position, not particularly concerned when the rebels move into his right flank. Let them try to cross the marshes to the north and get bogged down as he pivots to the right.
However, before the day ends, a collective moan is heard among the advancing Yankees on the left as they see two rebel artillery brigades moving into position, ready to fire over open treeless ground. Rosecrans sends his Ohio brigades in, only to fall by the hundreds per every battery volley as they march to within range. The day ends with Banks stalled on the left, and entrenching on the right. Both Rosecrans and Howard are insistent in arguments to Banks during their evening war council – they will not send there men against those guns in the morning.

[d714]

JULY 1862 (continued), Union VP 1, Conf VP 3

Banks agrees, they will fight behind the ridges and cover in their rear and force the rebels to come to them. But the order is not given to fall back until morning, and, even then, underestimating the range and skills of the rebel gunners, they fall under deadly fire. Some brigades move to the rear, in the intention of reforming, but instead their officers find them out of control, dropping weapons, and running from the field. A few brigades bravely hang on the right, in front of the marshes that have held the rebels from overrunning the right. But as the confederate heavy gun redirect fire to them, and with their fellow soldiers behind them leaving in droves, they collapse as well. The Union loss is complete – the union suffers 4,150 casualties to the confederates 1,982. General George Morgan, a brigadier serving under Banks, is severely wounded during withdrawal.

Banks withdraws to Louisville, seeing both his Army and his postwar political career crumble in 2 very bad months.

[Drex]

great storytelling. there was no way of getting to the arty without cavalry or having your own guns.

[d714]

ORIGINAL: Drex


great storytelling. there was no way of getting to the arty without cavalry or having your own guns.

Thanks, yeah they would have routed before they got within a hex of those guns. Wait until you see the rest of July, it's turning out to be a bloody month.

[d714]

LATE JULY 1862, Union VP -1, Conf VP 5

The Battle of Turkey Knob part 1

The Union setbacks in Kentucky are not particularly disturbing to Grant. He has adequately fortified his Mississippi route. What does concern him is the quick fall of Little Rock and securing that flank before he moves forward. If Jackson will only wait…

Jackson, always unpredictable, does not wait. His Army of 170,000 march into the Mississippi/Arkansas River junction. The Union is considerably outnumbered, at 98,668 strong. Leaving nothing to chance, Grant requests Lyon and his 15,000 strong SE expedition to reinforce him.

He could fall back to the forts of Memphis. But if he does that he leaves Lyon isolated. No, he must fight Jackson here, and if nothing else make him pay a dear price for the this field. Grant picks the best ground he can find – a V shaped outcropping known as Turkey Knob. He masses in depth on the heights, including his artillery – the “Rocket Battalion”, and orders his forces to take to the spade, digging in on both flanks shooting off from the Knob. He will have both the high ground and interior lines.

By early afternoon rebel forces are sighted in the union front, brigades forming in line on the left side of the “V”. It appears to Grant and his soldiers that the whole confederate army is present - visible are flags from “The Army of Norfolk”, “The Army of the Peninsula”, and “The Army of the Shenandoah”. The left, commanded by Hooker, is hit hard by rebel forces of the 2nd and Shenandoah, commanded by Jackson himself. Unfortunately, some of the union forces are still fatigued from the digging, and are sill armed with muskets. As protected in there trenches as they are, Confederate fire is outreaching their ability to fire back. Still, Yankee enfilade cannon and Springfield fire from atop the knob are effectively doing the devils work on the advancing rebels.

Jackson has by now committed his forces to the center as well, where he meets murderous fire from the well entrenched Union forces. Brave graybacks make a few futile charges directly into the strongest part of the “V”, and are repulsed with heavy losses. Yankees atop the knob, enthusiastically seeing one rebel brigade after another fall back under withering fire, yell “C’mon Johnny, C’mon”. And they do come on, Jackson has such men at his disposal that as soon as one falls back, another takes it’s place. The afternoon goes by in this fashion, a bloody slugging match in place. But Union forces all over the left side of the “V” are growing fatigued and, in spite of the supply wagons keeping busy, out of ammunition. Musket smoke fills the heights and plains.

Meanwhile, with lack of action on the right side of the union “V”, Grant gives order to his two divisions in that area to advance and wheel around. There are rebel forces to the right, believed to be A.P. Hill’s corps. But, for now, Jackson appears to be keeping them in reserve. Grant however is more concerned about his left. The rebels are hitting strongest there and, after 4 hours of continuing battle, Hooker is starting to stagger. The SW division by now how moved in from Little Rock, and Grant moves them into the left to form a secondary line of defense in case Hooker collapses.

[d714]

LATE JULY 1862 continued, Union VP -1, Conf VP 5

The Battle of Turkey Knob part 2

At 6:30 PM, with some 2 hours of daylight still remaining, Grant see’s a gap in the rebel line, possibly a route to Jackson’s rear and his supply trains. He moves to exploit it, and effectively flanks A.P. Hills corps to his right. However, at the same time, Hooker’s troops on the left, too fought out and depleted to continue, begin to fall back from their trenches. Remaining brigades are being surrounded and cut off, and Jackson begins to roll up his line. General Porter falls and is carried from the field with a serious wound. Grant orders Lyon and his SW expedition, already in position as the secondary defense, to prepare to engage. However, with the rebel yells and the sound of musket fire approaching, they run before firing a shot. At this point Grant can only hope for sunset.

As the sun finally sets Grant examines his options. His left has totally disappeared. He remains in command of the heights and can still hold an effective defense, but only for so long, and his retreat route in his left and rear is being cut off. No, he will leave the field while he can. During the evening, and during the foggy morning, he retreats in relatively good order. The confederates have indeed paid a heavy price for the ground – 31,118 dead and wounded rebels litter the ground in front of the knob, while Grant’s rosters the next afternoon note 21,801 casualties. In one day, both armies have suffered more casualties than in the entire preceding year of the war.

[d714]

LATE JULY 1862 continued, Union VP -1, Conf VP 5

The Battle in the Mud

While Jackson moved up to the Arkansas, Price and his twice victorious rebel force to the north, not content in forcing Union to withdraw up to the Ohio River, sees an opportunity in reclaiming Memphis. It is an ambitious plan, one that in retrospect Grant figures Jackson, Price, and Jefferson Davis's war staff had been planning for months - Jackson crushes Grant, Grant’s demoralized forces straggle in peaces to Memphis, and Price strikes at his rear and destroy the remnants, possible ending the war. However Grant, although surrendering the field after a long day’s battle, is not crushed. And Price soon learns that Grant is no Banks.

A week after the Battle of Turkey Knob, Grant, within days’ walk of Memphis and still at the head of a very intact army, meets up with Price’s “Army of the West” to the northeast of his position. Grant’s main concern is that, while engaged, Jackson’s force do not reinforce from the south. Speed is essential, and in spite of heavy rain and mud everywhere, he manages to quickly encircle Price with 80,000 troops eager to reclaim their honor after leaving the field in the last battle. The confederate general barely has enough time to unlimber his artillery. In a flurry of mud and blood, it ends quickly. 1,661 Union soldiers fall. But 6 confederate brigades surrender, including a battery of confederate artillery, 2 cavalry brigades, and General Price himself and General Van Dorn, who will become guests of the United States government for the remaining duration of the war. Almost 30% of the 21,000 rebels that traveled south with Price are dead, injured, or taken prisoner. The rest, having enough of war, apparently dropping arms and returning to their farms in the Tennessee countryside. Price and his rebel “Army of the West”, for all purposes, cease to exist.

[d714]

AUGUST 1862, Union VP 4, Conf VP 1

The first two weeks of August are, thankfully, a quite month, as both sides seem to be taken aback at the casualties of July. Strangely enough, Little Rock is in Union hands. Garrisoned by a gunboat and a small garrison of 750 Union soldiers who stayed behind to accept the Confederate surrender after the remainder of Lyons forces moved east to reinforce Grant.

Banks, encouraged at the destruction of Price and his army, moves once again into the Tennessee River and against the works of Fort Henry.

Lincoln and his war department see no sense for an amphibious invasion of New Orleans again, at least not with Jackson still in place. The target of Charleston is selected. Reynolds, still without siege weapons, but with a corps of 40,000, prepares to board for the South Carolina coast.

The Battle for Memphis

But the lull is brief. Jackson, not concerned at all with Little Rock, moves against Memphis, obviously intent on destroying Grant’s army. Although Grant is still outnumbered, the odds are closer. Including his garrison troops he has 107,000 troops in his command, Jackson’s troops, surprisingly well replaced from the last battle, number 168,000. While the odds are closer the risks are greater – Grant cannot surrender Memphis.

Grant finds Jackson concentrating on two small but critical supply junctions. It’s not the best ground – flat and forested, some farmland, with a lake separating his two lines, he at least has a road for a portion of his rear lines. He makes the best of it by digging in his long line in front of the two confederate objectives, leaving a gap for the lake, and anchoring his right on one of the Mississippi’s many tributary rivers. His left is somewhat open, but he just cannot extend it any further.

Again Jackson hits sooner than expected, union troops still with spade in hand, exhausted from digging into the hard Tennessee clay. Jackson hits both flanks hard, on Grant’s left confederate forces move up in column a bit to close to Union trenches, and pay in blood as the rebels reform into line under fire. On Grant’s right they also hit hard, a charge commanded by Jackson himself hitting one of Hooker’s 12th divisions hard. But Hooker is strong in this area, some of his forces hidden in the trees. The charge is repulsed and front line union troops see the command flags of Jackson fall. It is latter confirmed by wounded confederates left behind in this charge – the commanding general of the confederate army has been wounded.

On Grant’s right, at least, it seems to have had devastating effect on the confederates. They fall back and Grant orders his troops forward, seeing a chance to envelop the confederate left. Things are not as good on his other flank as confederates, having the manpower to extend their lines beyond Grant’s left flank, attempt to roll up his line. Grant plugs this side with what reserve brigades he has, and orders them to fold up in an inverted “U”.