Chester G. Hearn Lincoln, The Cabinet

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.” McClellan broke no“i c a n ’ t spa r e t h i s m a n.”103records for speed.Five days later Bates wrote, “Poor McClellan! I think he has committed a blunder, fatal to his reputation, in attempting to conquer.Richmond through that narrow peninsula.”24With McClellan’s expedition under way and with Halleck’s operations moving smoothly in the West, a general feeling persisted among the public that the war may be short after all.In February, after capturing Fort Henry, General Grant said, “I shall take and destroy Fort Donelson on the th.”Although he was detained by floodwaters, Grant kept his word on the sixteenth.He captured fifteen thousand prisoners; collected a huge haul of weapons, horses, and supplies; and coined the phrase unconditional surrender.The press made a fanciful play on the general’s initials and dubbed him“Unconditional Surrender Grant.” Unconditional surrender was what the president wanted, not unauthorized political deals made by military commanders.Lincoln nominated Grant major general, the Senate confirmed the promotion, and the entire military establishment recognized the possibility of promotion by merit.25Differentiating Grant from McClellan’s generals, Lincoln said, “I cannot speak so confidently about the fighting qualities of the Eastern men.[but]if the Southerners think that man for man they are better than.Western men generally, they will discover themselves in a grievous mistake.” Former secretary of war John B.Floyd, who had served in the Buchanan administration, escaped from Donelson.Stanton knew Floyd personally and said, “I am sorry he got away.I want to catch and hang him.”26With Western armies collecting laurels, Halleck expected to be named supreme commander of the West, though he never strayed far from St.Louis.Because Grant had earned his promotion, he thought Buell and John Pope should be elevated.Having captured Bowling Green on February and Nashville two weeks later, Buell deserved consideration.Pope had opened the central Mississippi by capturing New Madrid and Island No..Brigadier General Samuel R.Curtis also belonged on the promotion list for winning battles at Pea Ridge and Elkhorn Tavern.So on March  Lincoln rewarded Halleck by putting him in charge of the Department of the Mississippi and ten days later elevated Buell, Pope, and Curtis to major general.Halleck then pointed to Memphis, his next target.27Fifty-nine-year-old General Albert Sidney Johnston ranked among the South’s best generals.Despite his highly regarded reputation, he abandoned Nashville when attacked by Buell and began transferring troops from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi to General Beauregard, who had beenl i n c o l n , t h e c a bi n e t, a n d t h e ge n e r a l s 104sent west to build a new army.Had Buell moved with alacrity after securing Nashville, he could have captured Memphis virtually unopposed.Instead, Halleck allowed Buell to remain idle and sent Grant up the Tennessee River to destroy Confederate communications.Halleck thought Grant had moved too slowly and put Major General Charles F.Smith in charge of the expedition.He recognized his mistake and on March  put Grant back in command.Halleck’s indecision caused ten days of unrecoverable delay.When Grant returned, he found both halves of the army nine miles apart on opposite sides of the flooded river and ordered them consolidated at Pittsburg Landing.28On March  Halleck urged Buell to move his idle force out of Nashville“as rapidly as possible” and join Grant at Savannah.Grant advised Buell the army was at Pittsburg Landing, not Savannah.For two weeks Buell remained confused by his orders.He decided to follow Halleck’s instructions, and on April  the first elements arrived at Savannah.Halleck seemed not to appreciate the danger of having half of the army on the west side of the river and half on the other side.Grant knew Confederate forces were strengthening at Corinth, so he went to Savannah and told Brigadier General William Nelson,“I will send boats for you [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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