Enlarge

Elevated View of Vicksburg, 1862 ca.

Elevated view of Vicksburg, Mississippi, with the Mississippi River in the background. View the original source document: WHI 75544

Enlarge

"McPherson's Corp in the Afternoon's Assault"

Vicksburg, Mississippi. "McPherson's Corp in the Afternoon's Assault" from the panoramic panoramic painting "Grant's Assault on Vicksburg...". View the original source document: WHI 70072

Date(s): May 19-22, 1863

Location: Vicksburg, Mississippi (Google Map)

Other name(s): none

Campaign: Grant's Operations Against Vicksburg (March-July 1863)

Outcome: Confederate victory

Summary

This failed attempt to conquer Vicksburg, Mississippi, by force convinced Union leaders to lay siege to the city.

For the first two years of the war, the Confederacy controlled Vicksburg, Mississippi. Cannons mounted in the fortified hilltop city could easily destroy ships below in the Mississippi River. This prevented the Union from moving troops and vital supplies any further south.

In preparation for the assault, Union troops gathered on the shore across from Vicksburg, then crossed into Confederate territory at Port Gibson, Mississippi. Finally, the troops circled around behind Vicksburg to attack it from the rear.

On May 19, 1863, Union troops began the assault. They climbed up steep ravines, crossed trenches, and attacked fortifications above them. In the end, they lost nearly 1,000 soldiers without achieving their goal. On May 22, Union forces tried again after bombarding Vicksburg with artillery for two nights. Although there were 45,000 Union troops in the field compared to only 22,000 Confederate troops, the Confederates continued to repulse repeated advances by Union forces.

Wisconsin's Role

Wisconsin's 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th, 18th, and 23rd infantry regiments and 1st Light Artillery battery took part in the assaults of May 19-22, 1863.

Links to Learn More

• Read a Summary of the Battle

  Pages 653-654 in William D. Love's "Wisconsin in the War of the Rebellion" (Chicago, 1866)

• Read About Each Unit's Experience

  In the regimental history chapters in E.B. Quiner's "Military History of Wisconsin" (Madison, 1866)

• View Related Images

• View Original Documents

[Source: Report on the Nation's Civil War Battlefields (Washington, 1993); Estabrook, C. Records and Sketches of Military Organizations (Madison, 1914); Love, W. Wisconsin in the War of the Rebellion (Madison, 1866).]