Sherman's March

Sherman's March to Victory

The Savannah Campaign

The Savannah Campaign, also known as Sherman's March to Sea was a big reason the North won the Civil War. General William Sherman destroyed much of the South's physical and psychological capacity to wage war. Sherman believed in using the strategy of "total war" when fighting (Sherman's New Campaign). He said that the Northern military was "not only fighting hostile armies, but hostile people, and must make old and young, rich and poor, feel the hard hand of war" (America's Historical Newspapers). He did just that as he marched through Southern cities and destroyed everything in his path. Without Sherman and his army marching through the South and destroying their towns, crops, livestock, and necessary war items the North wouldn't have been able to win the Civil War.

When the war first started General Winfield Scott proposed a strategy for the war against the South (Elliott). His plan had two prominent features: first, all ports in the seceding states were to be blockaded; second, a strong column of around 80,000 men should use the Mississippi River as a highway to control the Confederacy (Elliott). His plan was dubbed the "Anaconda Plan" because he wanted to blockade the south and slowly wrap them up and trap them in their own territory so they'll eventually run out of supplies then they can capture them, just like an anaconda does (Elliott). He knew that if the Union had control of the Mississippi River then they could stop and control all the trade that went in and out of the South. Then at the end of the plan they would go for Richmond, Virginia which was the capital of the Confederacy.

Sherman's march was an essential part in helping to carry out this plan by destroying the south and all their supplies and keeping them from getting more supplies. This proved to be far more difficult than expected. After several years of bloody fighting people were about to give up hope. When the Union army sieged Vicksburg and it fell to General Grant, momentum was on their side again (Council). After that Grant decided to pursue the confederate General Lee (Council). Since Grant was busy with Lee, General Sherman had a big task on his hands and needed to get the job done.

"I intend to make Georgia howl." That quote from William Sherman explains exactly what he did. Sherman and his army captured the city of Atlanta on September 2, 1864 (Council). After that he spent several weeks making preparations on where to go next. The Union plan was to move through Alabama to Mobile but he rejected that, instead he decided to march toward Savannah or Charleston (Council). President Lincoln was hesitant but Ulysses S. Grant helped convince him that the campaign was possible during the winter