Event of 1862: Battle of Chickamaw Bayou – Another victory for the Confederate Army, outnumbere
- When
- 1862
- Where
- Disembarkation area at Johnson's Plantation and vicinity on the Yazoo River, with a fourth division landing farther upstream; Chickasaw Bayou
- Episodes
- 2
The Battle of Chickasaw Bayou, fought December 26–29, 1862, was the opening engagement of the Vicksburg Campaign. Union forces under General Sherman, outnumbering Confederates two to one, faced formidable natural and man-made defenses. The battle resulted in a lopsided Confederate victory with significant Union casualties, particularly among the 4th Iowa and brigades of Blair and De Courcy.
Episodes
- Opening Engagement
Union forces under Sherman disembarked at Johnson's Plantation on the Yazoo River to approach Vicksburg defenses from the northeast.
- Confederate Victory
The battle resulted in a lopsided Confederate victory with significant Union casualties, despite Union numerical superiority.
Background and detail
Background. The battle occurred as part of the Vicksburg Campaign during the American Civil War. Union forces, totaling 30,720 men, faced a Confederate force of 13,792. Despite the numerical advantage, Union troops encountered a complex maze of natural and man-made defenses. Sherman's divisions disembarked at Johnson's Plantation on the Yazoo River to approach Vicksburg from the northeast, while Grant was to continue with the remaining forces down the railroad line to Oxford.
Engagement. Union forces launched several assaults against the Confederate defenses. The battle was characterized by a lopsided victory for the Confederates. Union casualties were significant, with 208 killed, 1,005 wounded, and 563 captured or missing. The majority of these losses occurred among the 4th Iowa and the brigades of Blair and De Courcy, highlighting the effectiveness of the defensive positions.
People involved
- William T. Sherman · Commander of three Union divisions disembarking at Johnson's Plantation
- Ulysses S. Grant · Union commander of remaining forces in the Vicksburg operations
- Confederate Army · Confederate defenders at Chickasaw Bayou
Sources
- Battle of Chickasaw Bayou Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-05
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.