Sherman's March to Sea - how could Union live without supplies??

[hellheaven1987]

Just curious, how did Sherman live off land without supplies and reinforcement from Union territories during his March to Sea campaign?? I can see how he could use forage to gain most of supplies, but things like ammo, equipments and new reinforcement to replace the casualty was very difficult to get without proper base supplyline. So how Sherman solved this problem during his March to Sea campaign??

[Tiberius Tosi]

Just curious, how did Sherman live off land without supplies and reinforcement from Union territories during his March to Sea campaign?? I can see how he could use forage to gain most of supplies, but things like ammo, equipments and new reinforcement to replace the casualty was very difficult to get without proper base supplyline. So how Sherman solved this problem during his March to Sea campaign??

He only marched from Atlanta to Savannah for a little over a month, it was not a very long march. He also had an army of over 60,000 and the South could never muster a strength of over 13,000 or so. Ammo was more than likely plentiful after capturing Atlanta (which he was still in supply by then). The most opposition he came up against was in Savannah against 10,000 confederates, and after capturing the fort there within 15 minutes, the confederate forces withdrew and Sherman entered Savannah, which had plenty of ammunition and other supplies to keep his army in fighting shape.

[hellheaven1987]

He only marched from Atlanta to Savannah for a little over a month, it was not a very long march. He also had an army of over 60,000 and the South could never muster a strength of over 13,000 or so. Ammo was more than likely plentiful after capturing Atlanta (which he was still in supply by then). The most opposition he came up against was in Savannah against 10,000 confederates, and after capturing the fort there within 15 minutes, the confederate forces withdrew and Sherman entered Savannah, which had plenty of ammunition and other supplies to keep his army in fighting shape.

Didn't Union and Confederate use different calibre of ammo??

[Tiberius Tosi]

Didn't Union and Confederate use different calibre of ammo??

Probably (it wasn't uncommong to find many different calibres within the army as well, but it was certainly better than past wars had been in this matter), but it would have been gun powder that would have been most important after such a march. Sherman's army saw such little action that bullets mattered little (also the US Navy was right off the Savannah Harbor anyways, more than likely carrying supplies) and it would have been gunpowder, if anything, that would have gone bad in the rain while marching.

[hellheaven1987]

Probably (it wasn't uncommong to find many different calibres within the army as well, but it was certainly better than past wars had been in this matter), but it would have been gun powder that would have been most important after such a march. Sherman's army saw such little action that bullets mattered little (also the US Navy was right off the Savannah Harbor anyways, more than likely carrying supplies) and it would have been gunpowder, if anything, that would have gone bad in the rain while marching.

Perhaps, but that just brings out more questions:

1. How could Sherman have confidence that his campaign would not see much of fight?

2. How Sherman contacted US Navy when he was in enemy territory for one month?

[Xanthippus of Sparta]

Perhaps, but that just brings out more questions:

1. How could Sherman have confidence that his campaign would not see much of fight?

Sherman's army was marching through a region previously untouched by the war. Most of the Confederate army was in Virginia, or in Tennesse.

2. How Sherman contacted US Navy when he was in enemy territory for one month?

The Union had a naval blockade around southern ports since the beginning of the war. While no one in the North was quite certain where Sherman was at any point in time, word would probably get out quickly and I doubt that it would be very difficult to signal Union ships who had a least a general idea of where he was.

[MathiasOfAthens]

Perhaps, but that just brings out more questions:

1. How could Sherman have confidence that his campaign would not see much of fight?

He was prob thinking tactically on what such a loss could mean to the Confederates if he succeeded. Than he considered what the enemy would do. He most likely gathered intelligence on enemy fortifications, moral, supplies months prior to any action. Anything could have gone wrong but since he won than we celebrate him today.

2. How Sherman contacted US Navy when he was in enemy territory for one month?

As any other army would... they send out scouts and spies. Every army had them. As he moved eastward he wasnt exactly surrounded by enemy forces. There would be enemy cavalry trying to attack foragers but there was nothing major enough to completely surround or besieged Shermans forces.

[Tiberius Tosi]

Perhaps, but that just brings out more questions:

1. How could Sherman have confidence that his campaign would not see much of fight?

2. How Sherman contacted US Navy when he was in enemy territory for one month?

1. Sherman had with him around 60,000 men, plus men left to garrison Atlanta and still fight along the Mississippi to keep the Confederate states cut in half, and thus he knew that the confederates could not muster a concentrated force anywhere in the deep southern states to fight against him. He led several feints to trick the Confederates as to his destination, and for the most part that threw them off. The confederates had absolutely no idea as to his destination, so their forces pretty much remained spread out. Even had there been a sizable force, it is completely sensible to assume that Sherman would have just avoided a major action and manuevered around, as his army was moving exceptionally fast without a cumbersome supply train.

2. He didn't, when Sherman left Atlanta he was completely cut off from Washington or any other unit until he reached Savannah. Savannah was known to be his original destination, and with the naval blockade of the South still in full swing, it was quite easy to detach supply ships off of Savannah (which may have been there to begin with anyways) to link up with Sherman and then supply his push north through the Carolinas. The navy just kind of sat outside Savannah until he arrived, and even when he arrived he had to fight to actually link up with the navy (which then gave him the siege guns necessary to level Savannah, so it is safe to assume that the ships were sent there specifically for Sherman and for that purpose).

[Farnan]

Demoralize the enemy, weaken reinforcements by destroying track, and to improve Union morale. It is one of the most brilliant marches in US military history (and it was done by an Artillery Officer).

[hellheaven1987]

Demoralize the enemy, weaken reinforcements by destroying track, and to improve Union morale. It is one of the most brilliant marches in US military history (and it was done by an Artillery Officer).

You just want to go to artillery unit, don't you.

[Farnan]

You just want to go to artillery unit, don't you.

I am going to be an artillery officer.

Just so you know General Reynolds and Stone Wall Jackson were also artillery officers.

[Jom]

I am going to be an artillery officer.

Just so you know General Reynolds and Stone Wall Jackson were also artillery officers.

And Napoleon.

[hellheaven1987]

I am going to be an artillery officer.

Just so you know General Reynolds and Stone Wall Jackson were also artillery officers.

Ya, and Stonewall Jackson once commented his artillery combat experience in Mexico influenced him a lot.

[Tiberius Tosi]

Also to scare the hell out of the Confederacy. Even Sherman admitted only about 1/5 of the destruction was necessary and that the other 4/5 of destruction was just for the hell of it basically. Only that 1/5 actually hurt the Confederacy's ability to wage war, the rest was overkill but drove the point home that if CSA continued the war that similar destruction would be sure to come, and in that regard it worked in both ways, materially and psychologically.

FRO- Artillery officers tend to be very aggressive , I guess it's in your guys' blood to blow up whenever your given the chance.

[hellheaven1987]

Does that mean Sherman's campaign somehow turned into a terror operation?

[Tiberius Tosi]

Does that mean Sherman's campaign somehow turned into a terror operation?

Depends on your definition of terror, it may or may not. To me it was not, but to some it was. Rather or not it is is a matter of opinion really.