Peter Cozzens, author of a recent book-length study of Iuka and Corinth, came to the opposite conclusion:

Rosecrans's performance immediately after the battle was lackluster. Grant had given him specific orders to pursue Van Dorn without delay, but he did not begin his march until the morning of October 5, explaining that his troops needed rest and the thicketed country made progress difficult by day and impossible by night. At 1 p.m. on October 4, when pursuit would have been most effective, Rosecrans rode along his line to deny in person a rumor that he had been slain. At Battery Robinett he dismounted, bared his head, and told his soldiers, "I stand in the presence of brave men, and I take my hat off to you."

Grant wrote disgustedly, "Two or three hours of pursuit on the day of the battle without anything except what the men carried on their persons, would have been worth more than any pursuit commenced the next day could have possibly been." Rosecrans returned to Corinth to find that he was a hero in the Northern press. He was soon ordered to Cincinnati, where he was given command of the Army of the Ohio (soon to be renamed the Army of the Cumberland), replacing Don Carlos Buell, who had similarly failed to pursue retreating Confederates from the Battle of Perryville.

Although his army had been badly mauled, Van Dorn escaped completely, evading Union troops sent by Grant later on October 5 at the Battle of Hatchie's Bridge, and marching to Holly Springs, Mississippi. He attributed his defeat to the failure of Hébert to open the second-day engagement on time, but nevertheless he was replaced by Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton immediately after the battle. There were widespread outcries of indignation throughout the South over the senseless casualties at Corinth. Van Dorn requested a court of inquiry to answer charges that he had been drunk on duty at Corinth and that he had neglected his wounded on the retreat. The court cleared him of all blame by unanimous decision.

Battlefield preservation

The American Battlefield Trust and its partners in battlefield land preservation have acquired and preserved more than of the Corinth battlefield.

See also

  • List of American Civil War battles
  • Troop engagements of the American Civil War, 1862
  • List of costliest American Civil War land battles

Notes

References

  • Foote, Shelby. The Civil War: A Narrative. Vol. 1, Fort Sumter to Perryville. New York: Random House, 1958. .
  • Nevins, Allan. The War for the Union. Vol. 2, War Becomes Revolution 1862 – 1863. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1960. .
  • Reid, Whitelaw. Ohio in the War: Her Statesmen, Her Generals, and Soldiers. Vol. 1, The History of the State during the War, and the Lives of Her Generals. Cincinnati, OH: Moore, Wilstach, and Baldwin, 1868.
  • The Union Army; A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States, 1861–65 — Records of the Regiments in the Union Army — Cyclopedia of Battles — Memoirs of Commanders and Soldiers. Vol. 6. Wilmington, NC: Broadfoot Publishing, 1997. First published 1908 by Federal Publishing Company.
  • National Park Service battle description

Further reading

  • Ballard, Michael B. Civil War Mississippi: A Guide. Oxford: University Press of Mississippi, 2000. .
  • Carter, Arthur B. The Tarnished Cavalier: Major General Earl Van Dorn, C.S.A. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1999. .
  • Dossman, Steven Nathaniel. Campaign for Corinth: Blood in Mississippi. Abilene, TX: McWhiney Foundation Press, 2006. .
  • Second Battle of Corinth : Maps, histories, photos, and preservation news (Civil War Trust)
  • National Park Service interpretive center for Corinth (part of the Shiloh National Military Park)
  • Corinth, Mississippi, website
  • The Siege and Battle of Corinth: A New Kind of War, a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan
  • Callaway Confederate Letter:Confederate soldier's letter detailing the battle