Union Wins!!
Union Wins!!
During the battle of Gettysburg, another harsh battle was taking place. The battle was between Pemberton and Grant. The two generals were going to be meeting in many battles throughout the Civil War. Most of the people in Vicksburg were for slavery during the Civil War. Many of them had plantations and the plantations wouldn't work without the slaves.
It was a man named John McClernard who suggested they create a siege around Vicksburge. John McClernard was a very powerfull policician. When he went to ask the president if he could make the attack, Abraham Lincoln didn't really want to let the troops go, but he didn't want to lose such a good politician, so he let the troops go.
While Robert E Lee started to march his troops to Vicksburg, Jefferson Davis ordered Briggs to destroy the Union supply post. Briggs's army destroyed many of the Union's supplies, and it cost the North lots of money to replace them.
Then Major General William T Sherman decided to start marching on towards Vicksburg. He left on December 20 and by December 26 he had reached the outside of Vicksburg. He launched the attack. The attack was a total waste. The Union lost 1,800 while the South only lost 187. Sherman was expecting help from Lee's troops and was ready to start another attack. But then he heard Lee's troops had to turn back so he headed back, too. By this time people were begging Grant to start the attack. Now Grant decided to take charge.
Grant believed the only way to attack the city was from the East. But due to Lee's and Sherman's mistakes he had to go from the West. He tried to find a place to attack, but he couldn't. Grant decided to use his original idea to attack the city from the East. His troops sneaked across the Mississippi River late on night. First there was a small delay at Port Gibson, but Grant's troops quickly defeated the small Southern army. At Grand Gulf they quickly gained control of the guns. Then in Vicksburg they had a slightly tough battle with Lee's 41,000 and Pemberton's 31,000, but making no mistakes, they continued on. Then the real siege began. It lasted 48 days. Stories say the people ate rat soup and boiled leather. Finally on July 3rd, the people in Vicksburg surrendered. Most of the men had been starving. But the battle was over.
On the same day when Grant marched back to Washington with a victory, Lee marched back defeated.