Everything about Battle Of New Madrid totally explained
The
Battle of Island Number Ten was a military engagement on the
Mississippi River during the
American Civil War.
Union land and naval forces besieged and captured the island in early 1862, further opening the river.
Preparation for battle
With the surrender of Forts
Henry and
Donelson,
Tennessee, and the evacuation of
Columbus, Kentucky, Gen.
P.G.T. Beauregard, commander of the Confederate
Army of the Mississippi, chose
Island Number Ten, at the
Kentucky Bend in the Mississippi River, about 60 river miles below Columbus, to be the strongpoint for defending the river. The Confederate fortifications consisted of land batteries on the island and a floating battery off the coast of the island. Nearby was
New Madrid, one of the weak points.
Brig. Gen. John Pope, commander of the Union
Army of the Mississippi, set out from
Commerce, Missouri, to attack New Madrid, on
February 28. The force marched overland through swamps, lugging supplies and artillery. It reached the New Madrid outskirts on
March 3, after a brief engagement with a small contingent of the
Missouri State Guard under Brig. Gen.
M. Jeff Thompson. Pope found the city well defended by heavy artillery and a small fleet of Confederate gunboats and laid it to siege. Brig. Gen.
John P. McCown, the garrison commander, defended both New Madrid and Island No. 10 from the fortifications. On
March 13 Pope brought up his siege guns and a day long artillery duel ensued. Since it didn't appear possible to defend New Madrid, the Confederate gunboats and troops evacuated to Island No. 10 and
Tiptonville.
The battle
March 14, Pope's army discovered that New Madrid was deserted and moved in to occupy it. A
U.S. Navy flotilla, under the command of
Flag Officer Andrew H. Foote, arrived
March 15 upstream from Island No. 10. On the night of
April 4 the
ironclad USS Carondelet passed the Island No. 10 batteries and anchored off New Madrid.
USS Pittsburg followed on the night of
April 6. The ironclads helped to overawe the Confederate batteries and guns at Watson's Point and below, enabling Pope's men to cross the river and block the Confederate escape route. Brig. Gen.
William W. Mackall, who replaced McCown, surrendered Island No. 10 and its garrison of 7,000 men on
April 8.
Aftermath
The Mississippi was now open down to
Fort Pillow, Tennessee, which led to the capture of
Memphis, Tennessee, two months later in the
Battle of Memphis.
Island Number Ten has since disappeared as a result of
erosion from the Mississippi River.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Battle Of New Madrid'.
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