Battles & Campaigns · 1864
Battle of Franklin
Franklin, Tennessee, USA
What happened
John Bell Hood's Confederate Army of Tennessee attacked Union forces under John Schofield. Hood ordered a head-on attack across about two miles of open ground in the late afternoon. Confederate troops briefly broke into the Union line near the Carter House before being driven back after hours of fighting. That night Schofield withdrew to Nashville.
Why it matters
The Confederate army lost so many officers that it never recovered. A historian wrote that it had 'shattered itself'.
What came next
Two weeks later the Union beat Hood's army at Nashville, and it never fought again as an effective force.
Did you know?
The Carter House, at the centre of the Union line, still stands and shows hundreds of bullet holes.
Timeline
- 29 Nov 1864Battle of Spring Hill.
- 30 Nov 1864Battle of Franklin.
- 15–16 Dec 1864Battle of Nashville.