Battle of Iuka
Iuka, Mississippi, USA
What happened
A Union army under William S. Rosecrans, part of a plan directed by Ulysses S. Grant, fought Sterling Price's Confederate Army of the West. Price had taken a Union supply depot at Iuka. Grant planned to trap him between two columns, but only Rosecrans' column fought, after being struck late in the afternoon. During the night the Confederates slipped away by a road the Union had not blocked.
Why it matters
Price failed to join the Confederate army in Kentucky. But his army escaped and joined Earl Van Dorn's.
What came next
Price's and Van Dorn's combined army attacked Corinth, Mississippi, on 3–4 October 1862.
Did you know?
A north wind carried the sound of the battle away from Grant and his other column, so they did not know fighting was going on a few miles away until it was over.
Timeline
- 13 September 1862Price takes the supply depot at Iuka.
- 19 September 1862Battle of Iuka.
- Late September 1862Price's army meets Van Dorn's at Ripley.
- 3–4 October 1862Second Battle of Corinth.