Battle of Shiloh
Hardin County, Tennessee
What happened
Union Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Don Carlos Buell fought the Confederate army of General Albert Sidney Johnston, who was replaced during the battle by P.G.T. Beauregard. On April 6, 1862, the Confederates surprised Grant's camps near Shiloh Church and Pittsburg Landing and pushed the Union army back, but General Johnston fell in the fighting. Buell's Union troops arrived, and on the second day a Union counterattack won back the lost ground, and the Confederates withdrew.
Why it matters
Result: Union victory. Leaders: Ulysses S. Grant / Don Carlos Buell against Albert Sidney Johnston / P. G. T. Beauregard. Why it matters: It was the costliest battle of the war up to that time.
What came next
The Union went on toward the important railroad town of Corinth, Mississippi. Confederate President Jefferson Davis believed Johnston's death was a turning point for the South.
Did you know?
Shiloh Church was named after a Hebrew word meaning 'place of peace'.
Timeline
- April 6, 1862Confederates surprise Grant's army.
- April 7, 1862A Union counterattack forces the Confederates to withdraw.