Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) Nov. 16
ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, Nov. 16
1863: BATTLE OF CAMPBELL'S STATION, TN: (National Park Service)
- In early November 1863, Lt. Gen. James
Longstreet, with two divisions and about 5,000 cavalry, was detached
from the Confederate Army of Tennessee near Chattanooga to attack Maj.
Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside's Union Department of the Ohio troops at
Knoxville, Tennessee. Following parallel routes, Longstreet and Burnside
raced for Campbell's Station, a hamlet where the Concord Road, from the
south, intersected the Kingston Road to Knoxville. Burnside hoped to
reach the crossroads first and continue on to safety in Knoxville;
Longstreet planned to reach the crossroads and hold it, which would
prevent Burnside from gaining Knoxville and force him to fight outside
his earthworks. By forced marching, on a rainy November 16, Maj. Gen.
Ambrose E. Burnside's advance reached the vital intersection and
deployed first. The main column arrived at noon with the baggage train
just behind. Scarcely 15 minutes later, Longstreet's Confederates
approached. Longstreet attempted a double envelopment: attacks timed to
strike both Union flanks simultaneously. Maj. Gen. Lafayette McLaw's
Confederate division struck with such force that the Union right had to
redeploy, but held. Brig. Gen. Micah Jenkins's Confederate division
maneuvered ineffectively as it advanced and was unable to turn the Union
left. Burnside ordered his two divisions astride the Kingston Road to
withdraw three-quarters of a mile to a ridge in their rear. This was
accomplished without confusion. The Confederates suspended their attack
while Burnside continued his retrograde movement to Knoxville. Had
Longstreet reached Campbell's Station first, the Knoxville Campaign's
results might have been different.
Major General Lafayette McLaws
1864: Sherman's March to the Sea was in its second day with 60,000 troops fulfilling Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's pledge to "Make Georgia Howl." He was opposed by 8,000 Confederate cavalry under Major General Joseph "Fighting Joe" Wheeler and the Georgia State Militia under Gen. Gustavus W. Smith.
Sherman's March to the Sea (Battles and Leaders)
CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, Nov. 17
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