Summary Of William Tecumseh Sherman's March To The Sea War

The scarlet flames roar as they engulf the modest home, gnawing the wood with their crimson jaws until the feeble structure crumbles to ash. The cries of a woman fill the autumn air, begging for mercy as soldiers pillage her home. Out they come, one by one with her finest silverware and dresses. The ribbons and silk wave goodbye as the soldiers carry them along the march. A bearded face scrutinizes the city ablaze. William Tecumseh Sherman, with a cigar dangling from his mouth, eyes his soldiers at work. The man who claimed he would “make Georgia howl,” has just begun his notorious March to the Sea campaign, where from November 15 to December 21, 1864 he would journey from Atlanta to Savannah with plans of destroying Southern morale and crucial
In Special Field Orders No. 120, Sherman gave specific orders to his soldiers regarding the responsibilities and rights that they maintained along the march. Sherman tasked each brigade commander with organizing foraging parties, where members of the foraging party were permitted to gather food supplies from civilians without taking all of their food supplies or entering their homes. Army corps commanders were entrusted the power to destroy places of military value, but were not allowed to bring destruction “in districts and neighborhoods where the army is unmolested”. Yet, while soldiers were given specific orders that served as a means of protection for civilians, many soldiers completely ignored the orders. Sherman’s soldiers burned a number of civilian houses, entered the residences of noncombatants, stripped Southern citizens of personal property, and seized food resources from civilians in greater numbers than the troops actually needed. Southern residents such as Dolly Lunt Burge remarked how soldiers entered civilian houses “like famished wolves”, taking large quantities of food, goods, and livestock from civilians and leaving them “dinnerless and supperless”. Dolly also stated how soldiers damaged civilian houses by knocking down fences and setting them on fire, describing how “the
This is present within Sherman’s capture of Atlanta, where Northerners a gained newfound confidence in Union victory. This resulted in Lincoln winning the election of 1864, allowing the Union to continue fighting the war. While Sherman’s march granted the Union the ability to continue waging war, it also shattered the Confederate’s capacity to fight. Throughout Sherman’s march, the destruction of key railroad and supply networks along with storehouses, depot buildings, arsenals, machine shops, and factories crippled Confederate supply lines, resulting in the demolition of the Confederate’s ability to fight in the war. Sherman’s March to the Sea also broke the morale of the Southern civilian population, convincing them that it was hopeless to continue fighting for the Confederate cause. Sherman’s crusade from Atlanta to Savannah undoubtedly contributed to the Union’s victory in the Civil War, and also had an impact on relations between the North and South. Sherman’s use of total war devastated Northern relationships with the South, making reconciliation between both sides difficult in the Reconstruction Era. Many civilians believed that Northerners were barbarians and maintained an expansive detestation for Sherman that has been passed down from generations to generations.