MAY 10, 1862:
The Battle of Fort Pillow (The Battle
of Plum Point Bend, Tennessee): After the fall of Island No. 10 on April 7,
1862, Fort Pillow remained as the only river barrier to the Union capture of
Memphis. An ongoing bombardment of the fort had begun on April 14th. The Confederate defenders of the Mississippi
had constructed their own fleet of gunboats and rams. On this day the
Confederate river force launched a surprise attack on the Union gunboat fleet
which had been harrying Fort Pillow. The Union fleet suffered damage when two
of their ironclads were rammed, but heavy fire caused the Confederate fleet to
retreat into the shelter of Fort Pillow’s guns.
On this day as well, Norfolk, Virginia
surrendered to the Union without resistance and was placed under martial law.
The City Fathers decided to cede Norfolk in order to spare it the destruction
suffered by nearby Hampton, when the Union blasted the harborage into ruins in
the face of defiance. There was outrage throughout the South at this easy
capitulation, but faced with bombardment and siege and no prospect of
Confederate relief, surrender was the wisest and humane course. Before the city
struck its colors, however, the C.S. Navy decamped down the James River to
avoid being captured.
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