DECEMBER 15, 1864:
The Battle of Nashville (Day One):
In the
predawn hours, General George H. Thomas U.S.A. inside Nashville begins moving
troops against General John Bell Hood C.S.A. At the exact same time, Hood,
outside Nashville, has decided that conditions have improved enough to move his
troops against Thomas. The Battle of Nashville thus begins in a state of mutual
surprise.
Thomas,
with 60,000 troops, is marching out of one of the most heavily-defended State
capitals in the south, a critical rail hub and inland port, a city which has
been in Union hands since 1862.
The
number of Confederates who take part in the Battle of Nashville is hard to
estimate. The Army of Tennessee is in debilitated condition, having not won a
major engagement since Kennesaw Mountain on June 27th. Since
abandoning Atlanta on September 2, desertions have been steadily rising (though
they are not at the 66% that Jefferson Davis has claimed). Hood wasted his men
in the Battle of Franklin, and morale is low. Nathan Bedford Forrest’s cavalry
units (often counted as a separate force) are not at Nashville, having left the
lines after Franklin. After the battle,
Hood claims to have 19,000 men remaining in his army (not including Forrest);
in reality, 19,000 is the number of men that Hood had (with Forrest) before
Franklin. Estimates about Hood’s manpower after Franklin (without Forrest)
range in the 17,000 to 18,000 range. He hurls these 17,000 men headlong at the Union
forces that outnumber them at better than 3-to-1.
Without
Forrest, Hood has no reconnaissance force, and he blindly hits Thomas just in
those places where Thomas has reinforced in planning to hit him. Although the
Confederates fight bravely, the outcome is foreordained.
As
soon as Hood strikes the Union lines (as close as 250 feet from his own in
places) Federal soldiery pours out of their positions. The Confederate right
flank is pinned down and mauled for the entire day. A classic cavalry charge at
noontime on Montgomery’s Hill disrupts the Confederate left flank, resulting in
fierce close-quarters battle that lasts until the early winter dusk.
As
day darkens, Hood calls for his battered forces to fall back to a new defensive
position, where the men dig in for the night.
