Sherman’s Campaign & March to the Sea

    The Atlanta Campaign was a period of time where battles were fought in Georgia in the spring of 1864. There were two reasons for the Atlanta Campaign- strategic and political. It was strategic because the capture of Atlanta (a MAJOR railroad center) would cause a horrible blow to the south. It was political because there was a chance that Abraham Lincoln would not win his second election. With a huge win under the Union’s belt, Lincoln was sure to become president for a second time!

    During this violent time in Georgia, William T. Sherman came down to the state. He was planning something that would cripple Georgia, and the south. Sherman was going to burn or destroy everything in his sight (except for churches and houses by the request of the governor). The goal was to make southerners so baffled and tired of war so that they would quit. Some names given to Sherman’s approach were; Hard War, Total War, and Scorched Earth. Going into the march, Sherman knew it would be risky. By burning almost everything, he would be cut off from the world- no communication, no food, and no supplies.

    During Sherman’s March to the Sea (what the march was called), Sherman would run into slaves quite often. He was always very nice to them, and sometimes the slaves would join the march. It was a little ironic that Sherman was so cordial, because he didn’t believe that blacks and whites were equal, however he still fought for their freedom.

    In the end, about 400 buildings were burned, and there were about 3,100 casualties (2,100 of that number were Union soldiers). This march was important for numerous reasons. For one, Atlanta was crucial to the confederacy. It was a sign of industry and progress. With it being captured, it demoralized the south. In addition, railroads were demolished. Cracks in southern military leadership were also created because General Robert E. Lee replaced General Joseph E. Johnston with  General John Bell Hood. On the bright side however, the capture of Atlanta reassured Lincoln’s election in 1864, and support for the Union increased in the North. 

*Destruction from the march*

Sources
*http://www.yale.edu/terc/democracy/may1text/may1text.html
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman’s_March_to_the_Sea
*http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2713

*http://americanhistory.about.com/od/civilwarbattles/p/cwbattle_sherm.htm