The bombardment and capture of Fort Fisher, N.C. Jan. 15th 1865, courtesy Library of Congress
On January 15, 1865, in largest amphibious operation of the Civil War, Union forces capture Fort Fisher, Wilmington, N.C. This cut off the last major seaport of the Confederacy. The lack of a supply route for the Confederate Army wasn’t the only blow; the morale of the Confederate troops plummeted after the defeat. The political environment of the Confederacy changed indefinitely as well, critics blamed the poor leadership of President Jefferson Davis as the reason Fisher fell.
James Horne
Fort Fisher in 1856? Wow. The Civil War didn’t start for another 5 years. This must truely confirm that it was a war of Norther Agression!!!
A J Beveridge
1856? I’m only a Limey but I know my history. 1865!
Bev
Mark Curran
Davis had quite a time in the Civil War. Nothing was quite like his capture, however, as he ran in his wife’s dress, leaving his children in danger. Yes, he wore her dress, and it’s all pretty clear if you read her letter to Blairs.
But the big reason the South lost was desertions. BY 1864, September, 2/3 of rebel soldiers had deserted. This is as true of Lee’s Army, as of the other Confederate armies. Stunningly, Davis speech in Macon laid this out — he was trying to shame the women in the audience to send the deserters back. Really. He mentioned the ratio — 2/3. He said they had deserted “or gone away without leave”. If just half of them came back, he said, probably correctly, the South could not lose.
The desertions started about the time of Lee’s nearly criminally stupid attack at Gettysburg. After that battle, 15,000 rebel soldiers, out of about 20,000, did not return to their units. Whether they came back later, is not known.
Newspapers after the Civil War, notably the Richmond papers, predicted the history of the Civil War would be about the massive Southern desertions. Journals and diaries kept during the war spoke of the massive Southern desertions. Lee eventually said his army was “evaporating” He would give orders to phantom units, he had no idea if they existed in reality.
Beauregard and Johnson had to talk to Davis like a Dutch uncle, and shout in his face. Our soldiers are GONE. The ones who remain refuse to fight.
Nor was this a problem just the last few weeks, but had got pathetic to the point of absurdity. How this affect Fort Fisher, I do not know. But so many men had deserted, that it’s very hard to tell how many men were where.
This was common knowledge, though not spoken of much. In 1910 and 1920, as the last of the Confederate soldiers were dying off, and various Southern states started pensions for the old guys, they made the veteran state where he was on the last day of the war. And they had to prove it, somehow, by witnesses. Though they didn’t say it aloud, this was to prevent giving pensions to the many men who had deserted.
Desertions ended the Civil War. Not kinda, not sorta. The early volunteers were “true believers” but as time went on, more men hated the fact the rich were getting richer, slave owners did not have to be drafted, and it was the poor white trash being killed, while guys like Lee and Davis stayed safe.