3579 - The Confederate Heartland Campaign of 1862 (Charlie Richards)
Course Description
Instructor: Charlie Richards
In late summer of 1862, the Confederacy went on the offensive in both the Eastern and Western Theaters. In the Western Theater, the Confederate Army of the Mississippi had been defeated at Shiloh and pushed back to Tupelo, Mississippi. Further east, the vital rail junction at Chattanooga was threatened by a slowly advancing Union army. Despite the discouraging circumstances, something had to be done to attempt to protect the Confederate Heartland. Braxton Bragg conceived of an audacious plan for an offensive through Tennessee and into Kentucky, a plan that offered potentially rich rewards, but that faced staggering logistical difficulties.
At first, Bragg’s invasion was remarkably successful. At Perryville, Kentucky, Bragg and his army fought one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War. Although Perryville was a tactical Confederate victory, logistical problems, combined with Bragg’s complicated personality, led to a decision to retreat from Kentucky. Despite this discouraging reverse, Bragg stayed on the offensive, resupplying and refitting his army in Tennessee, and eventually advancing back northward, reaching the town of Murfreesboro before being defeated in a decisive battle there.
This course will cover the entire campaign, from its brilliant beginning to the dispirited retreat of the defeated Confederate army after the Battle of Murfreesboro. We will discuss in detail the battles fought, the logistical difficulties both armies confronted, the personalities of the various commanders, and how those personalities shaped the campaign.
Bio: B.A. in English from Davidson College in 1970, J.D. from Emory Law School in 1975. Retired from the Georgia Attorney General’s Office in 2013 after 34 years of service in various capacities, first in civil litigation, and later as a prosecutor and Director of the Georgia Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Study of Civil War history has been a lifelong interest of mine. Born in Decatur, I have lived in Atlanta all my life. I have been married to the former Peg McGinty, also a native Atlantan, for 56 years. Two children, and nine grandchildren.