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Civil War Interactive Discussion Board > Civil War Talk > General Civil War Talk > Favorite strokes of brillance/sheer luck in the Civil War |
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Civil War Interactive Discussion Board > Civil War Talk > General Civil War Talk > Favorite strokes of brillance/sheer luck in the Civil War |
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| Favorite strokes of brillance/sheer luck in the Civil War | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Sun Sep 7th, 2008 01:30 pm |
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1st Post |
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pamc153PA Member
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Okay, not that I think we've totally finished off the missed opportunities/blunders (at least, I hope not, because I have a couple others to throw your way), but when I started that thread I intended it to be two-part. So let's give credit where it's due (or just acknowledge dumb luck): What are your favorite examples of brillance and/or sheer dumb luck in the Civil War? Have at it, folks--this has been way too much fun lately! Pam
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| Posted: Sun Sep 7th, 2008 02:06 pm |
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2nd Post |
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fedreb Member 
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As an example of brilliance how about Lt Col Joseph Bailey constructing the system of dams and chutes that allowed Admiral David Porter to get his ships to safety during the retreat down the Red River following Banks's ill fated Campaign in the Spring of '64
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| Posted: Sun Sep 7th, 2008 02:42 pm |
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3rd Post |
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Scout Member
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luck. Rosecrans pulls out Wood's division minutes before Longstreet's Wing concentrates its attack on that very spot at Chickamauga.
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| Posted: Sun Sep 7th, 2008 04:59 pm |
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4th Post |
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Johan Steele Life NRA,SUVCW # 48,Legion 352 
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I've got to agree about Bailey. Engineering saving a fleet. Not something that happens all that often.
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| Posted: Mon Sep 8th, 2008 12:07 am |
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5th Post |
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Crazy Delawares Member 
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I was always amazed at how they could manuever those HUGE 17,000 lb. Dictators from the train to the platform behind revetments(sp?).
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| Posted: Mon Sep 8th, 2008 01:24 pm |
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6th Post |
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ole Member 
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I'm rather fond of noting how Lee woke up one morning and found Hooker and the AotP on his side of the river. Unfortunately, that's as far as he got, but for one shining moment, he did steal 2nd base. ole
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| Posted: Mon Sep 8th, 2008 02:04 pm |
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7th Post |
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Scout Member
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-What Josiah Gorgas was able to accomplish and invent to help keep the South armed and primed was astonishing. -also, Patrick Cleburne's defense of Ringgold Gap. -also, Bedford Forrest's evacuation of Nashville. -also, Sherman's advance on Atlanta preceding Kennesaw.
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| Posted: Mon Sep 8th, 2008 08:14 pm |
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8th Post |
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susansweet Member 
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Farragut at Mobile Bay is a favorite of mine. Taking a chance and entering the Bay. Susan
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| Posted: Wed Sep 10th, 2008 01:52 am |
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9th Post |
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The Iron Duke Member 
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I believe Grant's Vicksburg campaign is the most brilliant campaign of the war. His highly mobile army drove a wedge between the two Confederate armies and beat them in detail. He traps one army in Vicksburg and then detaches a force under Sherman to watch out for the second army coming from the rear. It's a combination of Napoleon and Caesar at Alesia. There are so many instances that could be attributed to luck but one that sticks out in my mind is Meade's men at Fredericksburg somehow finding the one undefended part of Jackson's line. Last edited on Wed Sep 10th, 2008 01:53 am by The Iron Duke ____________________ "Cleburne is here!" meant that all was well. -Daniel Harvey Hill |
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| Posted: Thu Sep 11th, 2008 05:20 pm |
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10th Post |
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TimHoffman01 Member 
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Scout - Josiah Gorgas did do quite well in general, but, face it....he really BLEW it at the Battle of Hampton Roads. He neglected to give the Virginia any solid shot, guess he just wasn't figuring on meeting a ship wearing three inches of iron armor. Still goes under the Luck heading, in this case bad luck. Personally, I like Magruder's little fakeout during the Penninsula campaign. He made the Union intelligence gatherers, and thereby G.B.McClellan, think he had waaaay more troops than he did. Kept the AoP from running right over him anyway.
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| Posted: Thu Sep 11th, 2008 05:35 pm |
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11th Post |
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martymtg Member
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Wasn't luck, but you've got to be impressed with what Buford did the first day of Gettysburg. Spotting the Reb army, deciding quickly where to fight and dismounting his 2,500 cavalry and holding off the AoNV long enough for Reynolds to arrive. More obviously, Stonewall Jackson's maneuvers thru the mountain passes to strike much larger union forces then melt back into the hills like a ghost. When we drove along Skyline Drive and looked out into the Shenandoah in the distance, and saw the passes that he moved his 17,000 men in and around the mountains, we were struck by the brilliance and the magnitude of these feats. Just THINKING about walking thru one of those passes is enough to make you tired.
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| Posted: Sat Sep 27th, 2008 04:57 am |
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12th Post |
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shooter13 Member 
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Buford and Jackson--darned good picks. Luck--the Monitor showing up as the Virginia was just beginning operations. Think what could have occured if the Virginia continued unnopposed.
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| Posted: Sat Sep 27th, 2008 10:06 am |
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13th Post |
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gettysburgerrn Member 
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Luck - for the federal second corps at the Bloody Angle at Spottslvania - that the confederates had pulled some 22 artillery pieces from the area. Ultimately it turned what could have been a bloody repulse into a murderous infantry fight.. ken
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30th, 2008 02:34 am |
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14th Post |
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Mr Hess53 Member 
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The federal soldiers finding Lee's orders wrapped around cigars before Antietam
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30th, 2008 11:05 am |
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15th Post |
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gettysburgerrn Member
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Luck was also Early's arrival at precisely the right time in precisely the right place to drive back the federal 11th corps on day 1 at Gettysburg.\ken
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30th, 2008 06:57 pm |
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16th Post |
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Tom Wiehle Member
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How about the shell from the hundred pounder fired by the Alabama into the sternpost of the Kersarge. Had it exploded it would have been another victory for Semmes. I saw that shell and part of the sternpost that was cut out, it is in the museum at the Washington Navy Yard.
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| Posted: Tue Sep 30th, 2008 11:02 pm |
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17th Post |
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ole Member
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How about that there was a Grant when LIncoln needed one?
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| Posted: Wed Oct 1st, 2008 11:56 am |
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18th Post |
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barrydancer Member 
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TimHoffman: If I remember right, Virginia HAD solid shot at Hampton Roads, but she used most of it as heated shot, trying to cause fires aboard the wooden ships, leaving little for her fight with Monitor. Conversely, Monitor had plenty of solid shot, but was under orders not to fire her guns with a full charge of powder. Effectively, each ship was handicapped in a number of ways which kept one from defeating the other. At least that's part of what I took away from James Nelson's Reign of Iron. I should read that again.  Last edited on Wed Oct 1st, 2008 11:57 am by barrydancer |
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| Posted: Wed Oct 1st, 2008 07:32 pm |
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19th Post |
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Widow Member
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The second part of luck is making the right decision - knowing what to do. The soldiers who found Specil Order 191 did the right thing by reporting it. Eventually it got to McClellan's HQS, somebody recognized the signature and verified it was real, and Little Mac acted quickly. On the other hand, the Federals at Pittsburg Landing who reported hearing Confederates moving through the woods, well, Sherman ignored the reports. Chewed out the colonel. Wrong decision. Patty
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| Posted: Wed Oct 1st, 2008 07:45 pm |
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20th Post |
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Old Blu Member
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Widow wrote: The second part of luck is making the right decision - knowing what to do. The soldiers who found Specil Order 191 did the right thing by reporting it. Eventually it got to McClellan's HQS, somebody recognized the signature and verified it was real, and Little Mac acted quickly. Might as well used those lost orders for toilet paper no more good it did McClellan. Luck. McClellan didn't destroy the Army of The Confederacy!
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