Battlefield Biker

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Unconditional Surrender Grant Takes Fort Donelson 12-16 Feb 1862

8 February 2018 / / 1 Comment

On 13 February 1862, Union commanding General U.S. Grant’s positioning was complete and the time had come to attack Fort Donelson. The Union forces had spent the 12th of February closing in from Fort Henry and exchanging picket fire with the Confederates manning the earthen works of Fort Donelson. The gunboats had also spent the 12th testing the river batteries and found them tough, but assumed they could be taken as Fort Henry’s had been.

A False Start

On the morning of 13 February 1862, Grant meant to have a simultaneous push along the right and left, but General John A. McClernand had jumped the gun and got manhandled by the Confederates, led by General Gideon Pillow. A push on the other side by General C.F. Smith was more disciplined and originally successful, but met with the same fate at the hands of General Simon Bolivar Buckner’s troops. Overnight, a snow and ice storm befell the area and the lines woke on the 14th to a white landscape, ice laden trees and wounded who had died from exposure overnight.

Commodore Foote’s Gunboats

On 14 February 1862, Commodore Andrew Foote was to unleash his gunboats on the Fort Donelson river batteries just like he had at Fort Henry. However, Donelson was not Henry. Fort Donelson’s batteries were on tiered bluffs overlooking the Cumberland River

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, which gave them great range and an enviable angle of fire up close. This was to prove decisive. Foote was to preclude the ground assault with a show of force and hopefully take out the batteries. Foote came on and made considerable progress, until the flotilla got close enough for the Confederate gunners to zero in. When very close, the Donelson guns were firing right down on the Yankee ships, delivering devastating blows. Virtually the entire flotilla lost navigation capabilities due to direct hits and were floating helplessly down stream. Foote was seriously injured and many were dead. Donelson would not be another Henry. The overall Rebel commander, General John B. Floyd, was ecstatic, because his original mission was to slow down the Yankee advance long enough to let Rebel troops in Bowling Green, Kentucky retreat to Nashville unhindered and this he had accomplished. His follow-on mission would drive the course of the battle, though.

Fight in the Snow and Ice

Grant now had to face the very real possibility that his confidence in taking Donelson was misplaced. The next day would be critical, but not in the way Grant expected. On 15 December 1862, Grant had to go meet Foote as the Navy man was too injured to travel to Grant. As Grant left, he left explicit instructions not to engage with the Confederates in the belief that the Confederates would not dream of attacking. Grant met with Foote and asked for whatever force Foote could give the following day to keep the batteries busy, whilst he attacked on land. As Grant rode back on the icy roads, he got news that McClernand was under pressure on the right. The fight was on, but not at Grant’s bidding.

Bickering Confederates

The Confederate leadership of Floyd, Buckner and Pillow had querulously decided to attempt a breakout around Dover. Buckner was to provide a rear guard, Pillow, with the help of Nathan Bedford Forrest’s Cavalry, would push McClernand out of the way, then Floyd would lead the vanguard to Nashville. Pillow and Buckner would then retreat under fire and provide cover for Floyd.
Pillow’s and Forrest’s push on McClernand was what the reports Grant was receiving were all about. Grant made his way forward and heard that the Rebels were carrying 3 days of rations on them. This told him that they were trying to breakout. Grant immediately ordered re-enforcements to McClernand and also told Smith to attack Buckner’s rear guard with force. Smith put such pressure on Buckner that Pillow had to send some help to stave off a collapse of the rear. Pillow thought this was OK, because he and Forrest had opend the road near Dover for a retreat. However, as the Rebels settled back into their positions after opening the road, a stasis developed. As the intitative ebbed away, Floyd, Pillow and Buckner traded turns in being optimistic, pessimistic and openly hostile to each other.

Unconditional Surrender Grant Takes Fort Donelson

Floyd was a deer in the headlights now. Finally, Pillow wanted to hold the position and Buckner wanted to ram the forces through the hole created during the day. Floyd lost nerve and decided to hold the position. The day ended in much the same position as it had began with the notable exception of some of Smith’s unit occupying some of the ridge line near the fort, putting artillery in range of the main fort. It might have continued that way had Pillow and Floyd stuck around, but both were former Federal officials and feared being tried for treason if caught. So, under the cover of darkness, they caught the first thing steaming to Nashville. A small number of Confederate troops also got up river that night. Forrest, who was disgusted by the trio of Generals, stomped out and took his cavalry command across a swollen stream and into the Tennessee darkness. Buckner was left in charge and immediately drafted a request for terms to send to his old friend, Grant. Buckner was probably hoping for some leniency based on his previous relationship with Grant. The request reached Grant in the early morning and he responded with what was to make him famous, “No terms except an unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works.” Buckner called him “unchivalrous,” but accepted the terms anyway.

Grant Takes Fort Donelson Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

This is my home ride and I recommend it as one of the most beautiful rides anywhere. It splits the the Land Between the Lakes from North to South. Along the way, you will pass the Homeplace 1850s Working Farm and Living History Museum which gives you a good feel for how the people lived in that area in that era. Finish off the ride with a visit to Fort Campbell, KY, home of the 101st Airborne Division’s Don F. Pratt Museum and a little WWII to modern era military history.

Battle of Arkansas Post & Fort Hindman 11 Jan 1863 - Currier & Ives
Battle of Arkansas Post & Fort Hindman 11 Jan 1863 - Currier & Ives

The Battle of Arkansas Post / Fort Hindman 9-11 January 1863

8 February 2018 / / 1 Comment

One of the major problems that Union forces had with capturing Vicksburg and all of the lower Mississippi was that they faced almost continual harassment of supply lines, both on land and rivers. I’ve written a little about this when referring to BG Stand Watie and his Confederate American Indian cavalry harassing supply lines on the Mississippi River. In Fort Hindman

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, near Arkansas Post and overlooking the Arkansas River, the Confederates had a strong position to harry any Union boats trying to make their way up to Little Rock. Additionally, it was a safe haven and replenishing point for Confederate gunboats working the Mississippi River. Before the Union forces could secure the lower Mississippi river area, they needed to secure their supply lines throughout Missouri, Arkansas and along the Mississippi River and its tributaries.

The Battle of Arkansas Post

Hence, on 9 January, Union General John McClernand led a combined ground and naval force with Admiral David Porter to shut down Fort Hindman starting on 9 January 1863. Union troops, led by General William Sherman landed on the 9th and began assaulting the outlying trenches of the fort immediately, eventually over-running them and forcing the Confederates to retreat to the fort itself. On 10 January 1863, Porter laid into the fort with naval fire. By 11 January 1863, McClernand had tightened the noose with infantry preparing for a full attack on the fort and Porter’s guns both bombarding the fort and cutting off retreat lines. Eventually, Confederate commander General Thomas Churchill saw the futility of further resistance and surrendered the fort. One more secure post along the Mississippi was secured for future Union operations.

John A. McClernand and Lincoln’s famous quote on Grant’s whiskey

Check out this biography of John A. McClernand, who was a congressman before becoming a general. McClernand did well at first, but went head on with Grant, shortly after the Battle of Arkansas Post, and lost over the conduct of the Vicksburg campaign. McClernand was one of the main sources that reported back to Washington about Grant’s drinking. To which, Abraham Lincoln was to have said, “I wish some of you would tell me the brand of whiskey that Grant drinks. I would like to send a barrel of it to my other generals.”

Battle of Arkansas Post Motorcycle Ride

Try this circular route from Pine Bluff to Stuttgart to Gillett to Dumas and back to Pine Bluff which passes by Arkansas Post National Memorial. It also includes the long stretch of scenic highway US 65.

Image Credit:Currier and Ives [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Grant Takes Forts Heiman and Henry on Tennessee River 6 Feb 1862

8 February 2018 / / 1 Comment

On 6 February 1862, Union forces descended on the hapless Forts Heiman and Henry on the Tennessee River near the Kentucky / Tennessee border. If there was the one action that precipitated the fall of the Confederate west militarily, this was it. With control of the Tennessee River from Illinois through western Kentucky and western Tennessee all the way down to North Alabama

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, the Union changed the war with one stroke.

Forts Heiman and Henry

Fort Henry was under the Confederate command of General Lloyd Tilghman, but little could any General do about a poor position and a rising river. If Grant and Foote had not taken him, the river would have. Torrential rains had made the fort almost untenable for river guns. The heights across the river at Fort Heiman were to have been improved and might have made a difference, but the lack of men and equipment meant that the construction was not complete.

Confederate hopes flooded

A few days previous, Tilghman actually thought the Rebels might inflict a terrible loss on the Yankees, if reserves could be brought down from Columbus and over from Bowling Green. In the end, Tilghman saw he had a losing hand when no re-enforcements came to his call. Tilghman decided to save the infantry and personally join a small artillery detachment to hold off the Yankees long enough to let the infantry escape to Fort Donelson. He succeeded and surrendered to Foote on a gunboat at the entrance to the fort. Grant’s infantry divisions were bogged down in mud on either side of the river after alighting from Foote’s troop transports, so they didn’t even get in place before the surrender.

Commodore Foote’s ironclads had taken a significant beating in the battle with the Confederate river guns, but Foote had a few fast timberclads continue up the Tennessee River to Muscle Shoals, Alabama to wreak havoc with Confederate shipping and railway river bridges.

Whiskey and Combined Operations

An excellent anecdote from Shelby Foote’s The Civil War: Fort Sumter to Perryville pages, 184-185;
“At fifty-six he [Foote] had spent forty years as a career officer fighting two things he hated most, slavery and whiskey. It was perhaps a quirk of fate to have placed him thus alongside Grant, who could scarcely be said to have shown an aversion for either.” But both men got along, because they both believed in combined operations fervently. Foote was quoted as saying the Army and Navy “were like blades of shears–united, invincible; separated, almost useless.”

Forts Heiman and Henry Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

If you’re in Memphis, try this ride through beautiful far west Tennessee going through the Reelfoot Lake State Park area and on to the Fort Henry area in Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area.

Battle of Kasserine Pass
Map courtesy of USMA History Department

Battle of Kasserine Pass, Tunisia, 14 – 22 February 1943

7 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

A bloody introduction to modern armored warfare

The US Army got its first taste of the German Army in the Atlas Mountains of Tunisia in mid February 1943. It was not a glorious time for the untried American II Corps. Poor leadership by II Corps commander Floyd Fredendall led the Americans to a humiliating defeat in a series of defensives positions and ill-conceived counter-attacks. Almost 6,000 were killed or wounded and hundreds more were captured in the battles around Sidi Bou Zid (14th/15th), Sbeitla(16th) and the Kasserine Pass(19th). The whole action is often referred to in the aggregate as the Battle of Kasserine Pass.

In early February 1943, General Erwin Rommel and his German Africa Corps were in danger of being cut off from its provisions in Tunisia. The American Army’s II Corps had taken up positions in the passes of the Grand Dorsal section of the Aurès Mountains at the eastern end of the Atlas Mountain chain which were blocking Rommel’s way to his northern Tunisian supply ports. Rommel sent two Panzer Divisions to take the passes. They surprised The American 1st Armored Division, led by General Orlando Ward, on the morning of 14 February 1943 with a well choreographed air and land maneuver. The disarrayed Americans were ordered by Fredendall to regroup, with minimal re-enforcements, and counter-attack. Ward thought this was ill-advised, but did not object vigorously. Rommel was prepared and unleashed hell on the unsuspecting Americans with a classic ambush near Sidi Bou Zid. The 1st Armoured was mauled again.

The Battle of Kasserine Pass

Finally, the Americans were allowed to fall back and re-group. The next point of defense would be the Kasserine pass, which was an opening in the range where a road, a river and a railroad track went through…an obvious point to hold. Rommel knew this as well. After probing the line sufficiently, Rommel launched. Already learning the very hard lessons that Rommel was teaching them, the Americans held at first and Rommel had to try again. The Desert Fox’s second attempt was to prove successful and the way was open for his panzers to rush through the gap.

Rommel was in open conflict with the Italians and many of his German colleagues and superiors, so he did not hold the area for long. However, in conducting the actions around the Kasserine Pass, he had taught the Americans a great lesson and it was taken to heart fully.

The Battle of Kasserine Pass Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

I have not ridden this, but would love to some day. II Corps landed around Oran

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, Algeria in early November 1942 as part of Operation Torch. They traversed northern Algeria to enter Tunisia in late 1942 through early 1943. The ride I describe follows the Tell Atlas range running parallel to the Mediterranean coast. It is mostly on the new A1 highway from Oran to the Battle of Kasserine Pass battlefields in northern Tunisia.

Battle of Kettle Creek Map

The Battle of Kettle Creek , Georgia 14 February 1779

6 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

Map Credit: By Otis Ashmore and Charles Olmstead [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Loyalists

An enduring idea the British had about the American colonists during the Revolutionary War was that many of them were actually loyal to the Crown. The British had spent considerable effort trying to round up these Loyalists and get them in the fight. After several years of being disappointed by the lack of Loyalist fervor in the North, the British became sure that there were more Loyalists to be found in the backwoods of North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. In early 1779, a Loyalist named James Boyd was dispatched by the British with a open Colonel commission from Savannah to recruit more Loyalists in the Georgia interior. He had done this and even fought a few skirmishes with Patriots when he arrived at the Battle of Kettle Creek, in Wilkes County, Georgia on 14 February 1779. His 600 men set up camp on the creek and many of them set off to forage for food.

Colonel Andrew Pickens was a patriot commander in the area and he had heard of Boyd’s expedition. Pickens decided to tail Boyd and put a Georgia whupping on him for stirring up the area. Pickens had with him Colonel John Dooly, Lieutenant Colonel Elijah Clarke and 340 Patriots.

The Battle of Kettle Creek

Pickens caught up with Boyd at Kettle Creek and planned to surprise the camp. Pickens took a little over half the force and went straight at the camp. Dooly and Clarke each took half of the rest and went around the swampy ground on either side of the camp. Pickens’s men

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, however, were spotted by Boyd’s pickets. Boyd was able to get his men behind rocks and trees and fend off Pickens for several hours. Things were looking pretty grim for Pickens, because Dooly and Clarke were delayed in the swamps. Boyd must have been feeling confident that he could see off this group of traitors. He was confident right up to the point that a musket ball got him. Seeing their leader fall put the panic in the Loyalists and they all ran for their camp. About this time, Dooly and Clarke emerged from the swamps and converged on the camp from opposite sides. The rout was now on and the battle swung wildly in favor of the Patriots.

Although a small battle of volunteers in the backwoods of Georgia, the battle of Kettle Creek was important. It disabused the British of the notion that the backwoods of Georgia could be held for the Crown. It effectively ended the Loyalist cause in Georgia.

Battle of Kettle Creek Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

Try this ride through some of East Georgia’s best country and end up at the Kettle Creek Battleground Memorial.

Omaha Beach 2007 © TJ Linzy 2007
"Omaha Beach - As They Would Have Hoped" © TJ Linzy 2007

1LT Jimmie Monteith Omaha Beach 6 June 1944

5 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

I’ve spent a lot of time around Omaha Beach in Normandy. It is a very special place for me as it is for many others. Every time I walk up the cliffs, I see the area where the 1st Infantry fought their way up. The 16th Infantry Regiment sector saw especially intense fighting under the gaze of the “wiederstandneste.” These were heavily fortified, concrete strong points that were connected by trenches and had interlocking fields of fire. They brought death and destruction to any unit who could not take them out. The planning for D-Day was meticulous and required, but the only thing that took that day for the Allies was determined junior leaders who took the mission as their personal mission to deliver that day. There were many valiant men that day, but none more so than 1LT Jimmie Monteith. Below is his Medal of Honor citation.

Jimmie Monteith Omaha Beach

Jimmie Monteith at Omaha Beach Cemetery

Jimmie W. Monteith Jr’s cross at Omaha Beach Cemetery

Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, 16th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division.

Place and date: Near Colleville-sur-Mer, France, 6 June 1944.

Entered service at: Richmond, Va.

Born: 1 July 1917, Low Moor, Va.

G.O. No.: 20, 29 March 1945.

Citation:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on 6 June 1944, near Colleville-sur-Mer, France. 1st Lt. Monteith landed with the initial assault waves on the coast of France under heavy enemy fire. Without regard to his own personal safety he continually moved up and down the beach reorganizing men for further assault. He then led the assault over a narrow protective ledge and across the flat, exposed terrain to the comparative safety of a cliff. Retracing his steps across the field to the beach, he moved over to where 2 tanks were buttoned up and blind under violent enemy artillery and machinegun fire. Completely exposed to the intense fire, 1st Lt. Monteith led the tanks on foot through a minefield and into firing positions. Under his direction several enemy positions were destroyed. He then rejoined his company and under his leadership his men captured an advantageous position on the hill. Supervising the defense of his newly won position against repeated vicious counterattacks

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, he continued to ignore his own personal safety, repeatedly crossing the 200 or 300 yards of open terrain under heavy fire to strengthen links in his defensive chain. When the enemy succeeded in completely surrounding 1st Lt. Monteith and his unit and while leading the fight out of the situation, 1st Lt. Monteith was killed by enemy fire. The courage, gallantry, and intrepid leadership displayed by 1st Lt. Monteith is worthy of emulation.

Jimmie Monteith Omaha Beach Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

Take the ferry from Portsmouth, England to Ouistreham, France then follow the following beach route to the US Cemetery at Omaha Beach.

Dahlgren Ambuscade and Death
"Dahlgren Ambuscade and Death" - Harper's Weekly, March 26, 1864

The Kilpatrick Dahlgren Raid 28 February to 1 March 1864

4 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

By early 1864, Lincoln was despairing that he could find no General to prosecute the Union’s war against the South in the eastern theatre. All of his leaders around the Potomac seemed to be frozen with indecision and a fear of failure. Much to his delight, a plan from a junior Cavalry General, H. Judson Kilpatrick, came into his view through Secretary of War Stanton. Kilpatrick knew that his immediate superiors would either poo-poo the idea or steal it as their own, so he approached Lincoln’s administration directly through back channels. Such was the state of the Union military leadership in the east. Kilpatrick was proposing a daring raid into the mouth of the lion to snatch Federal prisoners held in deplorable conditions in Confederate held Richmond. Kilpatrick’s plan suggested more as well. Stanton and Lincoln were attracted by the idea that a raid into Richmond, apart from freeing prisoners, would also serve as a huge propaganda victory. Kilpatrick was summoned to Washington for a private meeting with Stanton and given the go ahead. Kilpatrick’s superior’s were not amused, although they had no choice but to support him as he had the direct support of Lincoln.

Kilpatrick, like many Cavalry officers from the North and South, had dreams of great daring-do, but was known to some peers and subordinates as “KillCavalry” for his reckless behavior. However, many, including Lincoln, believed that more of this type of risk taking was necessary to dislodge a stubborn foe in Virginia. Kilpatrick had no problem attracting another officer of similar ideals, named Colonel Ulric Dahlgren. Dahlgren, the son of a Union Admiral, had made his name in previous engagements, including chasing Lee’s forces out of Maryland after Gettysburg, and lost a leg for his work. Having recovered and sporting a prosthetic leg, Dahlgren was ready for more grandiose riding.

The Kilpatrick Dahlgren Raid

The operation started just before midnight on the night of the 28th of February 1864. They were aided by a diversionary attack further west by General Sedgewick and a Cavalry Brigade commander who probably would have longed to have been involved in the raid. His name was George Armstrong Custer. The diversion drew the Rebels west and cleared a path for Kilpatrick and Dahlgren. Custer was especially effective in drawing the Confederates on a wild goose chase as far away as Charlottesville. Leaving Elys Ford at the Rapidan River, north of Chancellorsville, the The Kilpatrick Dahlgren raid set out at a good cavalry pace and reached Spotsylvania courthouse by leap day, 1864. Here, they split forces with Kilpatrick heading straight into Richmond from the north with 7/8ths of the force. Dahlgren took a wide

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, westerly path to enter Richmond from the southwest with a force of approximately 500. The idea was to give the impression that the city was being attacked from multiple sides and cause panic long enough to get the prisoners out. If they could destroy a few things in Richmond, all the better.

Kilpatrick continued well through appalling weather of sleet and high winds. Dahlgren met a slave boy to guide him over a ford-able point on the James River and was on time, so was feeling pretty high at this point. Kilpatrick fired flares to see if Dahlgen would respond, but the weather was so bad that the flares could only be seen locally. Both drove on, but Dahlgren soon came to grief as the guide led him to a point at the rain swollen James that they could not ford. Dahlgren was thrown off track and was furious. The boy probably just did not know that the river was that high, but this did not appease Dahlgren. In a fit of rage, Dahlgren hung the boy for treachery. Unable to find a fording point, Dahlgren was stuck and could not complete his mission. Kilpatrick had entered north Richmond by now and encountered a force of old men and clerks, but misread the situation as regular troops. In an uncharacteristic delay, Kilpatrick hesitated whilst he waited for the signal from Dahlgren that the southwest attack was on. The “Dad’s Army” force held on well and long enough for re-enforcements to arrive and drive Kilpatrick off. Kilpatrick now decided to avoid the fate of the prisoners he had come to save, but left Dahlgren in a bind by pulling back. Kilpatrick was harried all the way back to Union lines, but Dahlgren and many of his 500 were to die trying to elude the Confederates.

The The Kilpatrick Dahlgren raid was a failure on the tactical as well as strategic front, but it was to get worse. The Rebels searched Dahlgren’s body and allegedly found orders to destroy Richmond and kill Jefferson Davis and his cabinet. The Union denied the existence of such orders, but the outrage in the South had the opposite effect of the propaganda coup Lincoln had hoped for.

Kilpatrick Dahlgren Raid Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

I call this ride the “Rapidan Return.” It covers the path Kilpatrick took to Richmond and then passes over the James River near Goochland where Dalgren had hoped to cross. It continues on the beautiful VA state routes 6 and 20 to Charlottesville where Custer worked the area. the ride finishes near the battlefield parks of Wilderness, Chancellorsville and Spotsylvania.

Map of the battles of Laon and Craonne

Blucher Defeats Napoleon at Battle of Laon 9-10 March 1814

3 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

Map Credit:By Gregory Fremont-Barnes (main editor) [Attribution], via Wikimedia Commons

Napoleon on the run

After defeat in Russia in 1812, Napoleon was being chased by the European Allies across central Europe and into France by early 1814. The Prussian and Russian forces were led by the Prussian Marshal Blucher and were threatening Paris by early 1814. Napoleon was fighting for his very survival.

After several battles on the trot, some won, some lost, Blucher occupied the town of Laon. Laon was strategically important because it was a major communications crossroads near Paris. Holding Laon would give Blucher the logistical base to attack into Paris. Napoleon obviously felt it could not remain held by the enemy. Laon was also a tactical stronghold due to its placement on a plateau with steep slopes for defense.

The Battle of Laon

On the first day of the battle (9th), both sides fought skirmishes for the small towns around Laon. Both sides missed opportunities for exploitation, but the sun set on the Allies holding the town. On the second day (10th), Napoleon decided to try the ploy that had worked at Craonne a few days earlier. Napoleon sent Marshal Auguste Marmont to deliver the flank attack. Blucher saw what was happening and threw a decisive counter-attack at Marmont and nearly annihilated his forces were it not for an exceptional defense by a small number of the Old Guard. The battle continued, but Napoleon could not dislodge Blucher from Laon and decided to retire.

The loss at the Battle of Laon was not the end of Napoleon in France, but Blucher and the Allies were tightening the ring around Paris and the Battle of Laon would provide an important link.

Battle of Laon Motorcycle Ride Recommendation

Check out the wooded circular route on the “D” roads south of Laon. If you are looking for more rides in the area, try the Battle of Neuve Chapelle ride to the north of the Battle of Laon.

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Battle of Normandy Collage

My Favorite Battle of Normandy Book – Overlord Max Hastings

2 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

My Favorite Battle of Normandy Book

I was talking with a friend a while back and he had asked me what was my favorite Battle of Normandy / D-Day book. I told him it was Overlord by Max Hastings, because it was the most even handed on the strengths and weaknesses of all of the armies and commanders in Normandy in the Summer of 1944. He is harsh on some, but is very meticulous in making his arguments. An example is that Hastings makes it very clear that Montgomery was not weak in not taking Caen due to the circumstances, but he heaps scorn on Montgomery’s attempts to retro-justify his actions. He also gives the realistic situation on the Germans as well. Hastings also makes the great point that the thing that made the German Army so formidable was its tactical leadership. Whenever the Germans lost a tactical battle, some surviving sergeant or corporal immediately formed a small group for a counter-attack. Only when the Allies also took on this kind of tactical aggressiveness in August 1944 did the German forces begin to fall and fall fast.

You can see some of Hastings’ influence on me in this D-Day video and my short post on Operation Cobra.

If you can only read one book on the subject, I recommend this one.

Overlord Max Hastings

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American Revolution Siege of Boston Map
Siege of Boston Map courtesy USMA History Department

Patriots Take Dorchester Heights Over Boston 4-5 March 1776

1 February 2018 / / 0 Comments

British Boston in the Revolutionary War

In early 1776, the American colonists were trying hard to limit the area in which British forces, based in Boston, could operate. As long as the British could retreat to the safety of Boston and its harbor, General George Washington would not be able to control the eastern end of Massachusetts. From Boston, British General Howe could re-supply from the sea and conduct operations with Boston as a base. In fact, Howe had taken nearby Bunker Hill (albeit with heavy losses) and was planning more of these types of operations in early March 1776.

Henry Knox and the Guns of Fort Ticonderoga

Washington knew bold, unexpected and decisive action was needed to disrupt Howe’s plans. In Late 1775, Washington had dispatched Artillery Colonel Henry Knox to Fort Ticonderoga, a British garrison captured by the Green Mountain Boys with Benedict Arnold tagging along, to bring the impressive array of artillery to Boston as soon as possible. Washington had probably expected it in late Spring, but the big man Knox drove his oxen and men hard over the lakes, rivers and frozen terrain of New England to get the 44 guns, 14 mortars and one howitzer to the outskirts of Boston by early February 1776. Knowing good fortune when he saw it, Washington wanted to take aggressive action immediately. Washington wanted to conduct a daring cross Charles River attack from Cambridge, but his council of war thought it too risky. Washington’s leaders agreed on the decisive action, but wanted to do it without significant risks to their small and largely untested militias. The compromise was to take aggressive action on Dorchester Heights which overlook Boston from the southeast.

Taking Dorchester Heights

On the 2nd and 3rd of March 1776, the Patriots fired the Knox artillery on the British in Boston and the Brits returned the favor. Washington had prepared a river crossing unit to the west of Boston to provide relief, if Howe tried to break out and disrupt the Dorchester Heights plan, although it seemed as if he had no idea what was going on. Whilst the artillery dueled, heavy, but transportable, fortifications were being fabricated down the hill. On the night of 4 March 1776, General Artemas Ward’s forces used an old ploy of Washington’s and put straw on the wheels of his wagons’ wheels to move quietly and began occupying Dorchester Heights from neighboring Roxbury. With a mammoth effort and 300 ox carts of material moved up the hill, the rebels had constructed 4 works on the heights and the flanks. By daylight on the 5 March, General Howe awoke to incomplete, but substantial works on the southeastern hills overlooking the harbor and the city. Howe was reported as saying, “The rebels have done more in one night than my whole army would have done in a month.”

The British Admiral Molyneaux Shulddown informed Howe that he could not maintain his ships in the harbor with such a threat. In the following days, Howe planned a quick counter-attack, but bad weather or a bout of under confidence or both made him quit Boston. By 17 March, in agreement with Washington not to destroy Boston if allowed to leave unmolested, the British had left Boston on ships for Halifax, Nova Scotia. They would be back, but for now Boston was in the Patriots hands and the radicals of the American colonies had a lot to crow about.

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