The fortunes of the Confederacy have grown so desperate–some two-thirds of Confederate soldiers have deserted, and there are no more able-bodied white men available for military service–that a growing number of voices are calling for allowing slaves to serve in the army. President Jefferson Davis, unable to think of any other effective way to supplement…
Confederate General John Bell Hood, marching through northern Alabama with some 39,000 soldiers and en route to a planned invasion of western Tennessee, today arrives at Decatur, Alabama. Here he encounters some 3,000-5,000 Union soldiers defending entrenchments, two forts and a rifle pit, in addition to two Federal gunboats patrolling the Tennessee River. Needing to…
Today Confederate forces on land and water attack Union-held Plymouth, North Carolina. The dual-fronted offensive, highlighted by the recently-launched ironside CSS Albermarle, overwhelms the Union defenders. In this second-largest battle fought in North Carolina during the war, the Confederates notch an impressive victory. For its part, the Albemarle rams two Union ships, putting them out…