American Civil War Game Club (ACWGC)

After the battle of Chicamauga, Rosecrans hastened to Chattanooga and began preparations for the evacuation of the city, fully expecting Bragg to thrust his iron column of rebels into the city and take it.
Rosecrans, in his hurry to be gone, left his dead and wounded on the field. Bragg cared for them, burying the dead and taking the wounded to the hospital; did not press the pursuit but allowed Rosecrans to rally his men and form a line of defence around Chattanooga. If Bragg had pushed on his forces immediately he could have captured Rosecrans’ entire army, but it seems that at the very crowning moment of success, some unseen or mystic influence controls the situation, and often the goal of our ambition is lost forever. Such was the case here.

<u>The Old Nineteenth Tennessee Regiment, CSA June 1861-April 1865</u> by Dr. W. J. Worsham 1902

The author served in the 19th Tennessee. Do you think too much of the lost cause memory or an accurate protrayal of the facts after the battle of Chicagmauga?

Lt. Col Elkin
Chief Engineer AoT


“I have come to you from the West, where we have always seen the backs of our enemies. . . . Let us study the probable lines of retreat of our opponents, and leave our own to take care of themselves. Let us look before us, and not behindâ€

Similar arguments were made after Gettysburg in regards to Meade not rapidly pursuing Lee. One always has to wonder that if a defeated army can manage to march away why can the victors pusure them immeadiately.

Lt. Gen. Ed Blackburn
I/I/VI/AoS

"Forward Bucktails"

Someone has to take care of the dead and wounded. One army can cut and run, leaving the human wreckage for the other army to clean up, but both armies can't. That would be too much to ask of the rank and file.

If you can demonstrate to an army that the men left on the field will be taken care of, then an immediate pursuit is possible, but usually too much of the winning army is KIA/WIA/Exhausted, or needed to care for the KIA/WIA/Exhausted of both sides to mount a quick pursuit.

MG Al "Ambushed" Amos, Commanding Officer
1st Div, I Corps, AoP, USA

The were a number of other reasons for not pursuing:no way to bridge the Tennessee River, lack of horses, equipment the Union left behind had to be gathered,etc but what was more important, the Union Army could have been cut off during the battle a number of ways but this was never pursued either.

Maj.Gen. Drex Ringbloom,
Commanding 2nd Div, "Corcoran's Legion", VIII Corps
Army of the Shenandoah