From Antietam to Chancellorsville: September 1862 to May 1863Battles For the West |
What was the scene in the West? |
Humiliated by his repulse outside of Vicksburg, General Grant prepared for another means and method of attack. Clearly, Vicksburg was going to be a tough nut to crack, and Grant began devising a plan that would take his army entirely around the natural defenses so that his superior numbers could be brought to bear.
The rest of the lower Mississippi Valley was rather quiet at the beginning of 1863. The federal occupation of New Orleans continued with more complaints of Union abuses of the civilian population. Natchez, Baton Rouge, and other points were firmly under federal control. One had to look farther west, beyond the Mississippi, to see evidence of Confederate strength, which in Texas remained large.