Civil War History - "What if..." DiscussionsWhat if they had attacked instead of digging in...? What if he was in charge of the army instead...? Did you ever have a "What if..." question, and you weren't sure where to post it? Here's the place to ask these speculative questions!
Came across a question today which begs for discussion. What if Major General C. F. Smith had not scraped his shin (and subsequently died from blood poisoning) at Savannah. He, not Grant, would have been in charge of the Shiloh/Pittsburg Landing battle on the 6th and 7th.
Would he have ordered defensive positions on the plateau above Pittsburg Landing? Would he have taken an active role in positioning the troops? Would he have been as effective as Grant in conducting the battle?
It follows that, once Halleck gave the army back to its commander after the Corinth campaign, it would be Smith in charge. Where does that go?
Ole
__________________ I never knew a man who wished to be himself a slave. Consider if you know any good thing that no man desires for himself. A. Lincoln
I confess with all my research into the political side of the war, I have never heard of this man or his skinned shin. But it does strike me as odd the numerous little incidents that took place during the war that led to such big outcomes.
Seems like, at times, God himself took a hand to ensure that the South lost and the North won, whatever His reasons were. Didn't Lee himself contend such at one time?
Don't mean to distract from your original line of thought here, but reading another 'incident' as you describe set me thinking.
Sincerely,
Unionblue
__________________ "The American people and the Government at Washington may refuse to recognize it for a time but the inexorable logic of events will force it upon them in the end; that the war now being waged in this land is a war for and against slavery." Frederick Douglass
"Loyalty to our ancestors does not include loyalty to their mistakes." George Santayana
IIRC Smith was a competant soldier who Grant respected greatly. He was at first a bit uncomfortable to have Smith under him as he had been a much respected superior in the pre war army. Smith allayed any discomfort by working well w/ Grant. Smith's actions at Ft Donelson showed him to be a reliable & competant general officer.
IMHO Smith knew his limitations. In the scenario presented we might have seen a Smith brought East and Grant kept in the West to deal w/ Atlanta etc.
The outcome would have been the same, though perhaps w/ a different handling of Atlanta.
Smith respected Grant's abilities greatly... and I think would have kept him on.
NOTE: I'm working from memory here... If I have the wrong man in mind I apologize.
__________________ Few take the trouble to understand or to view the American scene with perspective. And we Americans love to find ourselves guilty of something. However, it is never I who am guilty, but those other Americans, the past or present government or the other political party. Americans almost never find other countries guilty. It is always ourselves or our fancied influence in other countries. Louis L'amour
Shane:
You have the right Smith. One of the most battle-experienced officers in the prewar army, he was apparently not one given to self-promotion nor political backing. Such a man would have had an important place in the Union armies, quite possibly being Buell's replacement.
Ole
__________________ I never knew a man who wished to be himself a slave. Consider if you know any good thing that no man desires for himself. A. Lincoln
Neil:
Those little "incidents" would make a "what if" all by themselves. Care to share a few?
Ole
__________________ I never knew a man who wished to be himself a slave. Consider if you know any good thing that no man desires for himself. A. Lincoln
Shane:
You have the right Smith. One of the most battle-experienced officers in the prewar army, he was apparently not one given to self-promotion nor political backing. Such a man would have had an important place in the Union armies, quite possibly being Buell's replacement.
Ole
Ole thanks... I wasn't trusting my memory.
Smith is an interesting man and was one of the most respected soldiers in the pre war army. It has been said w/ CF Smith in the Army Grant couldn't have lost at Donelson. He was aggresive and steady as well as willing to listen to both his subordinates & superiors. IMHO Lincoln really made a critical error in not considering him for command of the AoP.
If he had survived he might well have been given Buell's command. Bragg against Smith instead of Buell... now there is a scary what if. Imagine, if you will, Bragg's and his army gobbled up in Kentucky...
__________________ Few take the trouble to understand or to view the American scene with perspective. And we Americans love to find ourselves guilty of something. However, it is never I who am guilty, but those other Americans, the past or present government or the other political party. Americans almost never find other countries guilty. It is always ourselves or our fancied influence in other countries. Louis L'amour
"... Smith was a soldier's soldier, and with the possible exception of Winfield Scott, there was no one in the regular army whom Grant admired more. Smith had been commandant at West Point when Grant was a cadet and he was regard throughout the army as the embodiment of military professionalism. Later Grant would write, "His personal courage was unquestioned, his judgment and professional requirements were unsurpassed, and he had the confidence of those he commands as well as those over him." ... Smith was placed under Grant's command. ... Grant considered Smith his model and mentor. "It does seem quite right for me to give General Smith orders," he told his staff. ... The two shared a common outlook."
At Donalson, Smith served as a great inspiration to his troops.
__________________ -
"It was a very peculiar time." - Franklin D. Cossitt
Ancestors in USA Army: 6th IA Inf, 11th IL Cav, 1st AL Cav; 122nd NY Inf; 6th MI Cav; 35th MA Inf; 100th IL Inf; 1st CO Inf/Cav; 22nd IN Inf
Sam, I know your keyboard tripped you up, I just wanted to draw a bit of attention the memory of John Donelson for whom most things in Tennessee blessed with this name find their origin. He was a Virginia militia officer who led a flotilla of about 35 wooden rafts from Long Island which is now Kingsport, Tennessee to Ft. Nashboro, now Nashville in 1780. He had 300 or so women and children plus supplies for the new settlement. Gen. James Robertson, same background, came the northern route through Kentucky with the horses and more men. John's daughter Rachel married a young local lawyer named Andrew Jackson, a name not too popular in Creek Indian circles.
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