Audacious and Dangerous

[diane]

I'm pretty sure that great leaders can't be made, they are born.

That's very true! Audacity they have and danger is simply part of the calculation. Take Nelson at Cape St Vincent - making straight for the biggest ship in the world in his little old 74!

 

[Tom Elmore]

How about attacking the enemy's most powerful warship, which was well defended by troops and a physical barrier, while standing up in the bow of a small, vulnerable boat? Lt. William B. Cushing planned and executed the attack against the CSS Albemarle. While braving rifle and pistol fire, his vessel surmounted a log barrier and he pulled the lanyard on an explosive device to blow a large hole in the Albemarle below the waterline to sink it. Thrown into the river by the explosion, he swam ashore, eluded enemy search parties, stole a small skiff, and using his arms as oars, made it back to friendly lines. Only he and one other man among his entire crew escaped death or capture.

 

[Waterloo50]

That's very true! Audacity they have and danger is simply part of the calculation. Take Nelson at Cape St Vincent - making straight for the biggest ship in the world in his little old 74!

Sometimes the rewards of taking a risk outweigh those of defeat, Nelson could have been in big trouble had that gone wrong, as it was, it certainly got him noticed.

 

[Waterloo50]

How about attacking the enemy's most powerful warship, which was well defended by troops and a physical barrier, while standing up in the bow of a small, vulnerable boat? Lt. William B. Cushing planned and executed the attack against the CSS Albemarle. While braving rifle and pistol fire, his vessel surmounted a log barrier and he pulled the lanyard on an explosive device to blow a large hole in the Albemarle below the waterline to sink it. Thrown into the river by the explosion, he swam ashore, eluded enemy search parties, stole a small skiff, and using his arms as oars, made it back to friendly lines. Only he and one other man among his entire crew escaped death or capture.

That's a movie right there.

 

[OpnCoronet]

Audacious and Dangerous, to me that would be an event such as Sherman's decision to risk his army, to change the strategic complexion of the war. No body in higher command really believed in the plan except Sherman himself.

Along that same line, I would add Grant's decision to change the Union land advance on Vicksburg, into a river campaign on the Mississippi.


P.S. to a lesser extent I would add Farragut's decision to run past the confederate fortressesses below New Orleans and take that city

 

[mobile_96]

Why not Streight's raid into Alabama. Here we have a raid planned for 2 reasons really. A raid to take out the railroad at Macom, Georgia. Which was also an attempt to draw Forrest away from Mississippi when Grant was trying to cross the River at Vicksburg. What made the raid audacious was that it was still attempted with mostly mules, when Streight could not get horses for the venture. Yes, he did fail but got much further along than he maybe should have And did succeed in drawing Forrest further east preventing him from having any effect on Grant.

 

[AUG]

How about Sibley's New Mexico Campaign? Sibley's original plan called for an advance into New Mexico Territory from El Paso, raiding Union outposts, seizing Colorado Territory and Fort Laramie along the Oregon Trail, then turning westward into Nevada and California. He planned to do so with a brigade of mounted Texas infantrymen, and later, hopefully, gather recruits from the southwestern territories. Of course they didn't get much farther than Albuquerque, with the defeat at Glorieta Pass. After that it was a painful retreat back to Texas.

 

[diane]

Benjamin Grierson's raid through Mississippi in support of Grant's move on Vicksburg, confusing, diverting and alarming the Confederates all the way.

The Butternut Guerillas who were his scouts probably clanked when they walked. They were mostly from southern Illinois - hence the name - and often wore Confederate uniforms. With their southern accents, they frequently deceived the people in Mississippi and on one occasion the pursuing forces of Wirt Adams and his Mississippi cavalry. Because they wore the uniforms of the other side and disguises, they could be shot out of hand. Pretty gutsy bunch!

 

[Chalmers' Division]

Sherman paraphrased Wellington and said the exact same thing about Forrest! That's why Forrest had his 12 star flag, which flew to let the enemy know he was personally present. Like Lee, his men knew who buttered their bread and made sure the general was protected - the escort was used at Brice's Crossroads as shock troops and they were very effective. The Union infantry arrived piecemeal, as Forrest anticipated, and his crack unit was ready for them. Nathan Boone was their commander, very good.

I've sometimes wondered if an education like West Point would have made Forrest a better commander or ruined him. Many, like Napoleon and Grant, were great despite their education! Others seemed locked into what they'd been taught. Guess that's the crucial difference in a decent commander and a great one. Forrest had a great disdain for West Point and said "Whenever I fit one of them West Pointers, I usually had him beat before he got his tune pitched."

Expired Image Removed

Some of the general officers felt that if Forrest had a formal military background he would have truly rivaled his counterparts. Strange that he was often thought of as a partisan.

 

[Chalmers' Division]

Sherman paraphrased Wellington and said the exact same thing about Forrest! That's why Forrest had his 12 star flag, which flew to let the enemy know he was personally present. Like Lee, his men knew who buttered their bread and made sure the general was protected - the escort was used at Brice's Crossroads as shock troops and they were very effective. The Union infantry arrived piecemeal, as Forrest anticipated, and his crack unit was ready for them. Nathan Boone was their commander, very good.

I've sometimes wondered if an education like West Point would have made Forrest a better commander or ruined him. Many, like Napoleon and Grant, were great despite their education! Others seemed locked into what they'd been taught. Guess that's the crucial difference in a decent commander and a great one. Forrest had a great disdain for West Point and said "Whenever I fit one of them West Pointers, I usually had him beat before he got his tune pitched."

Expired Image Removed

Meant to post in the last peep- Forrest felt out of sorts with those that were educated in general.

 

[diane]

Some of the general officers felt that if Forrest had a formal military background he would have truly rivaled his counterparts. Strange that he was often thought of as a partisan.

Hello! Good to see a new member.

Yes, many do think Forrest was a partisan or guerilla. The Northern newspapers tried very hard to paint him as that - and worse! - but he was a real live genuine CSA general. With the strong favoritism Davis showered on West Pointers, had Forrest been one his career would certainly have been very different. And, without leaping too far, one might consider the war in the western theater might have been very different!

 

[Chalmers' Division]

He was looked on as a partisan within his chain of command too. Bragg down played what Forrest was on many occassions.

 

[Yankeedave]

The press on both sides were darn near criminals in there reporting.

 

[Yankeedave]

Chiskasaw Bluff..A feint by Sherman against S.D. Lee. Feint or otherwise, what a mess.

Taken Feb. 1864

 

[Bruce Vail]

For audacity, hard to beat the raid on Cumberland, Md., by McNeill's Rangers.

http://www.mountaindiscoveries.com/stories/pdf/fw2005/civilwar.pdf

In the end, it didn't amount to much though. The capture of the two federal generals didn't seem to make any difference to the military situation in the area.

 

[Yankeedave]

I wonder if the John Arnold mentioned in the above article is a relative of Booth conspirator Samuel Arnold. Looking at the Arnold family tree there are great deal of Samuels and Johns.

 

[Keiri]

Hunley hands down, and I'm a union lover. I truly think those men knew it was a suicide mission.

 

[Yankeedave]

Grant's wild Battle of Belmont, Mo.

 

[civilken]

The Vicksburg campaign of May 1863. It split the CS in two. IMO the most decisive strategic campaign of the war.

How right you are.

 

[leftyhunter]

Sometimes the rewards of taking a risk outweigh those of defeat, Nelson could have been in big trouble had that gone wrong, as it was, it certainly got him noticed.

Hi Waterloo50,
You might want to check out my thread on Col. George Kirk 2nd and 3rd North Carolina Mounted Infantry Union. Kirk led mostly Confederate deserters in raids behind enemy lines in Western North Carolina. Kirk was only in his mid 20's. Kirk was a very aggressive and controversial Union officer . No doubt he would of been quite at home in the SAS.
Leftyhunter