Battle of Port Gibson

Battle of Port Gibson
Part of the American Civil War

Almost all of the fighting on the Union side was done by Major General John A. McClernand's corps.
DateMay 1, 1863
Location
Claiborne County,
near Port Gibson, Mississippi
31°57′21″N 91°01′22″W / 31.9557°N 91.0228°W / 31.9557; -91.0228
Result Union victory
Belligerents
United States United States (Union) Confederate States of America CSA (Confederacy)
Commanders and leaders
Ulysses S. Grant
John A. McClernand		 John C. Pemberton
John S. Bowen
Units involved

Army of the Tennessee

Army of Mississippi

  • 4 brigades
Strength
23,000 8,000
Casualties and losses
875 787, 4 guns

The Battle of Port Gibson (May 1, 1863) was fought between a Union Army commanded by Major General Ulysses S. Grant and a reinforced Confederate States Army division led by Major General John S. Bowen. Though the outnumbered Confederate soldiers fought stubbornly, they were steadily pressed back during the day by Major General John A. McClernand's troops. Bowen eventually conceded the field by withdrawing north toward Vicksburg, Mississippi. The battle occurred near Port Gibson, Mississippi, during the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War.

Starting in November 1862, Grant tried various strategies in order to attack Vicksburg, and in each case, his army was unsuccessful. Finally, Grant ordered his army to march through swampy terrain on the west bank of the Mississippi River in an attempt to get south of Vicksburg. The Union commander gambled that the Union Navy under Acting Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter could safely pass the Vicksburg batteries. The operation was successful, and Porter's gunboats and river transports carried the first two army corps of Grant's army to the east bank. Meanwhile, Grant's third corps threatened Vicksburg from the northwest. The Confederate commander Lieutenant General John C. Pemberton was caught with his army scattered and could only oppose Grant with inferior forces at Port Gibson. This was the first of several Union victories in May 1863 that would result in the Siege of Vicksburg.