The Third Battle of Murfreesboro - Action
October 4, 1863
Upon receiving news of the surrender of the Army of the Cumberland, and without having received orders to do so, Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, commanding 14,500 men, quickly began moving north from his position on the Manchester Pike back to Murfreesboro. Though he personally would have liked to engage in open battle the Confederate cavalry that had been harassing his corps for the last few days, it was clear that some degree of caution was now required to hold back the massive Army of Tennessee. He planned to hold Mufreesboro and block a potential Confederate campaign towards Nashville.
Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest quickly became aware of this movement, hiding a portion of the cavalry under his command in positions on either side of Hoover's Gap. He then led the rest of his men on a charge against the Union force, striking the rear and causing a brief panic before Brig. Gen. John W. Geary was able to rally his division and repulse the attack. Due to earlier miscommunication, Forrest's men that lay in ambush leapt out and begun attacking the Union troops far earlier than Forrest had intended, causing momentary panic in the Union center before being repulsed. Forrest launched another assault just as exhausted elements from Lt. Gen. John B. Hood's corps began approaching from the south, far ahead of the rest of the corps (due mostly to the insistence of Brig. Gen. Jerome B. Robertson to follow his interpretation of a poorly worded order from Hood). Again, they were repulsed, but upon reinforcement by the 1st and 4th Texas regiments, Forrest launched a third assault which finally broke through weary Union lines. The falling back of Geary's division coincided with another attack launched from the woods by Forrest's cavalry on either side of the gap, causing the Union rear to collapse into a rout.
The momentum of Forrest's charge swept through the unprepared Union center, who had believed the ambush to simply be another cavalry raid rather than part of a larger battle. Meanwhile, the front of the Union lines began quickly marching north towards Murfreesboro in an attempt to reach the city's defenses before Forrest's cavalry. As the fighting within Hoover's Gap died down, confusion among Forrest's corps broke out as more small elements from Hood's corps arrived. After around half an hour of reorganization, they set off again, towards Murfreesboro, capturing a large number of prisoners that were fleeing the battle or straggling behind the desperate Union march north. Forrest detached a portion of his troops to serve as an advance column, racing towards Murfreesboro in an attempt to cut off the Union north and trap them in the open.
Meanwhile, the commander of the reduced garrison of Murfreesboro, having encountered deserters fleeing from the fighting in Hoover's gap, became convinced that all was lost, and quickly began making arrangements to pull out of the city in order to escape from the estimated 30-40,000 cavalry pursuing them. In reality, Forrest was only commanding around 18,000 men, only 14,000 of which were actually cavalry, and most of which were generally occupied with hunting down prisoners north of Liberty Gap. However, the orderly withdraw quickly turned into panic as Forrest's advance column neared the city. Much of the garrison had already fled across Stones River as a brigade under Col. John S. Scott collided with elements of Hooker's army near Woodbury Pike, dealing enormous casualties before being repulsed. The remainder of the garrison, along with the remainder of Hooker's army and Hooker himself, began streaming into Murfreesboro from the east and south, with Scott unable to prevent their entry after repeated assaults.
At this time, the majority of Forrest's exhausted corps arrived, along with small pieces of Hood's command, including the 1st, 4th, and 5th Texas regiments under Brig. Gen. Jerome B. Robertson, and the 4th Alabama regiment under Col. Pickney D. Bowles. Forrest, desperate to seize the city before reinforcements from Burnside would make it nearly impossible, launched a series of assaults against the beleaguered Union forces. Still unable to break through, he sent a brigade under Col. George G. Dibrell to flank around the north side of the city and attack in conjunction with Forrest's main corps. By this point, the members of the garrison that had fled earlier began to trickle back into the city, reinforcing defensive positions along the east side of the city, where the fighting had been hottest. As the sun set, Forrest ordered a final assault, with his men charging once more into the entrenched Union lines before Dibrell suddenly collided with Hooker's line in the northeast, near Lebanon Turnpike. The force of this charge began to roll back the line, and as the brigade reached Woodbury pike, the hottest section of the line, forces under Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard broke and fell back into the city.
The remainder of the Union line retreated back, set upon by Forrest's cavalry in the streets. Hooker managed to rally a portion of his men and fought a brutal close-quarters fight on the north side of the city as darkness fell. However, the majority of what remained of his forces fled across Stone's River, burning the bridges to cut Forrest off as he finished off the last pockets of Union resistance within the city. Nearly all of the Union commanders within Hookers army, including Hooker himself, were dead, with the few thousand Union survivors within the city would surrendering quickly after his death. Only around 3,500 men managed to escape the slaughters at Hoover's Gap and Murfreesboro, and under the temporary command of Col. Frederick Hecker, they limped their way towards Nashville.
Murfreesboro had fallen back into Confederate hands, but at an enormous cost- 7,500 casualties, out of Forrest's 18,000 men. He was left with a skeleton force of 10,500 men to defend the city with, and while Hood's forces were travelling north, Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside was moving towards Murfreesboro with 16,000 men. His forces were also completely exhausted, after days of marching and a harrowing battle that had lasted the entire day. Too tired and starving to do much else, most simply collapsed on city streets or in private homes, shops, or whatever buildings happened to be nearby.
Upon receiving news of the surrender of the Army of the Cumberland, and without having received orders to do so, Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, commanding 14,500 men, quickly began moving north from his position on the Manchester Pike back to Murfreesboro. Though he personally would have liked to engage in open battle the Confederate cavalry that had been harassing his corps for the last few days, it was clear that some degree of caution was now required to hold back the massive Army of Tennessee. He planned to hold Mufreesboro and block a potential Confederate campaign towards Nashville.
Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest quickly became aware of this movement, hiding a portion of the cavalry under his command in positions on either side of Hoover's Gap. He then led the rest of his men on a charge against the Union force, striking the rear and causing a brief panic before Brig. Gen. John W. Geary was able to rally his division and repulse the attack. Due to earlier miscommunication, Forrest's men that lay in ambush leapt out and begun attacking the Union troops far earlier than Forrest had intended, causing momentary panic in the Union center before being repulsed. Forrest launched another assault just as exhausted elements from Lt. Gen. John B. Hood's corps began approaching from the south, far ahead of the rest of the corps (due mostly to the insistence of Brig. Gen. Jerome B. Robertson to follow his interpretation of a poorly worded order from Hood). Again, they were repulsed, but upon reinforcement by the 1st and 4th Texas regiments, Forrest launched a third assault which finally broke through weary Union lines. The falling back of Geary's division coincided with another attack launched from the woods by Forrest's cavalry on either side of the gap, causing the Union rear to collapse into a rout.
The momentum of Forrest's charge swept through the unprepared Union center, who had believed the ambush to simply be another cavalry raid rather than part of a larger battle. Meanwhile, the front of the Union lines began quickly marching north towards Murfreesboro in an attempt to reach the city's defenses before Forrest's cavalry. As the fighting within Hoover's Gap died down, confusion among Forrest's corps broke out as more small elements from Hood's corps arrived. After around half an hour of reorganization, they set off again, towards Murfreesboro, capturing a large number of prisoners that were fleeing the battle or straggling behind the desperate Union march north. Forrest detached a portion of his troops to serve as an advance column, racing towards Murfreesboro in an attempt to cut off the Union north and trap them in the open.
Meanwhile, the commander of the reduced garrison of Murfreesboro, having encountered deserters fleeing from the fighting in Hoover's gap, became convinced that all was lost, and quickly began making arrangements to pull out of the city in order to escape from the estimated 30-40,000 cavalry pursuing them. In reality, Forrest was only commanding around 18,000 men, only 14,000 of which were actually cavalry, and most of which were generally occupied with hunting down prisoners north of Liberty Gap. However, the orderly withdraw quickly turned into panic as Forrest's advance column neared the city. Much of the garrison had already fled across Stones River as a brigade under Col. John S. Scott collided with elements of Hooker's army near Woodbury Pike, dealing enormous casualties before being repulsed. The remainder of the garrison, along with the remainder of Hooker's army and Hooker himself, began streaming into Murfreesboro from the east and south, with Scott unable to prevent their entry after repeated assaults.
At this time, the majority of Forrest's exhausted corps arrived, along with small pieces of Hood's command, including the 1st, 4th, and 5th Texas regiments under Brig. Gen. Jerome B. Robertson, and the 4th Alabama regiment under Col. Pickney D. Bowles. Forrest, desperate to seize the city before reinforcements from Burnside would make it nearly impossible, launched a series of assaults against the beleaguered Union forces. Still unable to break through, he sent a brigade under Col. George G. Dibrell to flank around the north side of the city and attack in conjunction with Forrest's main corps. By this point, the members of the garrison that had fled earlier began to trickle back into the city, reinforcing defensive positions along the east side of the city, where the fighting had been hottest. As the sun set, Forrest ordered a final assault, with his men charging once more into the entrenched Union lines before Dibrell suddenly collided with Hooker's line in the northeast, near Lebanon Turnpike. The force of this charge began to roll back the line, and as the brigade reached Woodbury pike, the hottest section of the line, forces under Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard broke and fell back into the city.
The remainder of the Union line retreated back, set upon by Forrest's cavalry in the streets. Hooker managed to rally a portion of his men and fought a brutal close-quarters fight on the north side of the city as darkness fell. However, the majority of what remained of his forces fled across Stone's River, burning the bridges to cut Forrest off as he finished off the last pockets of Union resistance within the city. Nearly all of the Union commanders within Hookers army, including Hooker himself, were dead, with the few thousand Union survivors within the city would surrendering quickly after his death. Only around 3,500 men managed to escape the slaughters at Hoover's Gap and Murfreesboro, and under the temporary command of Col. Frederick Hecker, they limped their way towards Nashville.
Murfreesboro had fallen back into Confederate hands, but at an enormous cost- 7,500 casualties, out of Forrest's 18,000 men. He was left with a skeleton force of 10,500 men to defend the city with, and while Hood's forces were travelling north, Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside was moving towards Murfreesboro with 16,000 men. His forces were also completely exhausted, after days of marching and a harrowing battle that had lasted the entire day. Too tired and starving to do much else, most simply collapsed on city streets or in private homes, shops, or whatever buildings happened to be nearby.