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I've been rereading Albert Castel's "Decision in the West", which is the best history of the Atlanta Campaign of 1864, for my money. The section on the Battle of Peachtree Creek got me thinking about the possibility that a decisive Confederate victory there could have had incredibly significant consequences.

Suppose the the Confederate attack against the Army of the Cumberland had been a bit better managed, with Stewart's corps doing slightly better (they almost broke though IOTL, after all). Suppose also that Hardee's corps (which outnumbered the Union troops immediately opposing them by 15,000 to 4,000) had done more effective reconnissance and coodinated better.

IOTL, the attack took the Yankees by surprise, and it was largely due to luck and poor Confederate coordination that they were able to hold their ground. If they had been routed (i.e. suffered the fate of I and XI corps on the 1st day at Gettysburg), they faced the pliht on being on the south side of Peachtree Creek, which has high banks and presents a significant physical obstacle. Conceivably, Union unit cohesion could have broken entirely while attempting to retreat from a victorious Southern attack. The possibility of a major haul of Yankee prisoners is obvious. Indeed, it isn't out of the question that the Army of the Cumberland could have been wrecked as a fighting force.

Strategically, such a Confederate victory would have had immense significance. Sherman's two other armies were moving to the east side of Atlanta, away from the crossing of the Chattahooche River. If the Army of Tennessee had achieved a decisive victory at Peachtree Creek, they would have been closer to the Chattahochee fords than Sherman's main force, presenting the clear possibility of trapping most of Sherman's army on the south bank of the river and cutting them off from their supplies.

Thoughts?
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