Essay On The Captivity Of Atlanta By William Tecumseh Sherman

Capture of Atlanta

William Tecumseh Sherman was an educator, businessman, and an American soldier. He is the sole author of “Memoirs of General William T. Sherman”. Sherman served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He received criticism for the brutality of the “total war” policies, for which he enforced in administering his barbarism on the Confederate States. Basil Liddell Hart, a military historian, famously announced that Sherman was "the first modern general"(Luc, n.p.). He would later become one of "the most widely renowned of the Union’s military leaders next to U. S. Grant”, even though he was not a career military commander before the war (Luc, n.p.). He later obtained recognition for his exceptional command

He also goes on to state that he wanted to “contract the line of defense to diminish the garrison to the limit necessary to defend its narrow and vital parts”, which will wreck the houses used by the families that once resided there (Sherman, 118). General John Bell Hood thought it was in the best interest of the United States to follow along with the evacuation plan and that Atlanta was not a place for families or non-combatants. I believe that Sherman thought it was necessary to make war against civilians because he stated that “The use of Atlanta for warlike purposes is inconsistent with its character as a home for families. There will be no manufactures, commerce, or agriculture here, for the maintenance of families, and sooner or later want will compel the inhabitants to go”(Sherman, 126). He later stated that: “Why not go now, when all the arrangements are completed for the transfer, instead of waiting till the plunging shot of contending armies will renew the scenes of the past month” (Sherman, 126). He concluded that it was important because his military plans made it necessary for the inhabitants to evacuate. General Hood stated that he would grant the Atlanta residents with passage and food for the journey to wherever they desire to travel. Unfortunately, it was clear that some inhabitants of Atlanta were unable or unwilling to leave. Some people did not have anywhere else to