Shiloh's Brutal Dawn: Grant Defeats Confederates
The Battle of Shiloh on April 6-7, 1862, was the bloodiest engagement in American history to that point, with combined casualties exceeding 23,000 in two days. Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston, considered the South's finest commander, bled to death from a leg wound on the first day because his personal surgeon had been sent to treat wounded prisoners. Union General Grant, surprised by the dawn attack, rallied his forces with the help of fresh reinforcements from Don Carlos Buell's Army of the Ohio arriving overnight. The battle ended any illusion of a short war. Grant later wrote that after Shiloh he "gave up all idea of saving the Union except by complete conquest."
April 7, 1862
164 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on April 7
Attila the Hun sacked the Roman city of Metz on April 7, 451 AD, during an invasion of Gaul that had already destroyed multiple cities along the Rhine. His army…
Attila the Hun razed the city of Metz, slaughtering its inhabitants and incinerating the structures in a brutal display of force. This devastation forced the Ro…
Emperor Justinian I commissioned the Corpus Juris Civilis in 529 AD, tasking the jurist Tribonian with compiling, organizing, and reconciling over a thousand ye…
King Uneh Chan of Calakmul shattered the defenses of Palenque, plunging the rival city-state into a period of political chaos and architectural stagnation. This…
She didn't just wear a crown; she marched into London with her brother-in-law's head in a basket. In 1141, after crushing King Stephen at Lincoln, Matilda decla…
A single scroll in 1348 didn't just open doors; it burned bridges between Prague and Paris, forcing scholars to flee France for Bohemia. Charles IV bet his crow…
Talk to History
Have a conversation with historical figures who witnessed this era. Ask questions, explore perspectives, and bring history to life.