THE BATTLE OF ATLANTA
After the Battle of Peachtree Creek, attention shifted to the eastern side of the city. Hood determined to strike McPherson who, on July 20 and 21, had moved past Decatur and entrenched a line running north and south a few miles east of Atlanta. The Confederate commander realized that he might march troops around the left of McPherson’s position and attack him from the flank and rear. He chose Hardee’s Corps to be the flanking column and planned to have Cheatham’s men attack the front of McPherson’s army from the west while Hardee struck from the south and east. With luck, this sensible plan could result in the defeat of a large part of Sherman’s forces.
Late on the 21st, Hardee’s men withdrew from their advanced position north of Atlanta and by midnight they were marching out of the city. They were to move southward, then turn and swing eastward and northward. Meanwhile, the other Southerners fell back to shorter lines where, it was hoped, they would be able to hold off the Federals while Hardee outflanked them.
On the morning of July 22, Sherman found the Southerners gone from his immediate front and concluded that Atlanta had been abandoned. However, as his armies pushed forward, they discovered that the defenders had only fallen back to a new position. The Northern advance contracted the Federal lines and the XVI Corps of McPherson’s army was crowded out of place. McPherson ordered it to move to his extreme left. Thus at the time Hardee was moving to that area, McPherson, by chance, was sending in reinforcements.
Hardee’s march was long and hard. Poor roads, inept guides, and the July heat combined to delay the Southerners. It was not until noon that Hardee had his men in position, and at 1 p.m. he sent them forward. The Confederates made their way through heavy underbrush and emerged facing the Federal XVI Corps which had halted in a perfect position to meet the charge which broke upon them.
Poor coordination also weakened the force of the Confederate offensive. Cheatham’s men, who assailed the XVII Corps, did not join the assault until about 3:30, by which time Hardee’s attack had lost much of its force. Nevertheless, the fighting was severe. One Federal brigadier wrote of the attackers:
They burst forth from the woods in truly magnificent style in front of my right.... Hardly had the enemy made his appearance in my front when [the artillery] ... opened on them a deadly fire, which rather staggered their line, yet on came the advancing rebels, and hotter grew the fire of ... [our artillery]. At the same time the ... infantry ... opened on them with cool and deadly aim. Still on came the charging columns, more desperate than ever, those in front urged up by those in rear.
The first charge was driven back, but the Southerners returned to the attack again and again throughout the long afternoon. Several times they swarmed over the Federal positions, capturing men and cannon, but each time they were driven back. In one of the early charges, McPherson was killed by advancing Confederate skirmishers as he rode forward to rally his men. Finally, about 7 p.m., the Southerners abandoned the attack and fell back. Their losses have been estimated at about 8,000. Union casualties were reported at 3,722.
For the second time Hood had lashed out at his opponent and had been thrown back. Later he tried to shift the blame to Hardee whom he accused of failing to be in the proper place at the proper time. In post-war years, a bitter verbal battle raged over the question. Most present-day authorities feel that Hardee did all that could reasonably have been asked of him. His troops were worn from the battle on Peachtree Creek, the bad roads slowed his march, and the fateful positioning of the XVI Corps was a matter over which he had no control.
In the summer of 1864, however, many Confederates saw the battle as a splendid victory. One artilleryman wrote on July 23:
We gained a great victory yesterday of which I suppose you know [from newspapers] as much as I do. We left before much was accomplished but hear that our corps captured 3,500 prisoners and 22 pieces of artillery & the enemies killed & wounded amounted to twice our own.