There were three formations known as the Army of Mississippi in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

. This name is contrasted against Army of ''the'' Mississippi, which was a

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

named for the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...

, not the state of

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

Army of Mississippi (March 1862)

This army, at times known by the name Army of the West was one of the most important in the Western Theater, fighting at Shiloh,

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part ...

, and Perryville. It was organized on March 5, 1862, and portions of the Army of Pensacola were added on March 13. It was consolidated with the Army of Central Kentucky and the Army of Louisiana on March 29. On November 20, 1862, it was renamed the

Army of Tennessee The Army of Tennessee was the principal Confederate army operating between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River during the American Civil War. It was formed in late 1862 and fought until the end of the war in 1865, participating in ...

Command history

Army of Mississippi (December 1862)

The second army was referred to as the Army of Vicksburg. It was organized December 7, 1862, by troops in the Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana, including the short-lived Army of West Tennessee. Its sole function was to defend

Vicksburg, Mississippi Vicksburg is a historic city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the county seat, and the population at the 2010 census was 23,856. Located on a high bluff on the east bank of the Mississippi River across from Louisiana, Vi ...

, on the

and it ceased to exist when southern Gen.

John C. Pemberton John Clifford Pemberton (August 10, 1814 – July 13, 1881) was a career United States Army officer who fought in the Seminole Wars and with distinction during the Mexican–American War. He resigned his commission to serve as a Confederate ...

surrendered it after a long offensive campaign and siege to Maj. Gen.

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union A ...

on July 4, 1863, opening up the "Father of Waters" to Union control and splitting the Confederacy in two.

Command history

Army of Mississippi (1863–64)

The third army was retitled III Corps, Army of Tennessee, around May 4, 1864, but it continued to use the former name.

Command history

References

* Eicher, John H., & Eicher, David J., ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . {{Field armies of the Confederate States 1862 establishments in the Confederate States of America

Georgia (U.S. state) in the American Civil War Kentucky in the American Civil War Mississippi in the American Civil War Tennessee in the American Civil War