THE BATTLE OF FRANKLIN, TENN.
November 30, 1864.
Our narrative left the rebel army under General Hood—whose movements were now superintended by the redoubtable Beauregard—advancing into the State of Tennessee, in the early part of the month of November. His design was to defeat the Union forces under General Thomas, and capture the city of Nashville. On the twenty-third of November his army took Pulaski, and on the twentieth, after a little skirmishing, entered Columbia. All this while, as the rebels advanced, the National troops retired; but, on the thirtieth, when the forces of Hood appeared before the town of Franklin, where the Federal troops were fortified, General Schofield felt it to be necessary to make a stand. The original plan had been, to lure the rebels nearer to Nashville, and fight the final battle there, with the aid of heavy reinforcements that were expected to arrive at that point. But the foe pressed on somewhat too precipitately, and it became necessary to check his advance. The National force here, under General Schofield’s command, numbered fifteen thousand men. The right wing was commanded by General Stanley, the left by General Cox.
At about half-past three, in the afternoon of the twentieth, the assault was commenced by the rebels. Cheatham’s corps was on the right, Stewart’s on the left, and S. D. Lee’s in reserve, on the centre.
Cheatham threw his whole corps on Wagner’s division with great impetuosity, and after an hour’s desperate fighting pushed Wagner back on the second Union line, where Wagner’s men became mingled with those of Cox and Huger, on the left and centre.
The rebels, encouraged by their success in driving back Wagner, with loud cheers advanced on the second line. Their order of advance was very peculiar—a semicircle of two regiments deep, extending all around the lines, and behind each alternate regiment was placed four others, so that the assaulting columns were six regiments deep.
General Hood appeared about four o’clock P. M. at the head of his command, and, pointing towards the Federal lines, said:—“Break those lines, boys, and you have finished the war in Tennessee. Break them, and there is nothing to oppose your march from Nashville to the Ohio river.”
Loud and ringing cheers answered the words of the rebel leader, and the whole space in front of the National troops was crowded with the advancing enemy.
Captain Lyman, commanding an artillery brigade in the Fourth corps, had placed his batteries in most favorable positions, and from these storms of shot and shell were hurled into the charging rebel ranks.
With the most reckless bravery the rebels rushed on. When within a few hundred yards of the National works, the Unionists opened upon them a terrible fire of musketry. It seemed impossible for anything to live before it. But no wavering was perceived in the advancing rebel lines. On they came, to the very parapets of the Unionists’ works, and stuck their bayonets under the logs on the opposing battlements.
On the Columbus pike the pressure was so great that some of Cox’s and Wagner’s men temporarily gave way.
Up to this time the brigade commanded by Colonel Opdyke, of the One Hundred and Twenty-fifth Ohio, had been held in reserve; and now Colonel Opdyke, by orders of General Stanley, came forward, with his brigade, to restore the broken line.
The rebels, who had crawled over the works, had not time to retire, and Cox’s and Wagner’s men, who had broken away but a moment before, rallied and attacked the enemy on the flank, while Opdyke charged on the front. A desperate hand to hand fight ensued with bayonets and the butt ends of muskets. A hundred rebels were captured here, and the line was restored. For two hours and a half the battle now raged all along the lines. The men of the Fourth and Twenty-third corps vied with each other in bravery. Riley’s brigade, of the Twenty-third corps, fairly covered the ground in front of it with rebel dead. The rebel General Adams was killed. He and his horse fell into the ditch in front of the One Hundred and Fourth Ohio. Seventeen distinct attacks of the enemy were repelled.
At dusk the rebels were repulsed at all points, but the firing did not cease until nine o’clock at night.
At least five thousand rebels were killed, wounded and captured. The National loss was about fifteen hundred.
General Schofield directed the battle from the fort on the north bank of the stream, where some heavy guns and the batteries of the Twenty-third corps were placed, which did great service in damaging the enemy’s right wing.
The following dispatch from General Schofield apprised General Thomas of the leading facts of this battle:
“The enemy made a heavy and persistent attack with two corps, commencing at four P. M. and lasting till after dark. He was repulsed at all points with heavy loss—probably five or six thousand men. Our loss is probably not more than one-fourth of that number. We have captured about one thousand prisoners, including one brigadier-general.
General Stanley greatly distinguished himself by his personal intrepidity in this battle. When a part of his command had retired before the charge of the rebels, he rushed to the front, had a horse shot under him, and was himself wounded; yet he led on the charge, waving his hat in the air and calling on his men to follow. By this means he succeeded in rallying his faltering troops, and repelling seven successive charges made by the rebels. Colonel Schofield, a brother of General Schofield, and his chief of artillery, won great credit for his admirable management of the guns.
The result of the battle of Franklin was to stay the advance of Hood, and enable General Thomas to complete his preparations for the last and decisive struggle. During the night of the thirtieth, General Schofield’s forces fell back on Nashville. The rebels followed, next day, and cautiously reconnoitered the Union lines; but, deeming it unsafe to assault, they determined to beleaguer the city. Thus began the siege of Nashville. It lasted two weeks. At the end of that time General Thomas, having received his reinforcements and completed his preparations, sallied out and fought the decisive battle of Nashville.