Battle of Vicksburg 1863

Battle of Vicksburg 1863

Battle of Vicksburg 1863
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 9 to 10
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	6.92

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		disrepair, breech, crossing, parole, cede, better, winning, retreat, portion, railway, assault, siege, artillery, crater, direct, unconditional
	content words:		Civil War, General Ulysses S., Mississippi River, On May, Confederate General Joe Johnston, General Pemberton, President Davis, By May, When June, On July

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Battle of Vicksburg 1863
By Mary L. Bushong

¹     The city of Vicksburg in Mississippi was considered the hinge point between the two halves of the Civil War: the east and the west. General Ulysses S. Grant, of the Union army, was convinced that the key to winning the war was the control of Vicksburg which sat right on the banks of the Mississippi River. His first expeditions were failures, but Grant didn't give up.

²     Finally, he devised a complicated plan. First, Grant marched his troops some 25 miles south of Vicksburg. They crossed through swamps and bayous [pronounced BY-yoos]. There, Union gunboats met them. They had run past the gun batteries at Vicksburg on a moonless night to aid the army. Their job was to ferry the entire Union force across the Mississippi River.

³     After crossing, Grant realized that he had to control Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, before he could get to his destination. It was an important railway center which could help move troops and supplies to Vicksburg. On May 14, 1863, he took the city. Before it was captured though, Confederate General Joe Johnston sent a message to General Pemberton in Vicksburg. He wanted them to cede the city and retreat so the Confederate force there would not be captured.

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