Heading his four columns of “blue destruction“ south and east between the Ocmulgee and Oconee rivers in Georgia, Sherman intended to lay waste to all before him. The man famous for the statement that “War is Hell” clearly understood that his drive would undercut the Confederate war effort by destroying the will of the Southern people to continue to support the war. Several Georgia state senators had already suggested that the state needed to make peace with Sherman; in response Confederate President Jefferson Davis strongly objected to any possibility of separate state action involving peace negotiations. Acknowledging a lack of manpower opposing Sherman, Davis suggested that every man who could render service should volunteer, including Negroes who could obstruct roads and impede Sherman’s advance. Yet little would stop Sherman.
00000174-b11b-ddc3-a1fc-bfdbb1a20000The Schreiner University Department of History is honoring the sesquicentennial of the American Civil War with a series of short vignettes focusing on events from 1861 through 1865. The Civil War was the most destructive conflict in American history, but it was also one of our most defining moments as a people and as a nation. Let us know what you think about "This Week in the Civil War." E-mail your comments to Dr. John Huddleston at jhuddles@schreiner.edu.Airs: Weekdays at 5:19 a.m., 8:19 a.m., 4:19 p.m. on KTXI and 4:49 a.m., 9:29 p.m. on KSTX.