In an attempt to hit the enemy one more time, Forrest drove deep the advancing Union line far ahead of his own men and found himself surrounded by Union troops. After he emptied his two revolvers, he drew his saber and began slashing at the oncoming enemy. Forrest regained control of his horse, remounted and took off. As Union forces shot after him, he reached down and grabbed an unsuspecting Union soldier and brought him up on the back of his horse, then dumping the man to the ground once he was in the clear.
Cutting off communication lines and raiding stores of supplies, Forrest relied on guerrilla tactics and never fully engaged the enemy's superior forces. As a result, General Grant was forced to revise his strategy. Eventually, after a six-month siege, Vicksburg fell, but Forrest continued to attack boldly and retreat swiftly, frustrating one Union commander after the other and further expanding his reputation.
Forrest is also associated with one of the more controversial episodes of the Civil War. On April 12, , Confederate forces had surrounded Fort Pillow, a union garrison near the Mississippi River, occupied by nearly Black troops, most newly freed enslaved people, and nearly the same number of white soldiers.
After several hours of continuous rifle and artillery fire by Confederate forces, Forrest sent a note to the Union commander demanding unconditional surrender. The commander asked for an hour to consider the offer. Forrest offered less time and then, fearing the arrival of Union reinforcements, launched a furious assault on the fort. Many Union and some Confederate sources claimed that Confederate forces entering the fort fired on Union troops as they surrendered.
The Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War composed primarily of Radical Republicans concluded that Confederates killed most of the Union soldiers after they had surrendered. Historians agree a massacre did occur but differ in their conclusions over whether the killing was premeditated or occurred in the heat of battle. As the war moved on through and into , Forrest experienced some victories and defeats, but neither strong enough to turn the tide of war toward the South or to destroy his army completely.
In , Forrest and his men were struggling just to avoid capture. Upon hearing of General Robert E. My loss was about twenty killed. It is hoped these facts will demonstrate to the Northern people that negro soldiers cannot cope with Southerners. I told these boys that this war was about slavery, and if we lose, you will be made free. If we whip the fight and you stay with me you will be made free.
Either way, you will be freed. These boys stayed with me, drove my teams, and better confederates did not live. However, the image of Forrest as a butcher wantonly killing black troops at Fort Pillow was reinforced in the public mind by his post-war activities. Admitting membership during Reconstruction might have meant prison for him. Supporters attempting to improve his public image often claim he was not a member of the Klan, let alone its Grand Wizard, yet they also credit him with disbanding the group when he decided it had become too violent.
Along line of Confederate cavalrymen interrupted the quiet tranquility of a Kentucky winter as they slowly rode north. Their horses picked their way across the frost-covered ground, crunching through semi-frozen puddles and pockets of deep mud.
The first week of winter was hardly an ideal time for soldiering, but these inexperienced troopers were looking forward to their first real action of the Civil War. Tall and well-built, the Tennessee native had inherited the strength and vigor of his father, a blacksmith. Like the eager horsemen in his charge, Forrest itched for a fight. For three months his battalion had been conducting routine reconnaissance operations in Tennessee and Kentucky, and gathering up horses, cattle, hogs, and other supplies for the Confederate army.
Such monotonous duty had its purpose, but Forrest expected to make his mark in a more direct and memorable way. Harris had plucked Forrest from the ranks of the Tennessee Mounted Rifles Company and offered him a command of his own.
Forrest had enlisted as a private only a month before. Isham, who knew Forrest by his reputation as a businessman in Memphis, commissioned him a lieutenant colonel with the authority to recruit a battalion of mounted rangers.
Forrest wasted no time. Before the end of July, he ran advertisements in the Memphis Avalanche and other newspapers. Those who cannot entirely equip themselves will be furnished arms by the State. He quietly scoured neutral Kentucky for revolvers, shotguns, saddles, blankets, and other equipment, and sent his purchases south in wagons. In Louisville, six teenage volunteers helped Forrest smuggle supplies out of the city in coffee sacks.
A vigorous and powerfully built man, Forrest was his own best recruiting tool, inspiring would-be volunteers with confidence in his ability to lead them. Charles W. I was introduced to Col. Forrest and told that he was recruiting soldiers, and, as I had already determined to go out, he wished me to go with him.
His recruits found him impressive in both stature and manner. Everything necessary to supply their wants, to make them comfortable, he was quick to do, save to change his plans, to which everything had to bend.
New men naturally grumbled, but when the work was done all were reconciled by the pride felt in the achievement. Forrest set up winter headquarters at Hopkinsville, in southwestern Kentucky, on December 20, lodging his troopers in floored tents as they contended with the cold and an outbreak of measles.
The lieutenant colonel shared his winter quarters with his wife, Mary Ann, and their year-old son, Willie. Recruits continued to trickle in. Just before Christmas, a Texan named Adam R. Johnson arrived in camp and offered Forrest his services as a scout. But it struck me that his most wonderful feature was his piercing blue eye which flashed and changed so rapidly with every emotion that it was difficult to distinguish its true color.
He was a man to catch the look and hold the attention of the most casual observer, and as we gazed on each other I felt that he was a born leader and one that I would be willing to follow. The timeline below highlights important dates related to this topic and a section of this guide provides some suggested search strategies for further research in the collection.
Search this Guide Search. About Chronicling America Chronicling America is a searchable digital collection of historic newspaper pages from sponsored jointly by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress.
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He started attending church and advocating for "black civil rights" while living in Memphis, writes Shane Kastler in his book, "Nathan Bedford Forrest's Redemption.
While noting that change before his death in , many historians argue those actions are too little too late for the Confederate general and Ku Klux Klan leader. Nationally, Southern states continue to face pressure for the continued public prevalence of Confederate symbols.
While Tennessee does not fly the Confederate battle flag at the state Capitol, a 4-foot tall bust of Forrest sits in the Capitol with the likes of presidents Andrew Jackson and James K. In the aftermath of what police believe to be racially motivated murders in Charleston, S. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn.
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