Gene Schmiel

Ohio Heroes of the Battle of Franklin Gene Schmiel

A unique re-telling of the The Battle of Franklin, November 30, 1864, through the lives and eyes of three Ohioans who were the heroes of that crucial Union army victory. The Battle of Franklin was the final test of both the strength of the Union army in the West and the notion that a Napoleonic-style frontal infantry attack was the best tactic for Civil War military success. This book describes these events through the words of three Ohio heroes, while thereby giving the reader a full understanding of how these events played out and how the war affected them and their lives irrevocably. The Union army passed its test that day, in great part due to the leadership and heroism of three Ohioans: Generals Jacob Cox, Emerson Opdycke, and Jack Casement. Cox ordered the creation of an impenetrable bulwark of breastworks against the infantry charge ordered by Confederate commander, General John Bell Hood. The bulwark succeeded, and it was only breached because of human error and misjudgment. Cox, Opdycke, and Casement rose to the occasion to seal the breach and ensure Union victory. The notion that frontal infantry attacks could be successful failed the test that day. As at Chickamauga, the Confederate forces were successful for a time because of the human error by Union subordinates at Franklin. But unlike at Chickamauga, the attack ultimately failed due to the heroism of those three Ohioans. The Confederate Army of Tennessee was devastated at the Battle of Franklin. It was finally overwhelmed and obliterated two weeks later at the Battle of Nashville, and the war in the West was effectively over. However, most historians agree that it was the Battle of Franklin that tore the heart out of the rebel army in the West.