June 14, 1863: Attack at Port Hudson

Fame is a fickle thing, and it often does not coincide with merit.  That certainly is the case of Confederate Major General Franklin Gardner, who commanded the garrison of Port Hudson on the Mississippi during a siege that lasted from May 22, 1863 to July 9, 1863.  Gardner conducted the defense with great skill against a Union army of 40,000, supported by a powerful fleet, against his garrison of 7500.  Gardner and his men inflicted 5,000 casualties against the Union force in exchange for 1,000 killed and wounded.  Another 5,000 Union troops perished from disease.  Gardner was helped in his defense by the military ineptitude of the Union commander, Major General Nathaniel P. Banks, one of the more useless of the Union political generals.  When Gardner surrendered it was after he heard of the fall of Vicksburg and realized that overwhelming Union force would be arrayed against him, in addition to the fact that his men were starving before his eyes.

On June 14, Banks made his second attempt to take Port Hudson by storm.  Gardner had prepared the defenses of Port Hudson with care, including land mines in front of the Confederate fortifications and sniper positions from which Confederate sharpshooters could pepper any assault with deadly accuracy.  Incredibly Banks had provided no plan for the assault and fog added an element of complete chaos to the Union attacks.  This resulted in one of the most lopsided encounters of the War:  1792 Union casualties to 47 Confederate.  No further attempts were made to assault Port Hudson.