What started the battle of fort pillow?

Answer 1

The Battle of Fort Pillow was begun when Confederate forces under the command of General James Chalmers (and accompanied by his commander General Forrest) attacked the Union fort on April 12, 1864. That was the start of the battle.

But there were many things that lead up to this battle and the decision to attack it. General Forrest began a raid into West Tennesse in March 1864 to gather supplies and more men. This also allowed some of his Tennessee and Kentucky troopers to go home to see their family and gather more supplies. He attacked several Union forts while in W. Tennessee.

General Forrest learned that there were supplies and cannon at Fort Pillow and it was not heavily defended. There was another reason. General Forrest had received complaints that the Tennessee Yankee troops were raiding the civilians who were loyal to the Confederacy. The Union troops were stealing and even raping the people. One of the worst offenders was Colonel Fielding Hurst. Forrest hoped to capture Hurst and stop his brutality. A doctor living in west Tennesse wrote General Forrest for help with the Union troops in that area. General Forrest thought maybe Col. Hurst was at the fort but he wasn't. On March 29 near Bolivar, Forrest's Cavalry attacked Colonel Fielding Hurst and his 6 Tennessee (US) Cavalry regiment. His regiment left his wagon train, and escaped back into Memphis.

Finally, the Battle of Fort Pillow should NOT have happened. General Sherman gave a command to General Hurlbut, who commanded the forces around Memphis, to evacuate the isolate forts and start sending troops East towards Chattanooga or south into Mississippi. He did evacuate Fort Pillow but then not long after that he allowed the 13 Tennessee Cavalry to organize there. Then he sent up some artillery to man the fort. He disobeyed his commanders orders.

Why? Some say that Gen. Hurlbut was dealing in contraband cotton. It was easier to ship it out of Fort Pillow instead of Memphis where he might get discovered. Before the battle, Generals Sherman and Grant were discussing about removing Gen. Hurlbut. After the Battle had cleared, General Hurlbut was relieved of command and given a desk job. He was almost court-martialed.