General Sherman was given command of the Western army, which was to operate against Joseph E. Johnston, who was in command of the Confederate army in the West. Johnston was reckoned second to Lee in military genius. Sherman found under his command 120,000 men, while that of Johnston's army numbered about 75,000. The Federals were concentrated around Chattanooga, while the Confederates were massed at Dalton, where they had been in winter quarters.

Sherman moved his army on May 6, 1864, against Johnston, and thus the beginning of Sherman's march to the sea and a series of battles fought, viz.: Resaca, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek and the Battle of Atlanta.

Sherman's army was divided into three divisions commanded by Generals McPherson, Schofield and Thomas. His army was in good spirits and seemed anxious for the opportunity to move forward, after a long wearisome winter in camp, and rejoiced at the journey before them, though their mission was to be one of strife and bloodshed.

General Johnston had succeeded General Bragg in command of this Confederate army, which was now divided into two corps, commanded by Generals Hood and Hardee. He was later reËnforced by General Polk.

On account of the strong position occupied by Johnston at Dalton Sherman thought best to refrain from attacking him there and moved round to the right of the Confederate army to Resaca.

When Johnston discovered this movement on the part of the Federals he quickly evacuated Dalton and moved with all speed to Resaca, which place he succeeded in reaching before it was occupied by the Federals. On his way to Resaca his cavalry, under General Wheeler, fought a desperate battle with that of the Federals, under General McCook, in which Wheeler was successful.

The Confederates were strongly entrenched at Resaca by the time Sherman's army came up.

On May 14th Sherman ordered a general attack on the Confederate stronghold, which was done by Thomas' division and a part of Schofield's. This attack was received by Hood's corps. There was desperate fighting and the advantage first lay with one and then the other, when at length the Federals were reËnforced by General Hooker, and the Confederates fell back to the second line of their entrenchments.

There was terrible fighting on the next day during which the outworks were captured by General Butterfield, but he was unable to hold his position gained on account of the raking fire from Hardee's corps, which galled him very much. During the night Johnston withdrew his army from Resaca toward Atlanta, and was closely followed by Sherman, who sent a part of his army under General Davis to capture Rome, a small town in Georgia, where there was quite a number of iron factories.

This he did, and destroyed the factories, which were a serious loss to the Confederates, for they were used for the manufacture of cannon and other munitions of war.

Johnston brought his army to a halt at Adairsville, at which place he had fully decided to give battle to Sherman, and had so informed his officers. After skirmishing with the enemy for some time he suddenly changed his mind and withdrew his army to Cassville, where he took a strong position and issued a spirited address to his army, and had fully decided to give battle to Sherman, but, on account of his superior numbers, Sherman had been able to turn the right flank of the Confederate army.

On the advice of Hood and Polk, Johnston again withdrew his army from its position and took a much stronger position a few miles south on Kenesaw Mountain.

On account of these several retreats, gave rise to a cause of a great deal of dissent among his soldiers, as well as the inhabitants of the country through which he passed, which left them in the hands of the enemy, but it is conceded that Johnston did the best he could, as his army was inferior to that of Sherman both in numbers and equipment, and he was waiting for an opportunity to catch Sherman's army divided, or to get a strong position which would help him in repulsing any attack made by Sherman. This strong position he found at Kenesaw Mountain, and here made ready for battle in earnest.

A few days prior to this, while Johnston's army was retiring from its former position at Cassville, they became engaged with a division of the Federal army at Pine Mountain, in which battle General Polk was killed by a cannon ball. This was a serious loss to the Confederacy. He was a graduate of West Point; but after being graduated he took work with the Episcopal church as bishop, but at the outbreak of the war he entered the Confederate army and served with distinction. Only a short time before his death it is reported that he administered the ordinance of baptism to Generals Johnston and Hood. It is said that he was rebuked by some of his church for taking up arms. He replied that he felt as a man plowing in a field and was called by his neighbor to help extinguish the flames from his house which was on fire, and after the fire would go back to work. He was succeeded in command by General Loring.

Sherman decided to attack Johnston at Kenesaw Mountain, this being anticipated by Johnston and, on account of his strong position, met with his approval. This desperate battle was fought on the 27th day of June. Sherman's army advanced against the strong Confederate works again and again during the day, but every charge was repulsed, the mountainside being swept by the musketry and artillery of the Confederates. Sherman's loss in this battle was more than 3,000 men, while that of the Confederates was less than 1,000.

Sherman was convinced that his success did not lay in attacking his antagonist in a strong position, and turned upon Johnston's right and attempted to pass around him to Atlanta in the same manner in which Grant was trying to pass around Lee to Richmond.

Sherman succeeded in drawing Johnston away from Kenesaw Mountain, and Johnston withdrew his army by shorter roads within the entrenchments before Atlanta, which was immediately confronted by the Federal hosts. This was a critical time for Sherman, as the North was in a presidential campaign in which it appeared that the success of the war party depended upon his capture of Atlanta; and on the other hand it was a critical time for the Confederates, for the loss of Atlanta would mean the loss of their iron foundries, where they manufactured most of their munitions of war, and besides would divide their country in two divisions again as Grant's capture of Vicksburg had divided it before.

General Johnston was removed from command of the army for the reasons assigned by the Confederate government that he had failed to arrest the advance of the enemy to the vicinity of Atlanta, and that he had expressed no confidence that he could defeat or repel Sherman, and for these reasons he was relieved and the same was handed to General Hood. It was said that when General Johnston received this information he informed General Hardee, who was with him, of the information received. Hardee replied, "I don't believe it." In answer Johnston said, "A thing may be unbelievable and a fact."

The removal of Johnston from the command is thought to have been a great mistake on the part of the Confederate Government, as his tactics had been in this campaign on the defensive on account of his inferior numbers and equipment to that of Sherman, while that of Hood was on the aggressive, and he maintained the idea of attacking Sherman's army, which proved to be the loss of Atlanta for the Confederacy.

Hood found himself in command of about 60,000 men, and on July 20th offered battle which was fierce and a decided loss to the Confederates, in which they were repulsed on every hand, but not without hard fighting and much loss to the Federals, for General Hood had the reputation of being a fearless, aggressive commander. This was known as the Battle of Peach Tree Creek.

Two days later, on July 22d, the Battle of Atlanta was fought, this being the greatest engagement of the entire campaign.

The Federals had closed in upon Atlanta and had succeeded in capturing some out entrenchments, but on the 22d was a general engagement of all the army, the attack being made by Hood to recapture some of his lost positions. In this engagement General McPherson was killed, which was a great blow to the Union army. General Logan succeeded to his command.

The Confederates achieved considerable success, but the Federals were presently reËnforced, and Hood withdrew within the defenses of Atlanta. Again on the 28th the Federals were attacked by General Hardee and a fierce battle was fought at Ezra Church, in which the Confederates were defeated with heavy loss.

Sherman determined on besieging the city and if possible destroy the line of supplies for Hood's army. This he succeeded in doing late in August by destroying the Macon and Western railroad.

Hood determined to attack the Federals and sent General Hardee to make an attack near Jonesboro, while he himself should attack Sherman's right flank. These attacks failed, thus necessitating the evacuation of Atlanta, which he did on September 2d, after destroying all the supplies he could not take with him.

Hood kept his army between that of Sherman's and Andersonville, at which place there were confined many thousands of Federal prisoners. With the fall of Atlanta practically ended the points of interest of Sherman's march to the sea.

The command of Hood's army was later given back to General Joseph E. Johnston.