The Battle of Missionary Ridge: The Greatest Civil War Battles

In late September 1863, the Union Army of the Cumberland faced a tense siege around Chattanooga as Confederate forces commanded control over key strategic positions. Following a major defeat at Chickamauga, Union leadership underwent significant changes, with Ulysses S. Grant taking command of the effort to lift the siege and General George H. Thomas pledging to hold the city at all costs. Reinforcements from President Lincoln, including additional divisions, arrived to support the Union defenses during a critical and extraordinary phase of the Civil War.