Perryville
Battle of Chaplin Hills
On October 7, 1862, Maj. Gen. Don Carlos Buell's Army of the Ohio, in pursuit of Gen Braxton Bragg’s Army of Mississippi, approached the crossroads town of Perryville, Kentucky. Union forces skirmished with Confederates on the Springfield Pike before heavy fighting began on Peters Hill. The next day, fighting continued as a Union division advanced up the pike. After noon, a Confederate division struck the Union left flank and forced it to fall back. When more Confederates joined the fray, the Union line made a stubborn stand, counterattacked, but finally retreated. Reinforced on their left, Union troops stabilized their line and the Confederate attack sputtered to a halt. Later, three Confederate regiments assaulted a Union division on the Springfield Pike but were repulsed and fell back into Perryville. Bragg, short of men and supplies, withdrew during the night. The battle was a Confederate tactical victory, but Bragg’s retreat effectively ended the campaign.
Battle Facts
Result
Union Victory
COMMANDERS
Forces Engaged
71,000
Union
55,000
Confederate
16,000
Total Estimated Casualties
7,612
Union
4,211
845
killed
2,635
wounded
515
missing & captured
Confederate
3,401
510
killed
2,641
wounded
251
missing & captured
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