XIII Corps (ACW)
Encyclopedia
XIII Corps was a corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...

 of the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

. It was first led by Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...

 and later by John A. McClernand and Edward O.C. Ord. It served in the Western Theater of civil war, Trans-Mississippi Theater and along the Gulf of Mexico.

Creation

The XIII Corps, along with the XIV Corps
XIV Corps (ACW)
XIV Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was one of the earliest corps formations in the Western Theater of the American Civil War.-Creation:...

, were both put into commission on October 24, 1862 with the passing of General Orders No. 168. These two corps were the first corps created in the Western Theater. While the XIV Corps constituted all forces under the command of William S. Rosecrans, the XIII Corps likewise constituted all the forces under Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...

.

Because of the corps' immense size and it was virtually synonymous with the Army of the Tennessee
Army of the Tennessee
The Army of the Tennessee was a Union army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, named for the Tennessee River. It should not be confused with the similarly named Army of Tennessee, a Confederate army named after the State of Tennessee....

, Grant chose to subdivide the corps into the Right, Left and Center wings. In December 1862 it was officially divided inton the XIII Corps, XV Corps, XVI Corps and XVII Corps. Grant remained in command of the Army of the Tennessee and John A. McClernand assumed command of the XIII Corps. Before the official order was passed along to all the wing commanders, William T. Sherman, commander of the Right Wing, embarked on an expedition against Vicksburg. Sherman's wing of the XIII Corps fought the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou
Battle of Chickasaw Bayou
The Battle of Chickasaw Bayou, also called Walnut Hills, fought December 26–29, 1862, was the opening engagement of the Vicksburg Campaign during the American Civil War. Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton repulsed an advance by Union Maj. Gen. William T...

 on December 26–29. Although the official date which the Right Wing was designated the XV Corps was December 22, most of the reports regarding the battle at Chickasaw Bluffs still refer to the Union forces as part of the XIII Corps. No matter what it was the first time many of the troops had been under fire.

Arkansas Post

Adding to the identity crisis the XIII Corps faced in its early years was John A. McClernand's expedition against Fort Hindman at Arkansas Post. McClernand was given his XIII Corps and Sherman's XV Corps (now officially using that designation). McClernand labeled these forces the Army of the Mississippi
Army of the Mississippi
Army of the Mississippi was the name given to two Union armies that operated around the Mississippi River, both with short existences, during the American Civil War.-1862:...

 and renamed the XIII Corps "I Corps" and the XV Corps "II Corps". McClernand commanded the Army and placed General George W. Morgan
George W. Morgan
George Washington Morgan was an American soldier, lawyer, politician, and diplomat. He fought in the Texas Revolution and the Mexican-American War, and was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War...

 in command of the I Corps (former XIII Corps). The divisions of Andrew J. Smith and Peter J. Osterhaus
Peter J. Osterhaus
Peter Joseph Osterhaus was Union Army General in the American Civil War and later served as a diplomat.-Early life:Osterhaus was born in Koblenz, Rhenish Prussia. He attended the Berlin Military Academy and after serving for some time as a Prussian Army officer, he emigrated to the United States...

 participated in the battle. Only Stephen Burbridge's brigade of Smith's division bore any heavy fighting.

Vicksburg

With the impending campaign against Vicksburg, Grant took command personal command of the operation. McClernand returned to corps command and the Army of the Mississippi was merged back into the Army of the Tennessee and the XIII Corps took on its official title. As the Vicksburg campaign opened the XIII Corps was composed of the 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th Divisions commanded respectively by Osterhaus, A. J. Smith, Alvin P. Hovey
Alvin P. Hovey
Alvin Peterson Hovey was a Union general during the American Civil War, an Indiana Supreme Court justice, congressman, and the 21st Governor of Indiana from 1889 to 1891. During the war he played an important role in several battles and uncovered a secret plot for an uprising in Indiana...

, Leonard F. Ross and Eugene A. Carr. Ross' division was stationed in Arkansas during the entire campaign and did not participate in any engagements with the rest of the corps. In July, this division (now led by Frederick Salomon) fought at the Battle of Helena
Battle of Helena
The Battle of Helena was a land battle of the American Civil War fought on July 4, 1863, at Helena, Arkansas. Overshadowed by the battles of Gettysburg and Vicksburg, the Battle of Helena secured eastern Arkansas for the Union.- Union forces :...

 as part of the District of Eastern Arkansas under Benjamin M. Prentiss.

The Battle of Port Gibson
Battle of Port Gibson
The Battle of Port Gibson was fought near Port Gibson, Mississippi, on May 1, 1863, between Union and Confederate forces during the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. The Union Army was led by Maj. Gen. Ulysses S...

 was fought by the XIII Corps, with the aid of a portion of the XVII Corps. McClernand did not bring the full force of the corps to bear at the Battle of Champion Hill
Battle of Champion Hill
The Battle of Champion Hill, or Bakers Creek, fought May 16, 1863, was the pivotal battle in the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. Union commander Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and the Army of the Tennessee pursued the retreating Confederate Lt. Gen. John C...

 but Hovey's division led the attack on the Confederate right. Immediately following the victory at Champion's Hill the Battle of Big Black River Bridge
Battle of Big Black River Bridge
The Battle of Big Black River Bridge, or Big Black, fought May 17, 1863, was part of the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. Union commander Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and the Army of the Tennessee pursued the retreating Confederate Lt. Gen. John C...

 was again fought exclusively by the XIII Corps, Carr's division bearing the brunt of the fight.

When Grant initiated siege operations the XIII Corps took up a position on the Union left. During the assaults on Vicksburg the XIII Corps lost nearly 1,500 soldiers.

McClernand had been a long time thorn in Grant's side and on June 19, Grant found an opportunity to remove him from command. His replacement was Edward O. C. Ord, a friend of Grant's who had just recovered from a wound sustained in 1862. Ord led the corps throughout the rest of the siege. After Vicksburg fell, William T. Sherman led an expedition back to Jackson, MS to clear the city of Confederates which had gathered there. Sherman took with him the XIII Corps and attached to it the division under Jacob G. Lauman from the XVI Corps. General Carr, who temporarily left the army due to sickness, had been replaced in division command by William P. Benton.

Texas and Louisiana

After the fall of Jackson the corps returned to Vicksburg and then transferred to the Department of the Gulf. The District of Eastern Arkansas had been detached from the Corps; AJ Smith had been reassigned to command a post in Tennessee; Osterhaus had been reassigned to command a division in the XV Corps; Hovey took leave of the army due to the death of his wife; two of the divisions in the field were consolidated under the command of Cadwallader C. Washburn
Cadwallader C. Washburn
Cadwallader Colden Washburn was an American businessman, politician, and soldier noted for founding what would later become General Mills and working in government for Wisconsin. He was born in Livermore, Maine, one of seven brothers that included Israel Washburn, Jr., Elihu B. Washburne, William D...

; and General Herron's division was attached.

General Banks used the XIII Corps to conduct his coastal campaign against Texas during the fall of 1863, capturing Brownsville
Battle of Brownsville
The Battle of Brownsville took place on November 2-6, 1863 during the American Civil War. It was a successful effort on behalf of the Union Army to disrupt Confederate blockade runners along the Gulf Coast in Texas...

.
By February 1864 corps headquarters were in Texas and General McClernand had returned to command.

Red River

The 1st and 2nd Divisions remained in Texas but Nathaniel P. Banks took with him the 3rd and 4th Divisions during the Red River Campaign
Red River Campaign
The Red River Campaign or Red River Expedition consisted of a series of battles fought along the Red River in Louisiana during the American Civil War from March 10 to May 22, 1864. The campaign was a Union initiative, fought between approximately 30,000 Union troops under the command of Maj. Gen....

. During the first part of the campaign the corps was commanded by Thomas E. G. Ransom
Thomas E. G. Ransom
Thomas Edwin Greenfield Ransom was a surveyor, civil engineer, real estate speculator, and a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...

, the 3rd Division by General Robert A. Cameron and the 4th Division by Colonel William J. Landram. The corps fought at the Battle of Mansfield
Battle of Mansfield
The Battle of Mansfield, also known as the Battle of Sabine Crossroads, occurred on April 8, 1864, in De Soto Parish, Louisiana. Confederate forces commanded by Richard Taylor attacked a Union army commanded by Nathaniel Banks a few miles outside the town of Mansfield, near Sabine Crossroads...

. Ransom was wounded at Mansfield and was succeeded in command of the corps by General Cameron. A few weeks later Michael K. Lawler of the 1st Division in Texas became the official corps commander. General McClernand however assumed direct command of the two divisions fighting in Louisiana under Banks. McClernand was relieved of command due to ill health and Lawler himself personally commanded this detachment. Shortly after William P. Benton was assigned to the corps command but Lawler remained in command of the detachment in Louisiana. Lawler led the XIII Corps Detachment at the Battle of Mansura
Battle of Mansura
The Battle of Mansura was fought near Mansura, Louisiana, on May 16, 1864, during the Red River Campaign of the American Civil War. A Union force defeated elements of the Confederate States Army.-Background:...

.

Mobile

The corps was discontinued on June 11, 1864. On February 18, 1865 it was reorganized under the command of Gordon Granger
Gordon Granger
Gordon Granger was a career U.S. army officer and a Union general during the American Civil War. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Chickamauga.-Early life & Mexico:...

 with three divisions commanded respectively by James C. Veatch
James C. Veatch
James Clifford Veatch was a lawyer who served as an Indiana state legislator and county auditor. He later served as a Union general during the American Civil War, fighting primarily in the Western Theater...

, Christopher C. Andrews and William P. Benton. This new form of the XIII Corps fought in the Battle of Fort Blakely
Battle of Fort Blakely
-Sources:**-External links:*...

which led to the fall of the city of Mobile, Alabama. The corps was discontinued for the final time July 20, 1865.

The men of the XIII Corps were never designated an official corps badge and therefore never wore any form of a corps badge during the war.

External links

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