April 3, 1862 (Wednesday): Johnston Starts the March to Shiloh

General Albert Sydney Johnston

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI, Corinth, Miss., April 3, 1862.

Soldiers of the Army of the Mississippi:
    I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country. With the resolution and disciplined valor becoming men fighting, as you are, for all worth living or dying for, you can but march to a decisive victory over the agrarian mercenaries sent to subjugate and despoil you of your liberties, property, and honor. Remember the precious stake involved; remember the dependence of your mothers, your wives, your sisters, and your children on the result; remember the fair, broad, abounding land, the happy homes, and the ties that would be desolated by your defeat.
    The eyes and the hopes of eight millions of people rest upon you. You are expected to show yourselves worthy of your race and lineage; worthy of the women of the South, whose noble devotion in this war has never been exceeded in any time. With such incentives to brave deeds and with the trust that God is with us, your general will lead you confidently to be combat, assured of success.



A. S. JOHNSTON,
General.
GENERAL ORDERS,
HDQRS. ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI.

Official Records, Series I., Vol. 10, Part 2, Page 389.

Johnston sent his army on the march to Shiloh with these sentiments.  During the war generals often made such statements on the eve of battle.  Although they may seem overblown, they personalized the impending battle by linking it to the defense of home and hearth.