Bentonville Battle Was Hopeless for South

In the historiography of the American Civil War that continues to emphasize battles and leaders, what could be more important than William T. Sherman's Atlanta campaign or his March to the Sea? Perhaps Sherman's March into the Carolinas is as important, although according to Nathaniel Cheairs Hughes, the battle of Bentonville "should not have been fought" (p. 222). Yet fought it was, for three days in mid-March 1865, between Sherman and Joseph E. Johnston. Sherman had grown exasperated with the kind of warfare that had forced him to follow John Bell Hood's army. Sherman wanted to ignore Hood and march through the heart of Georgia to Savannah, on the coast. This would put Sherman on the side of war that best agreed with him--the offensive side. And because no enemy would stand between him and Savannah, it would allow his army to destroy everything of military value, thus implementing his "total war" philosophy.