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Selma
April 2, 1865 Dallas County, AL Campaign: Invading
Alabama
Maj. Gen. James H. Wilson, USA Lt. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest, CSA
Wilson had two cavalry divisions against the 5,000 or so troops in Selma.
2,700 Confederate prisoners were taken; the Union lost around 300 men.
Wilson, commanding three divisions totaling about cavalry, led his men south
from Gravelly Springs, Alabama, on March 22, 1865. Opposed by Confederate
Lt. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest, Wilson skillfully continued his march and eventually
defeated him in a running battle at Ebenezer Church, on April 1.
Continuing towards Selma, Wilson split his command into three columns.
Although Selma was well-defended, the Union columns broke through the defenses
at two separate points forcing the Confederates to surrender the city, although
many of the officers and men, including Forrest and Lt. Gen. Richard Taylor,
escaped. Selma demonstrated that even Forrest, whom some had considered
invincible, could not stop the unrelenting Union movements deep into the
Southern Heartland.
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