Mountains to the Mississippi River, along a line about four hundred miles in length. They also occupied a greater portion of Missouri, south of the Missouri River.
Fremont was censured for his failure to reinforce Mulligan. The public knew very little of his embarrassments at that time. Pressing demands came for reinforcements, from General  Grant at Paducah. Cries for help were heard at various points in his department; and a peremptory order was received from General Scott to forward five thousand troops immediately to Washington city, notwithstanding McClellan (who was in chief command there) had seventy thousand men within easy call. Fremont's forces did not, at any time, number more than fifty-six thousand, and these were scattered over his department. Chafing under unjust complaints, he proceeded to put his plan for ridding the Mississippi Valley of Confederate troops into operation at once. On the 27th of September, he put more than twenty thousand soldiers (five thousand of them cavalry) in motion under the respective commands of Generals Hunter, Pope, Sigel, McKinstry and Asboth, accompanied by eighty-six heavy guns. These five columns were moving southward early in October; and on the 11th, when his army was thirty thousand strong, Fremont wrote to his Government: "My plan is New Orleans straight; I would precipitate the war forward, and end it soon and victoriously."
Fremont felt confident of success. His army were in high spirits, and small victories were won by his detachments in various places. He had strengthened the forces in Eastern  Missouri, so that St. Louis was safe; and General Hardee at Greenville, and General Pillow near New Madrid, dared not advance. He knew the bitterness of his political enemies, and the jealousies of envious men; and he was in continual expectation of interference with his plans. That interference soon came. False accusers, public and private, had such influence in the military councils at Washington that, just after his superb body-guard of one hundred and fifty cavalry, led by Zagonyi, a Hungarian, had charged upon and routed about two thousand Confederates, foot and horse, at Springfield, Fremont received an order from General Scott, directing him to turn over his command to General Hunter, then some distance in the rear. Hunter arrived just as the troops were about to attack Price. He countermanded Fremont's orders for battle; and nine days afterward General H. W. Halleck was placed in command of the Department of Missouri. The disappointed and disheartened army were turned back, and made a retrograde march to St. Louis in sullen sadness. Fremont was afterward presented with an elegant sword, inscribed: " To the Path-finder, by the Men of the West."
Just before he was deprived of his command, Fremont ordered General Grant to move a cooperative force along the line of the Mississippi River. It was promptly done. A column, about three thousand strong, and composed chiefly of Illinois volunteers, under General John A. McClernand, went down from Cairo in transports and the wooden gunboats Tyler and Lexington to menace Columbus by attacking the post at Belmont opposite; and at the same time another column, under General C. F. Smith, marched from Paducah to menace Columbus in the rear. Grant accompanied McClernand's column. The troops were landed on the morning of November 7th, three miles above Belmont, and pushed on for that post, while the gunboats opened fire upon Columbus. General Polk, still in command there, acted with vigor and promptness. He sent Pillow across the river with troops to reinforce the garrison at Belmont. In a sharp battle that ensued, the Nationals won the victory, but, exposed to a sharp fire of artillery on the bluff at Columbus that position was untenable; so, giving three cheers for the Union, they set fire to the Confederate camp, and withdrew with captured men, horses, and artillery. But Polk determined not to let the victors escape. He opened seven of his heaviest guns upon them, and at the same time sent over fresh troops under General Cheatham, and crossed over himself with two regiments, making the whole Confederate force about five
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