On May 22, 1863, General Ulysses S. Grant ordered an assault on the Confederate heights at Vicksburg, Mississippi. The plan called for a storming party of volunteers to build a bridge across a moat and plant scaling ladders against the enemy embankment in advance of the main attack. The volunteers knew the odds were against survival and the mission was called, in nineteenth century vernacular, a "forlorn hope". Only single men were accepted as volunteers and even then, twice as many men as needed came forward and were turned away. The assault began in the early morning following a naval bombardment.
The Union soldiers came under enemy fire immediately and were pinned down in the ditch they were to cross. Despite repeated attacks by the main Union body, the men of the forlorn hope were unable to retreat until nightfall. Of the 150 men in the storming party, nearly half were killed. Seventy-nine of the survivors were awarded the Medal of Honor.
Medal of Honor citationedit
For gallantry in the charge of the volunteer storming party on 22 May 1863.
"William John". Hall of Valor. Military Times. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
External linksedit
"William John". Find a Grave. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
A Forlorn Hope
Vicksburg Medal of Honor Recipients
April 12, 2024
william, john, medal, honor, william, john, october, 1844, 1927, union, army, soldier, during, american, civil, received, medal, honor, gallantry, during, siege, vicksburg, 1863, william, johnborn, 1844, october, 1844germanydied1927, aged, kansasplace, burialp. William F John October 23 1844 1927 was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War He received the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the Siege of Vicksburg on May 22 1863 William F JohnBorn 1844 10 23 October 23 1844GermanyDied1927 aged 82 83 KansasPlace of burialPrattsburg Cemetery Macksville KansasAllegianceUnited StatesService wbr branchUnited States Army Union ArmyRankPrivateUnitCompany E 37th Ohio Volunteer InfantryBattles warsAmerican Civil War Siege of VicksburgAwardsMedal of Honor Contents 1 Union assault 2 Medal of Honor citation 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksUnion assault editOn May 22 1863 General Ulysses S Grant ordered an assault on the Confederate heights at Vicksburg Mississippi The plan called for a storming party of volunteers to build a bridge across a moat and plant scaling ladders against the enemy embankment in advance of the main attack The volunteers knew the odds were against survival and the mission was called in nineteenth century vernacular a forlorn hope Only single men were accepted as volunteers and even then twice as many men as needed came forward and were turned away The assault began in the early morning following a naval bombardment The Union soldiers came under enemy fire immediately and were pinned down in the ditch they were to cross Despite repeated attacks by the main Union body the men of the forlorn hope were unable to retreat until nightfall Of the 150 men in the storming party nearly half were killed Seventy nine of the survivors were awarded the Medal of Honor Medal of Honor citation editFor gallantry in the charge of the volunteer storming party on 22 May 1863 See also edit nbsp Biography portal nbsp American Civil War portalList of Medal of Honor recipients List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients G LReferences edit William John Hall of Valor Military Times Retrieved October 11 2010 External links edit William John Find a Grave Retrieved October 11 2010 A Forlorn Hope Vicksburg Medal of Honor Recipients Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William John Medal of Honor amp oldid 1171054695, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
