Overview
The Battle of Cumberland Gap took place from September 7 through September 9, 1863, at the Cumberland Gap in the Appalachian Mountains. The battle formed part of the East Tennessee Campaign and ended in a bloodless Union victory.
President Abraham Lincoln considered control of East Tennessee important because most residents in the region remained loyal to the Union. The region also contained a major railroad that connected Richmond, Virginia, with Chattanooga, Tennessee, and the Deep South. East Tennessee farms also produced large amounts of food.
General Ambrose Burnside advanced toward Knoxville with the Army of the Ohio during the summer of 1863. The most direct route passed through Cumberland Gap, where General John W. Frazer commanded Confederate defenses. Instead of attacking the strong position, Burnside led two divisions across more than 40 miles of rough terrain around the gap.
Burnside’s cavalry reached Knoxville, Tennessee, on September 2, 1863, and faced almost no opposition. His army entered the city the next day. Burnside then focused on Frazer’s 2,300 soldiers at Cumberland Gap. A Union division threatened the Confederates from the north, while Burnside marched a brigade 60 miles in 52 hours to block their escape to the south. Frazer surrendered on September 9 after Union forces surrounded his garrison.
Essential Facts
- Date: September 7-9, 1863.
- Location: Cumberland Gap in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: Ambrose Burnside.
- CSA Commanders: John W. Frazer.
- Who Won: The United States won the Battle of Cumberland Gap.
- Campaign: East Tennessee Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, July–December, 1863.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: None.
- Forces Engaged: Army of the Ohio.
- Troop Strength: Undetermined.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: About 2,300 captured.
- Forces Engaged: 5th Brigade of the Army of Tennessee.
- Troop Strength: About 2,300 soldiers.
Significance
The Battle of Cumberland Gap was important to American History because it strengthened Union control of East Tennessee without any casualties. General Ambrose Burnside avoided a direct attack on the Confederate defenses and instead occupied Knoxville, Tennessee, before surrounding the Cumberland Gap. His forces blocked the Confederate garrison’s escape routes from both the north and south. General John W. Frazer surrendered about 2,300 soldiers after recognizing that a larger Union force had surrounded him. The victory gave the Union control of Cumberland Gap, an important passage through the Appalachian Mountains, and helped secure East Tennessee until Confederate General James Longstreet launched the Knoxville Campaign in November 1863.
History
On June 8, 1861, Tennessee became the last Southern state to secede from the Union. The decision, however, was far from unanimous. In the eastern part of the state, voters rejected the referendum on secession by about 20,000 votes. Starting an independent secessionist movement, citizens of East Tennessee petitioned the state legislature to form a new state that would remain in the Union. The governor responded by sending military personnel to Knoxville to enforce the statewide vote for secession from the Union. Despite attempts to coerce the population, most residents of East Tennessee and Knoxville remained pro-Union throughout the American Civil War.
After the Civil War began, President Abraham Lincoln considered the liberation of East Tennessee to be of paramount importance. Beyond the moral and political duty to support the loyal citizens of that part of the Union, East Tennessee was strategically valuable. The main railway connecting the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia, to Chattanooga, Tennessee, and on to the Deep South ran through Knoxville. In addition, East Tennessee farmers produced large amounts of food supplies that could sustain whichever side controlled the area.
Despite its strategic importance and being high on the president’s list of priorities, events in other theaters of the war delayed major Union action in East Tennessee until Major General Ambrose Burnside and his Army of the Ohio moved to occupy the area in the summer of 1863.
Burnside Advances toward Knoxville
Lincoln reassigned Burnside as commander of the Department of the Ohio on January 26, 1863, following Burnside’s brief and unsuccessful tenure leading the Army of the Potomac. Burnside arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio, in March, and following some controversial confrontations with Copperheads, he turned his attention to Knoxville. Burnside left Cincinnati on June 2, 1863, and marched two corps, the 9th and 13th, to Lexington, Kentucky.
Upon arriving in Lexington, Major General Ulysses S. Grant delayed Burnside’s plans when he ordered the 9th Corps to reinforce the Union offensive to seize the Confederate stronghold at Vicksburg, Mississippi. While awaiting the return of the 9th Corps, Burnside ordered a small combined force of cavalry and infantry to conduct raids near Knoxville, destroying railroads and communications lines. On August 6, Burnside resumed his advance from Lexington to Knoxville, planning to reunite with the 9th Corps along the way.
Burnside Bypasses the Cumberland Gap
The most direct route from Lexington to Knoxville passed through the Cumberland Gap, which Confederate soldiers commanded by Brigadier General John Frazer defended. Instead of launching a direct assault on the Rebel defenders, Burnside marched two divisions of his army over forty miles of rugged terrain around the Cumberland Gap toward Knoxville.
Burnside Occupies Knoxville
Events occurring in the Chickamauga Campaign had forced Frazer’s commander, Major General Simon B. Buckner, to move most of his army to southern Tennessee, leaving only a token force to defend Knoxville. When Burnside’s cavalry reached Knoxville on September 2, they faced almost no opposition. The next day, the citizens of Knoxville welcomed Burnside when he marched his army into the city.
Confederate Surrender at Cumberland Gap
After occupying Knoxville, Burnside returned his attention to the 2,300 Confederate holdouts at the Cumberland Gap who refused to surrender, despite being threatened from the north by a division Burnside had left behind. On September 7, Burnside marched a brigade sixty miles in fifty-two hours from Knoxville to the Cumberland Gap, blocking any Confederate escape to the south. After Frazer realized that Burnside had surrounded him with a larger force, he surrendered on September 9.
Aftermath
After the Battle of Cumberland Gap, except for some Rebel cavalry raids and federal efforts to clear the area, East Tennessee remained relatively quiet until November 1863, when Confederate General James Longstreet launched his Knoxville Campaign.
Timeline
- 1861, June 8 — Tennessee became the last Southern state to secede from the Union.
- 1863, January 26 — President Abraham Lincoln appointed Ambrose Burnside as Commander of the Department of the Ohio.
- 1863, March — Burnside arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio.
- 1863, June 2 — Burnside left Cincinnati and marched the 9th Corps and 13th Corps toward Lexington, Kentucky.
- 1863, August 6 — Burnside resumed his advance from Lexington toward Knoxville.
- 1863, September 2 — Burnside’s cavalry reached Knoxville and faced almost no opposition.
- 1863, September 3 — Burnside marched the Army of the Ohio into Knoxville.
- 1863, September 7 — Burnside marched a brigade from Knoxville toward Cumberland Gap to block a Confederate escape to the south.
- 1863, September 9 — John W. Frazer surrendered about 2,300 Confederate soldiers at Cumberland Gap.
- 1863, November — Confederate General James Longstreet launched the Knoxville Campaign.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Cumberland Gap (1863) — The Battle of Cumberland Gap was a bloodless engagement fought from September 7 through September 9, 1863, during the East Tennessee Campaign. General Ambrose Burnside bypassed the Confederate defenses at Cumberland Gap and occupied Knoxville with little opposition. He then sent forces to block the Confederate garrison’s escape routes from the north and south. Surrounded by a larger Union force, General John W. Frazer surrendered about 2,300 Confederate soldiers on September 9.
Alignment
The Battle of Cumberland Gap is part of the following AP US History sections:
