Text of Message from Braxton Bragg Requesting to be Relieved from Command of the Army of Tennessee

November 29, 1863

On November 29, 1863, General Braxton Bragg wrote to General Samuel Cooper, Adjutant and Inspector General of the Confederate Army, asking to be relieved from command of the Army Tennessee.

Portrait of Braxton Bragg

On November 29, 1863, General Braxton Bragg (pictured here) wrote to General Samuel Cooper, Adjutant and Inspector General of the Confederate Army, asking to be relieved from command of the Army of Tennessee. [Wikimedia Commons]

General S. COOPER:

Our advance last night was at Tunnel Hill, the enemy just this side of Ringgold. We hope to maintain this position. Our inferiority in numbers, heavy loss in artillery, small-arms, organization, and morale, renders an earlier halt impossible; and should the enemy press on promptly we may have to cross Oostenaula. I have tried to communicate with Longstreet; by prompt movement he can be saved. Burnside’s force is far inferior to him. If necessary, he can go on and join Jones forces. Communication may be opened with him by the East Tennessee route. My first estimate of our disaster was not too large, and time only can restore order and morale. All possible aid should be pushed on to Resaca, and I deem it due to the cause and to myself to ask for relief from command and an investigation into the causes of the defeat.

BRAXTON BRAGG.

Citation Information

The following information is provided for citations.

  • Article Title Text of Message from Braxton Bragg Requesting to be Relieved from Command of the Army of Tennessee
  • Date November 29, 1863
  • Author
  • Keywords Braxton Bragg, Samuel Cooper, Army of Tennessee
  • Website Name American History Central
  • Access Date September 27, 2023
  • Publisher R.Squared Communications, LLC
  • Original Published Date
  • Date of Last Update April 19, 2022

Text of Message from Braxton Bragg Requesting to be Relieved from Command of the Army of Tennessee is Part of the Following on AHC