Shiloh Hill

It was a two day battle, but a momentous one, that brought attention to the ugliness of the American Civil War, with its casualties on both sides and the fierce fighting that took place at Shiloh Hill, near Pittsburg Landing on the Tennessee River on April 6, 1862.

40,000 Confederate soldiers were led into battle under the command of General Albert Sidney Johnston.  They threatened to overcome the Union soldiers who were under the command of Ulysses S. Grant.

The Rebel soldiers took the offensive, trying to take what the Union soldiers referred to as the "Hornet's Nest." But even as they killed and wounded many of the Union soldiers, the fighting continue as the Federals held on, with forces gathering together at about 40,000, and the diminished forces of P.G.T. Bearegard who took over from General Johnston after he was wounded and died during the first day's attacks.

The Union soldiers, having initially been surprised by the Confederate attacks that first day, held on with their reinforcements on the second day of battle.  They were able to overcome the Confederates who had been weakened by the heavy fighting.

The Battle at Shiloh Hill left 23,000 casualties and is considered one of the more bloody battles of the Civil War.  And the song, with its lyrics written by a soldier who was there at the time, gives an air of authenticity distinctly different because it was a recollection of a real event by a participant in that event.