Forrest Seizes the Advantage

Forrest Seizes the Advantage. . , Chaos in Retreat , Colonel Cyrus Dunham held his position south of the cotton field for over an hour. When his infantry failed to take the Confederate artillery, he gave the order "rally to the rear." It was about noon when the Union line fell back to a sixty-acre stand of timber bordered by a split-rail fence. [You can see the reconstructed fence on the far side of the interstate.], When Dunham gave the order to fall back, the 39th Iowa, the least experienced regiment in the Union force, panicked and began rushing toward the fence. Colonel Henry Cummings tried to reform his regiment but failed. Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest ordered a general advance. His cavalry pushed forward and opened on the retreating soldiers with small arms and artillery fire, further spooking the Iowans., Forrest Presses the Union Line , The Union retreat shortened their line. Forrest seized the opportunity to extend his line beyond the Union flanks. The arc of the Confederate line grew tighter, and the distance between the Union line and Forrest's artillery grew shorter. Forrest moved Captain Samuel L. Freeman's four-gun battery to the east where it could enfilade Dunham's line. This action placed Freeman's cannon almost square with Dunham's right flank and allowed the guns to fire across the whole line. The effect was devastating., On the Union left, Forrest captured the federal guns and wagon train. He sent a detachment of soldiers through the woods on the Union right. By extending his line beyond the Union position, Forrest sought to get behind Dunham. He intended to press the Union line with his artillery and round up fleeing soldiers as they broke for the rear. It was a solid plan, and it almost worked., (caption) , Col. Henry J.B. Cummings, 39th Iowa Infantry