After the defeat of
Hardee at
Averasboro,
Sherman believed he would meet with no more serious opposition in his march to
Goldsboro.
He issued orders accordingly.
This sense of security proved almost fatal to
Sherman's army, for at that moment,
Johnston, who had come down from
Smithfield, N. C., on a rapid but stealthy march, under cover of night, was hovering near in full force.
he found the Nationals in a favorable position for him to attack them.
Gen. J. C. Davis's corps was encamped (March 18, 1865) on the
Goldsboro road, at a point where it was crossed by one from
Clinton to
Smithfield.
Two divisions of
Williams's were encamped 10 or 12 miles in the rear of this, in charge of
Slocum's wagon-trains.
The remainder of the forces were scattered to the south and east, in fancied security.
On the morning of the 16th,
Sherman left
Slocum, nearest the
Confederates, to join
Howard's troops, which were scattered and moving on over the wretched, muddy road.
On March 19,
Sherman, while on his way to
Howard, heard cannonading on his left wing, but did not think there was anything serious in it. It proved, however, to be a complete surprise.
The Confederates, in overwhelming numbers, were found pressing
Slocum.
A very severe battle ensued, in a densely wooded swamp, dark and wet and dismal.
In this encounter,
Gen. J. C. Davis conducted much of the battle with great skill and courage, continually cheering his men with assurances of victory.
Johnston had assured his men that he was confident of victory, and the troops on both sides fought desperately.
Davis had formed
General Fearing's brigade to the left and hurled them upon the flank of the
Confederates.
The latter were staggered and paralyzed by this unexpected and stunning blow from a force hitherto unseen by them, for
Fearing's troops were in reserve.
They reeled and fell back in amazement, and the attack was not renewed on that part of the field for more than an hour afterwards.
The army was saved.
The young general (Fearing) was disabled by a bullet, and hundreds of his brigade, dead and wounded, strewed the field of conflict.
Davis re-formed the disordered left and centre of his line in open fields half a mile in the rear of the old line.
The artillery was moved to a commanding knoll, and
Kilpatrick massed his cavalry on the left.
Meanwhile an attack upon
Morgan's division of the 14th Corps had been very severe and unceasing.
The National forces received six distinct assaults by the combined troops of
Hardee,
Hoke, and
Cheatham, under the immediate command of
General Johnston, without yielding an inch of ground, and all the while doing much execution on the
Confederate ranks, especially with the artillery.
With darkness this conflict, known as the
battle of Bentonville, ended.
It was one of the most notable battles of the
Civil War. The main forces of the
Union and of its enemies were then concentrating at one point for a desperate last struggle — sherman and
Johnston in
North Carolina, and
Grant and
Lee in
Virginia.
Had
Johnston won at that time the consequence probably would have been the loss of the whole of
Sherman's army and the quick and fatal dispersion or capture of
Grant's before
Petersburg and
Richmond.
On the night after the battle reinforcements came to the left of the Nationals.
The Confederates prepared for another onset, but when
Johnston heard of the actual connection of three National armies in the vicinity of
Goldsboro, he perceived that all chance for success against
Sherman had vanished.
There had been hard fighting all day (March 20, 1865), and that night, after having his only line of retreat severely menaced by a flank movement under
General Mower,
Johnston withdrew and went towards
Smithfield in such haste that he left his pickets, wounded in hospitals, and dead behind.
The aggregate loss of the Nationals near
Bentonville was 1,648.
The loss of the
Confederates was never reported.
[
325]
The Nationals captured 1,625 of their men, and buried 267 of their dead.
