Battle of Waynesboro, Georgia 1864
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 4 December 1864 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1864 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | United States | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | American Civil War | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 33.0897, -82.0158 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Waynesboro was an American Civil War battle fought on December 4, 1864, in eastern Georgia, towards the end of Sherman's March to the Sea. Union cavalry forces under Brig. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick defeated Confederate cavalry led by Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler, opening the way for William T. Sherman's armies to approach their objective, Savannah.
As Sherman's infantry marched southeast through Georgia, his cavalry under Judson Kilpatrick rode northeastward. In the late afternoon of November 26, 1864, elements of Kilpatrick's 3rd Cavalry Division had reached the wooden railroad bridge north of Waynesboro, Georgia, and partially burned it before being driven off by troops dispatched from the Cavalry Corps of the Army of Tennessee by Joseph Wheeler. After the numerically inferior Confederates withdrew, Kilpatrick entered Waynesboro the next day and destroyed a train of cars and much private property before being driven from the town by Wheeler. At dawn on November 28, Wheeler suddenly attacked Kilpatrick's camp south of Waynesboro and drove him southwest beyond Buckhead Creek toward Louisville.
Annoyed by Wheeler's constant harassment, Kilpatrick set out on the morning of December 4 with his full division to attack Waynesboro and finally destroy Wheeler's small command.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Waynesboro, Georgia (revision 1370593477), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
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Other battles of the American Civil War
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- Skirmish at Ashley's Mills 1863
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- Skirmish of Sporting Hill 1863
- Action at Ashley's Station 1864
- Ambush of the steamboat J. R. Williams 1864
- Bahia incident 1864
- Battle of Adairsville 1864
- Battle of Albemarle Sound 1864
All 498 battles of the American Civil War →
Browse more: battles in United States · North America · 19th century battles