In which campaign did Grant effectively use a combination of Navy and ground forces to achieve control of the Mississippi and surrounding areas?

• A. Vicksburg Campaign
• B. Peninsula Campaign
• C. Atlanta Campaign
• D. Fredericksburg Campaign

Answer: (A)

Grants Mississippi campaign shows how river and ground forces work together to seize strategic control. He coordinated a Western Army push with a fleet of Union gunboats and transports under naval leadership, using the Mississippi River to support land operations and isolate Fulton’s defenses. The naval presence bombarded and secured river approaches while Grant’s troops invested Vicksburg, lasting a siege that culminated in the city’s surrender. With Vicksburg fallen, the Union gained unimpeded control of the Mississippi, effectively cutting the Confederacy in two and opening the door for further western offensives.

The other campaigns don’t fit this pattern. One aimed at capturing a major southern city via a Virginia peninsula without river-based control of the Mississippi. Another focused on marching through Georgia to seize a critical rail hub, not on river control. The last was an early 1862 campaign centered around Fredericksburg, not about joint river-ground operations.