The first year of the Civil War saw the struggle intensify as both Federal and Confederate militaries had to mobilize forces, install a command structure, and identify strategies for their geographic commanders. In the Western Theater of the war, both Northern and Southern strategies focused upon the Mississippi River as the center of gravity to their respective successes. Island Number Ten was the tenth island south of the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, and along with the small town of New Madrid, Missouri, was one of the string of fortifications that the Confederates constructed to keep the Union forces from taking control of the river and splitting the Confederacy. In the spring of 1862, Union forces under Major General John Pope brought 20,000 Union Soldiers in conjunction with a Navy flotilla of ironclad gunboats against the Confederate's fortifications and 7,000 soldiers. What ensued was six weeks of unique fighting with joint Confederate and Union forces taking part. The root cause of the decisive Union victory is broken down in to the strategic, operational, and tactical levels of war. These root causes, along with the leadership lessons throughout the levels show the enduring value of the analysis of the operations at New Madrid and Island Number Ten.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. The opinions and conclusions expressed herein are those of the student-authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency. (References to these studies should include the foregoing statement.)