Sherman's March to the Sea is the name commonly given to the
military Savannah Campaign in the
American Civil War, conducted through
Georgia from November 15 to December 21, 1864 by
Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the
Union Army. The campaign began with Sherman's troops leaving the
captured city of
Atlanta, Georgia, on November 15 and ended with the capture of the port of
Savannah on December 21. His forces destroyed military targets as well as industry, infrastructure, and civilian property and disrupted the Confederacy's economy and its transportation networks. Sherman's bold move of operating deep within enemy territory and without supply lines is considered to be revolutionary in the annals of war.