Strategy  "Waging War Off The Battlefield"

By dictionary definition, strategy is "the science and art of military command exercised to meet the enemy in combat under advantageous circumstances". A broader understanding of the term encompasses all aspects of waging war- both on and off the battlefield- including the political, psychological, and economic mechanisms employed by a nation at war to defeat its enemy.

The overall plan employed by one country to defeat another is called the "grand strategy". The North, fighting a war of subjugation, had to use an "offensive strategy", which meant carrying the war to the enemy. In the part of its grand strategy known as the "Anaconda Plan", the Union hoped to isolate the South from outside aid by means of a blockade along the coast and control of the Mississippi River. The North also planned on invading Southern territory on many different fronts, disrupting the South's economy, destroying its material means of waging war, and, eventually, liberating the country's slaves.

At the beginning of the war, the grand strategy of the Confederate states was a "defensive strategy": gaining military and economic aid from European countries, demoralizing the North's will to wage and continue the war, and defending the South at its borders. None of these strategies proved very fruitful, however, and the Confederacy's grand strategy was altered to address the realities of the situation.

To counter the North's strategic initiatives, the Confederacy attempted to meet the more powerful enemy at places and times advantageous to Southern success on the battlefield. To gain defensive strategic results, the Confederacy often employed offensive maneuvers, and the resulting "defensive-offensive strategy" proved effective in many campaigns, such as the offensive undertaken by Gen. Robert E. Lee to defend Richmond, VA, during the Seven Days' campaign.

Fascinating Fact:  A recurring goal of both countries during the war was the capture of the enemy's capitol city. The success of such a move would be primarily symbolic, with psychological rather than strategic importance to the course of the war.


Back to index page