ANDY THOMAS Civil War Battle Prairie of Grove BAYONET OR RETREAT 4 Bonus Prints

Description

"…THE BAYONET OR RETREAT"
by Andy Thomas
"…THE BAYONET OR RETREAT" by artist Andy Thomas is a signed and numbered print from an edition limited to only 900 prints.
The Battle of Prairie Grove on December 7, 1862 was the last time armies of almost equal strength fought for supremacy in northwest Arkansas. When the Confederates withdrew from the bloody battlefield at midnight due to a shortage of ammunition, it became clear that Missouri would remain under Union control and that northwest Arkansas would soon be occupied by Federal forces.  Confederate Major General Thomas C. Hindman's Army of the Trans-Mississippi with 12,000 men marched north from Fort Smith to attack the Kansas Division of the Army of the Frontier with 5,000 men under the command of Brigadier General James G. Blunt.  Responding to a cry for reinforcements was Brigadier General Francis Jay Herron who placed two Union divisions on a furious march of over one hundred miles in three and a half days, arriving in Fayetteville at midnight December 6th with about 5,000 men.  Hindman decided to attach Herron's exhausted troops by moving north and positioning his men on the Prairie Grove ridge.  Following an artillery duel, Herron ordered the 20th Wisconsin and 19th Iowa infantry regiments up the slope where they met heavy resistance and retreated.  After a Confederate counterattack failed, two more Union regiments, the 26th Indiana and the 37th Illinois, charged up the ridge.
"…THE BAYONET OR RETREAT" depicts this second charge featuring the 37th Illinois Infantry regiment which advanced into the apple orchard behind the Borden House before giving ground and facing a critical decision. As Lt. Col. John C. Black recalled, "My skirmishers... reported the enemy's artillery posted on our right.  Thus overwhelmed, the only hope from annihilation was the bayonet or retreat.  The bayonet could not be used... so, reluctantly, I ordered a retreat."  Another Confederate counterattack was driven back by the soldiers of the 37th Illinois armed with muzzle loading rifles and about two hundred Colt revolving rifles in companies A and K.  The arrival of General Blunt's Union troops shifted the fighting to the west which lasted until darkness settled over the field.  Neither army gained an advantage, but both sustained heavy casualties numbering about 2,700 for the day.  A truce established between Generals Hindman and Blunt allowed the Confederate forces to quietly withdraw during the day.  This amazing mint condition print has been stored flat and has never been framed.  It measures 18½" x 25½" overall and is signed by the artist.
CIVIL WAR GENERALS MINI PRINTS
by Mike Thorson
The lucky winner of this auction will also receive at no additional cost a set of FOUR Civil War Generals Mini-Prints by artist Mike Thorson featuring ROBERT E. LEE, ULYSSES S. GRANT, THOMAS "STONEWALL" JACKSON, and WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN.  Each amazing print has an image size of 4½" x 5½" designed to be matted and placed into a standard 8" x 10" frame.  These minis were reproduced from the original pencil sketches and are printed on high-quality 120 lb. archival paper.
Buyer to pay .00 toward USPS Priority Mail DOMESTIC SHIPPING.  REDUCED INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING as shown.  NOTE: This print will be shipped in a sturdy tube – we DO NOT offer flat shipping.  (To our valued International Clients - we are not responsible for import taxes and duties applicable to the declared value of your purchase.)  Save on shipping with multiple purchases - we can ship up to four prints to the same address for the same cost.
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