Atlas of Battles

battle, major, nineteenth century

Battle of Shiloh

Battle of Shiloh was a battle fought on 6 April 1862 at Hardin County, in what is now Tennessee, United States; it lasted 1 day. It was part of the Western theater of the American Civil War. The recorded result: Union victory. Recorded strength: 66,812Army of TN: 48,894 against 44,699.

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Illustration of the Battle of Shiloh in the American Civil War by L. Prang & Co.
Illustration of the Battle of Shiloh in the American Civil War by L. Prang & Co.. Thure de Thulstrup / Adam Cuerden, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought6 April 1862lasted 1 day
WhereHardin County, Tennessee, United States35.151N, 88.322W
OutcomeUnion victory
BelligerentsUnited States (Union)againstConfederate States
Casualties and losses13,0471,754 killedand10,6991,728 killed
Battlefield todayShiloh battlefieldNPS site TN003, 46,756 acres studied, 10,873 core
Part ofWestern theater of the American Civil War

Where it sits in the Western theater of the American Civil War

Battle of Barbourville, 1861Battle of Shiloh, 1862First Battle of Collierville, 1863Second Battle of Collierville, 186318611863Battle of Shiloh, 1862
4 placed engagements of the Western theater of the American Civil War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date6 April 1862
to 7 April 1862
PlaceHardin County, Tennessee, United States
35.151N, 88.322W
KindBattle, nineteenth century
Strength66,812Army of TN: 48,89444,699
Casualties and losses13,0471,754 killed10,6991,728 killed
Commanders
Battle of ShilohBattle of ShilohSecond Battle of CorinthSiege of CorinthBattle of IukaBattle of Hatchie BridgeBattle of Cherokee StationSecond Battle of CorinthSiege of CorinthBattle of IukaBattle of Hatchie BridgeBattle of Cherokee StationJacksonFlorence50 km35.151N, 88.322W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. The dashed outline is the battlefield study area mapped by the NPS American Battlefield Protection Program. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Shiloh
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 10 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Shiloh today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-10-08. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 144 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 109 to 195 m, 86 m of relief, gently rolling country and today it is 58% tree cover, 25% cropland, 9% grassland.

tree cover: 58%cropland: 25%grassland: 9%water: 8%tree cover 58%cropland 25%grassland 9%water 8%
west to east, 10.0 km110 to 162 mnorth to south, 10.0 km111 to 166 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1862

Combat data (CDB90)

Attacker: CS ARMY OF MISSISSIPPIDefender: US ARMIES OF THE TENNESSEE AND OHIO
Strength40,35566,812
Casualties10,699 (26.5%)13,047 (19.5%)
Mission accomplishment, 1 to 1046
Outcomedefender won
Duration2.1 days
Front width6 km8 km
Attacker advanced0 km

From the US Army Concepts Analysis Agency Database of Battles (CDB90, battle 178), public domain, in the CC0 tidy edition by Jeffrey B. Arnold. Figures are the database's estimates, compiled in 1990 from published histories, and may differ from the Wikipedia infobox above.

The National Park Service's American Battlefield Protection Program maps this as the Shiloh battlefield (site TN003): a study area of 46,756 acres, with a core area of 10,873 acres where the fighting was concentrated; 33,637 acres retain enough integrity to be potentially eligible for the National Register.

Battle of Shiloh is one of 3,507 engagements of the 19th century in the atlas and one of 1,148 in present-day United States (56 in Tennessee).

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q943277, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Shiloh, revision 1381803453, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Battlefield boundary and area from the National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program (public domain). Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.