Editing American Civil War (section)

=== Background ===
==== Army of the Cumberland and Army of the Tennessee ====
{{Main|Army of the Cumberland|Army of the Tennessee}}
[[File:Gen. Ulysses S. Grant (4228634580).jpg|thumb|[[Ulysses S. Grant]], a [[Union army]] general who was later elected the nation's 18th [[President of the United States|president]]]]
The primary Union forces in this theater were the [[Army of the Tennessee]] and [[Army of the Cumberland]], named for the two rivers, [[Tennessee River]] and [[Cumberland River]]. After Meade's inconclusive fall campaign, Lincoln turned to the Western theater for new leadership. At the same time, the Confederate stronghold of Vicksburg surrendered, giving the Union control of the Mississippi River, permanently isolating the western Confederacy, and producing the new leader Lincoln needed, [[Ulysses S. Grant]].<ref name="BattlefieldTrust">{{Cite web |title=Vicksburg |url=https://www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/vicksburg |access-date=September 27, 2022 |publisher=American Battlefield Trust}}</ref>

The Army of Tennessee, which served as the primary Confederate force in the Western theater, was formed on November 20, 1862, when General [[Braxton Bragg]] renamed the former [[Army of Mississippi]]. While Confederate forces had successes in the Eastern theater, they were defeated many times in the West.<ref name="Bowery2014" />