The battle started on April,6,1862 their were 40,000 Confederate soldiers under the command of Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston.
He appeared from the nearby woods and came across a line of Union soldiers that were occupying their area around Pittsburg Landing on the Tennessee River. The Union was over powered by the Confederates wich drove the Federal forces (wich were unprepaired) from their camps and threatened to overwhelm Ulysses S. Grant’s entire command. A few of the federals held their ground and made a stand by the afternoon, they had established a battle line at the sunken road, known as the "Hornet's Nest". The Confederates surrounded Union troops that were found dead, missing , captured, and wounded. This was all during the first day's attack, Gen. Johnston was badly wounded he was also replaced by P.G.T. Beauregard. The fighting continued to escalate until dark. The Federals held their ground . The next day the reinforced Federal army was numbered at about 40,000. It out numbered Beauregard’s army of less than 30,000. Grant’s April 7th counter offensive overpowered the weakened Confederate forces and Beauregard’s army retired from the field. The two day battle at Shiloh produced more than 23,000 casualties and was the bloodiest battle in American history at its time.