$Intro <FONT=HelpHeader,C,8,12,24>PR6b-March 8-Battle of Elkhorn Tavern (U-Corps)
   
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Length of Play:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> 90 minutes
 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Command:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> Brig Gen Samuel Ryan Curtis
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Date:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> 8 March 1862
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Time Span:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> 8:00 A.M. to late morning (game-clock: 8:00 - 9:30) 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Location:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> Northwest Arkansas, Benton County
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Weather:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> Partly cloudy and cold
 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Situation:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24>    
       Though Union Gen. Samuel R. Curtis' men had been badly beaten during the fighting on March 7, they still held a strong position south of Elkhorn Tavern.  That night, Curtis consolidated his forces, bringing up the divisions of Jefferson C. Davis and Peter J. Osterhaus—the same troops that had successfully driven Benjamin McCullough's Confederates from the field at Leetown.  On the morning of March 8, a furious artillery bombardment began bringing havoc on the Southern line. 
 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Mission:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> Secure all objectives and drive the enemy from the field
  
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Victory Conditions:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24>
  5000 = Major Victory
  4500 = Minor Victory   
  3500 = Draw   
  3000 = Minor Defeat
  2500 = Major Defeat

 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Forces Available: <FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24>Army of the Southwest, 10,825 troops 

 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Opposing Forces: <FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> Army of the West, 16,660 troops
 
 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Scenario Author:<FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24> Randy Keen "RebBugler"
 
<FONT=HelpText,L,25,25,112>Author's Notes: <FONT=HelpText,L,8,12,24>
- Courier message after activating the Elkhorn Tavern objective denotes a new objective being set.
- "The sustained cannonade at Pea Ridge was one of the rare instances during the Civil War in which a preparatory artillery barrage effectively softened up an enemy position and paved the way for an infantry assault."  Historic fact, not gamey, recreate history and probably get a greater victory by delaying infantry attack movements.
- To learn more about the troop positions and movements on the Pea Ridge battlefield check out the included folder: Battle Map Extras.
 
 
BRIGADIER GENERAL SAMUEL RYAN CURTIS
 
Commander, Army of the Southwest
 
Samuel Curtis was born in New York in 1805. He attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY, graduating in 1831, but left the Army soon after. He moved to Ohio, where he worked as a lawyer, a civil engineer, and a railroad promoter. Publicly, he was methodical, precise and formal; in private, however, he enjoyed long walks, collecting wildflowers and writing to his family.
 
During the Mexican War, he served as a military governor of several occupied cities. After the war, Curtis moved to Iowa and, in 1856, was elected to Congress as a Republican. He was a strong supporter of Abraham Lincoln and was considered for a cabinet position in the new administration. When war broke out, he raised the 2nd Iowa Infantry and was assigned to organizing the chaotic affairs in Saint Louis. General Halleck gave Curtis command of the Army of the Southwest on Christmas Day, 1861.
 
After Pea Ridge, Curtis continued the campaign, eventually capturing Helena, Arkansas on July 12th, 1862. He was promoted to Major General for his successes at Pea Ridge. In September, 1862, Curtis was given command of the Department of Missouri, although President Lincoln was soon forced to reassign him because of a bitter dispute between Curtis and Missouri's governor over Curtis's abolitionist views. He took to the field once again in 1864 against Sterling Price's invasion of Missouri. He ended Price's plans at the Battle of Westport (near present day Kansas City, Missouri). Curtis ended the war as commander of the Department of the Northwest, dealing with issues on the frontier.
 
After the war, he returned to Keokuk, Iowa where he promoted the transcontinental railroad. He died on December 26, 1866, after an inspection of the Union Pacific Railroad line. Although largely forgotten by history, Curtis was the Federal Army's most successful general throughout the first two years of the war.