July 4, 1863

The long siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi ended on this date with the surrender of the city by Confederate forces to the Union Army commanded by Ulysses S. Grant. This loss, following closely on the heels of the devastating defeat of Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia in Gettysburg, PA the day before, effectively ended any chance of ultimate Confederate victory.

Control of the Mississippi River was vital to the South, and now with the neutralizion of Vicksburg, the Union controlled the river, cutting the Confederacy in half.

European powers England and France, previously weighing the possibility of officially recognising and supporting the CSA, pulled in their horns and turned their attention elsewhere.

U.S. Grant, the hero of Vicksburg, was later promoted by Lincoln to Commander of the Army of the Potomac, where he went on to mercilessly grind down Lee's Army on the road to Appomattox.

From 1864 untill WWII, the City of Vicksburg refused to celebrate US Independence Day (July 4).
Many Vicksburg citizens still refuse to this day.

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