| Battle of Selma | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of American Civil War | |||||||
 Map of the City of Selma, Alabama and its defenses. | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States (Union) |
 Confederate States | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Bvt. Maj. Gen. James H. Wilson |
 Lieut. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
|
Cavalry Corps, Military Division of the Mississippi |
 Forrest's Cavalry Corps  Alabama Militia | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 13,500 | 5,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 359 | 2,700 | ||||||
  Selma Location within Alabama | |||||||
The Battle of Selma was fought on April 2, 1865 in Dallas County, Alabama during the American Civil War. It was part of the Union campaign through Alabama and Georgia, known as Wilson's Raid, in the final full month of the Civil War.
Brevet Major-General James H. Wilson, commanding three divisions of Union cavalry, about 13,500 men, led his men south from Gravelly Springs, Alabama, on March 22, 1865. Opposed by Confederate Lieutenant-General Nathan B. Forrest, Wilson skillfully continued his march and eventually defeated him in a running battle at Ebenezer Church, on April 1. Continuing towards Selma, Wilson split his command into three columns. Although Selma was well-defended, the Union columns broke through the defenses at separate points forcing the Confederates to surrender the city, although many of the officers and men, including Forrest and Lieutenant-General Richard Taylor, escaped.
Selma demonstrated that even Forrest, whom some[who?] had considered invincible, could not stop the unrelenting Union movements deep into the Southern Heartland.