James Longstreet's separate Knoxville offensive failed at Fort Sanders on November 29. Although ordered to rejoin Bragg and the Army of Tennessee, he judged that movement impractical and instead marched toward Virginia. William T. Sherman reached Knoxville with about 25,000 troops on December 4, making any continued siege untenable. The detachment failed to relieve Knoxville and left those troops absent when the position at Chattanooga collapsed.
Notable Point · 1:21:42-1:22:34
Longstreet's Knoxville offensive could not salvage the campaign
The attack on Fort Sanders failed, and Sherman's arrival with 25,000 troops made Longstreet's attempt to relieve pressure around Knoxville untenable.