Was General Thomas Slow at Nashville?

The developments of the battle, the energy and success of the pursuit, and the marvelous results of the whole, namely, the virtual destruction of a veteran army, reveal at every step what General Thomas had in mind when he insisted upon waiting till he could remount his cavalry.

In no other battle of the war did cavalry play such a prominent part as in that of Nashville. In no other pursuit did it so distinguish itself. Students of the movement will find themselves constantly questioning, as their investigations proceed, whether, with the force of infantry which General Thomas had been able to gather, Hood could have been driven from his position in front of Nashville without the co-operation of the cavalry. Had Thomas been obliged to fight without it, as the authorities at City Point and Washington tried to compel him to do, it is no reflection upon his infantry to say that there is ground for serious doubt as to the result. Hood was intrenched on strong ground. His positions were commanding. The infantry force against him was not sufficient in numbers and experience to make up for the usual difference due to field works placed as Hood's were and manned by veterans. Unquestionably Wilson's cavalry was the dominating and controlling element of the battle. To say this does not detract from the distinguished infantry generals or their excellent and brilliant work. But General Thomas's plan turned on cavalry work as its directrix. His consultations with General Wilson had been exhaustive. That officer was charged with reorganizing, remounting, and refitting a great cavalry force, even as Thomas was organizing a new army -- under fire. There had been nothing like either of those herculean tasks in any campaign.