Having forced the Confederates back into their defenses at Vicksburg, Ulysses S. Grant ordered an assault on the city's fortifications. This attack, which occurred on May 22, 1863, was a complete failure, and resulted in heavy Union losses. Grant wrote that one reason for his ordering the unsuccessful attack was that his troops believed they could take the city by storm.
"The Army...had won five successive victories...in the three preceding weeks...
They had come to believe that they could beat their antagonist under any circumstances." Ulysses S. Grant.
But the Union victories had been won against an enemy in the field, not when the Confederates were behind massive fortifications.
LESSON: You need to be able to recognize when circumstances have changed and no longer favor success. Good leaders don't send their people on fools' errands.
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