Four Union divisions—Baird, Wood, Sheridan, and R. W. Johnson, from left to right—started toward the ridge. The hard charging Union soldiers soon overwhelmed the gray defenders in the rifle pits at the base of the ridge. Scarcely halting, and generally without orders to continue, the men in blue charged up the ridge. They followed the retreating Confederates so closely from the rifle pits that the Confederates on the crest in many places hesitated to fire for fear of hitting their own men. It was not long before units of the Army of the Cumberland pierced the Confederate line in several places and sent Bragg’s veterans reeling in retreat down the east slope of the ridge toward Chickamauga Creek. Sheridan pushed forward in pursuit of the retreating army, capturing men, artillery, and equipment. Even though the Confederate center had disintegrated, Hardee held his position on the Confederate right until darkness, and then began his withdrawal with Cleburne’s Division covering the retreat. Bragg’s army crossed Chickamauga Creek during the night, carrying out a surprisingly successful retreat. [Illustration: _A skirmish line and regimental line behind it—Union troops drilling at Chattanooga, circa January 1864. This gives a conception of how the soldiers of the Civil War ordinarily fought. A skirmish line moved ahead of the main regimental line, which charged upon order. The Union attack on Missionary Ridge must have looked something like this to watching Confederate soldiers._ From Miller, _Photographic History of the Civil War_.] During the evening of the 25th, Grant issued orders to Thomas and Sherman to pursue Bragg. The next morning, Sherman advanced by way of Chickamauga Station, and Thomas’ troops marched on the Rossville Road toward Graysville and Ringgold. In the vicinity of Ringgold, Cleburne’s Confederates held a strong position on Taylor’s Ridge covering Bragg’s retreat. Cleburne’s men repulsed a Union attack, inflicting heavy casualties, until Bragg’s army had successfully withdrawn southward, and then they followed. Union troops then occupied Taylor’s Ridge. There the pursuit stopped. This decisive Union victory raised the siege of Chattanooga. The following tabulation of strength and casualties at the Battle of Chattanooga is based on Livermore’s studies: Army Total Total Killed Wounded Missing Percent Strength Casualties Casualties Union 56,360 5,824 753 4,722 349 10 Confederate 46,165 6,667 361 2,160 4,146 14 _Relief of Knoxville_