Beauregard has little concentrated strength available to oppose a southward movement by Halleck, but the Union general had showed insufficient drive to take advantage of the situation.

He had waited until he assembled a large army, combining the forces of Buell's Army of the Ohio, Grant's Army of West Tennessee, and Pope's Army of the Mississippi, to converge at Pittsburg Landing.

He had moved slowly in the direction of the critical rail junction at Corinth, in northeast Mississippi. taking four weeks to cover the twenty miles (thirty-two kilometers) from Shiloh, stopping nightly to entrench.

By May 3, Halleck was within ten miles of the city but had taken another three weeks to advance eight miles closer to Corinth, by which time Halleck is ready to start a massive bombardment of the Confederate defenses.

At this time, Beauregard decides not to make a costly defensive stand and withdraws without hostilities during the night of May 29.