Union Army
- Ulysses S. Grant - Commander of the Union forces
- William T. Sherman - Commander of the Army of the Tennessee
- Joseph Hooker - Commander of the Army of the Potomac
- George H. Thomas - Commander of the XIV Corps
Confederate Army
- Braxton Bragg - Commander of the Army of Tennessee
- Leonidas Polk - Commander of the Army of Mississippi
- James Longstreet - Commander of the First Corps
- John C. Breckinridge - Commander of the Reserve Corps