[1] George resigned his general's commission in the state forces, enlisted as a colonel in the regular Confederate Army, and began recruiting men for his new unit.

Large numbers of Confederate troops had been captured after the fall of Vicksburg in July, and the state capital at Jackson had been evacuated and burned the same month.

Confederate military operations in Mississippi from late 1863 onward mostly focused on cavalry raids that could disrupt Union-controlled railroads bringing reinforcements and supplies to Federal forces elsewhere in the state.

[2] In March and April 1864, the 5th Cavalry joined Forrest's raids into Kentucky and Tennessee, including the infamous Battle of Fort Pillow where Black Union troops were massacred after surrendering.

Forrest's cavalry then joined General John Bell Hood's forces in Tennessee, taking part in the Battle of Franklin on November 30.