By the time that Grant became commander in the West, the Confederate Army had been able to fortify Vicksburg and Port Hudson to the south. This 130 mi stretch (210 km measured along roads, somewhat longer on the river), including the confluence of the Red River with the Mississippi, became the last contact between the eastern Confederacy and the Trans-Mississippi. Having no doubt of its importance, the government of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in Richmond strengthened both positions. Command at Vicksburg in particular passed from Brig. Gen. Martin L. Smith to Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn to Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton; the size of the defending army increased in step with the advancing rank of its commander.