Albert Sidney Johnston

Albert Sidney Johnston

General Albert Johnston was born on February 3, 1803 in Washington, Kentucky. He went to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and graduated in 1826. At the beginning of the Civil War President Jefferson Davis appointed him to the rank of full general in the Confederate Army where he took command of the Department of Kentucky. He was in charge of a long and weak line from the Mississippi to the Allegheny Mountains which was protecting friendly territory. He was forced back by a major Federal charge, and he was greatly criticized for falling back. Johnston took the criticism of his own countrymen even though they greatly denounced him. He then met General Beauregard in Corinth, Mississippi, and they began an offensive against Grant's army at Pittsburgh Landing. The Battle of Shiloh was fought on April 6th and 7th 1862. The Federals were falling back when Johnston was mortally wounded.

General Johnston was buried in New Orleans. After the war his remains were taken to his adopted state of Texas where he was laid to rest in a hero's grave on the lawn of the State Capitol in Austin, Texas.

Ambrose Powell Hill

November 9, 1825 - April 2, 1865

Virginian Confederate Gen. Ambrose P. Hill and his large Rebel division (six brigades), called the "Light Division" for its ability to make rapid marches, were some of the Army of Northern Virginia's most reliable fighters.

A.P., or Powell Hill, as he was often called (to distinguish him from fellow general Daniel Harvey Hill), was a 35 year old West Point trained career officer in the U.S. Army at the outbreak of the war. He resigned from that service in March 1861, and the next May he led a confederate brigade at the Battle of Williamsburg. His conduct in the battle was so distinguished that he was promoted to the command of the "Light Division," which had not yet earned that name.

The next month, Hill and his men opened the Seven Days' campaign and spearheaded Confederate attacks at Gaines's Mill and Frayser's Farm. But it was later that summer, when Hill's division teamed up with Gen. Stonewall Jackson's command, that they earned their reputation for fast marches and hard, dependable fighting.

Though Hill and Jackson seldom got along well personally, professionally they worked wonders. At the Battles of Cedar Mountain, 2d Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Chancellorsville, Hill usually wearing his conspicuous red "battle shirt," led his men in the forefront of Jackson's command in this spectacular string of victorious marches and battles.

Upon Jackson's death at Chancellorsville and the army's subsequent reorganization, Hill was promoted to lieutenant general and given command of the new III Corps. His succes as a corps commander, however, was checkered. He performed well at Gettysburg, disastrously at Bristoe Station, and his corps was almost routed in the Wilderness. After that he was seldom well enough to assume command. On April 2, 1865, one week before the Appomattox surrender, Hill was shot and killed in the fighting at Petersburg.

Fascinating Fact: In the delirium of their deathbeds, both Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee and Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson called for fellow general Ambrose P. Hill to bring up his troops.

Braxton Bragg

1817 - 1876

General Braxton Bragg was born in Warren county, North Carolina, March 22, 1817. He was graduated fifth in the class of 1837 at the United States military academy, and received his lieutenancy in the artillery. He served mainly in Florida during the Indian troubles, until 1843, then was in garrison at Fort Moultrie until 1845, when he took part in the occupation of Texas.

In the subsequent war with Mexico he served with distinguished gallantry, and was brevetted captain for conduct in defense of Fort Brown, major for valor at Monterey, and lieutenant-colonel for his special services at Buena Vista. He became captain,Third artillery, June, 1846, was on the staff of General Gaines, and on garrison duty until 1855, when he declined promotion to major of First cavalry.

He resigned January 3, 1856, and became a planter at Thibodeaux,Louisiana, serving his State, 1859-61, as commissioner of public works. In February, 1861, he was put in command of the army of Louisiana, and on March 7th was commissioned brigadier-general in the provisional army of the Confederate States, and assigned to the command of the troops and defenses at Pensacola, which he held until January 27, 1862, in the meantime having been promoted major-general and lieutenant-general and assigned to the command of the department of Alabama and West Florida.

In March, 1862, he marched his forces to Corinth, whence in command of the second corps of the army he participated in the movement against Grant and the battle of Shiloh. In this famous combat Albert Sidney Johnston fell, and Beauregard succeeded to the general command, while Bragg was promoted general and assigned to the command of the army of the Mississippi, with Polk, Hardee and Breckinridge as his corps commanders.

When after the evacuation of Corinth the army had retired to Tupelo,Beauregard, on account of illness, turned over the command temporarily to Bragg and went to Mobile. Beauregard was thereupon relieved and Bragg appointed as his successor. He was now in command of the department and all the forces arrayed against the Federal invasion between the Mississippi river and Atlanta, except the command of General Kirby Smith, in East Tennessee.

He planned a campaign into Kentucky before Buell was ready to oppose him, hoping by a bold offensive movement to arouse the friends of the Confederate cause in the border States and drive the enemy beyond the Ohio. He transferred his troops to Chattanooga, and set out on his northward movement about the middle of August, Kirby Smith moving with a separate command in co-operation.

At Munfordville he captured over 4,000 Federal soldiers, and then moved his army to Bardstown, and with his staff joined Kirby Smith at Lexington, where on October 4th, Hon. Richard Hawes was installed as Confederate provisional governor of Kentucky. At Perryville he encountered Buell's army and was victorious at every point, striking such a severe blow that he was able subsequently to move without loss to his large trains of captured stores, back to Knoxville.

Preparing at once for a movement into Middle Tennessee he reached Murfreesboro November 26, 1862, about the date when General J. E. Johnston was appointed to the general command of the new department of the West, including the forces of Smith, Bragg and Pemberton.

On December 30th-31st he repulsed the advance of Rosecrans' army upon his position, gaining a notable victory, but on January 2nd he was himself repulsed in an attack on the Federal left. He retreated to Tullahoma, where Johnston was empowered to relieve him of command if that commander thought best, but the result of a visit by Johnston was the retention of Bragg in command.

In the latter part of June, 1863, he withdrew to Chattanooga, and thence in September, on account of the Federal forces appearing to the south, fell back into Georgia, where near the Tennessee line the great battle of Chickamauga was fought by the Confederate army under his command September 19th and 20th.

It resulted in the complete rout of Rosecrans, the command of George H.Thomas alone holding its ground during the battle. Subsequently he besieged the beaten Federals at Chattanooga and sent Longstreet against Knoxville. When the beleaguered Federals were on the point of starvation they were heavily reinforced by Grant, and the Confederates were forced to retire from Missionary Ridge.

On February 24, 1864, he was assigned to duty at Richmond, under direction of the President, charged with the conduct of the military operations of the armies of the Confederate States. In November following he was given command of the department of North Carolina, and in January, 1865, he commanded the army at Wilmington, and the troops of his department in the final
operations against Sherman including the battle of Bentonville.

After the surrender at Appomattox he accompanied President Davis through South Carolina and into Georgia, and after peace was restored, having lost all his property, he became engaged as a civil engineer at New Orleans, and superintended harbor improvements at Mobile.

He died at Galveston, Texas, September 27, 1876. He was an officer of remarkable industry and conscientiousness, and unspotted character. He never praised others nor allowed himself to be flattered. His devotion to duty led him to neglect those amenities of social life which are valuable even in war, and he suffered in consequence, but no one ever questioned his patriotism, or his courage.

Brigadier General William N. R. Beall

Brigadier General William Nelson Rector Beall (1825-1883) was the commander of all Confederate Army forces at Port Hudson from around 1 September 1862 until General Franklin Gardner assumed command in late December, 1862.  He then was placed in command of the left of the Confederate defenses, and at the time of the May 27th battle, he was in command of the defenses in the center of the line which included the Priest Cap.

Beall was born in Bardstown, Kentucky on 20 March 1825.  His parents moved from Kentucky to Arkansas where Beall was raised.  He was an 1844 graduate of the United States Military Academy.

After graduating, Beall served in the United States Army. He was first assigned as a brevet second lieutenant with the Fourth Infantry and served on the northwestern frontier. In 1849 he was promoted to second lieutenant and assigned to the Fifth Infantry.  He served until 1855 in the Indian Territory and Texas.  He was promoted to first lieutenant and then shortly thereafter to captain with the First Cavalry.

Beall was involved in several skirmishes, combats, and expeditions against the Indian tribes in the west.  In 1860, he participated in a raid against the Kiowa and Comanche.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Beall resigned his commission and was appointed as a Captain of cavalry in the Confederate Army.  He served in the Trans-Mississippi Department under General Earl Van Dorn early in the war, and was appointed Brigadier General in the spring of 1862.  On April 23, 1962, General Beall was placed in command of the Confederate cavalry forces at Corinth, Mississippi.

Around the 1st of September, 1862, Beall was placed in command of the Confederate forces at Port Hudson, and although General Frank Gardner subsequently assumed chief command, General Beall and his brigade continued to be important factors in the gallant defense of the post until its surrender.  On July 9th the post was surrendered, and the men were then paroled, and some of them, including General Beall, were never exchanged.  General Beall was first imprisoned on Johnson’s Island Prison Camp in Ohio.

In 1864 Beall was appointed as a Confederate agent for the purpose of supplying Confederate prisoners of war and paroled for this purpose.  Beall established an office in New York, New York and sold cotton allowed through the Union blockade of southern ports.  The proceeds of these sales were used to purchase clothing and blankets for Confederate prisoners in northern prison camps.

Beall was released on 2 August 1865. He moved to St. Louis, Missouri and engaged in business as a general commission merchant.

General Beall died on 26 July 1883 in McMinnville, Tennessee, and is buried at Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee.

Colonel George Smith Patton

Colonel George Smith Patton

Colonel George Smith Patton, Archives V.M.I.

George Patton was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia on June 26th, 1833. He entered the Virginia Military Institute in 1849 and graduated in 1852. Patton spent two years of teaching in Richmond and also studied law. There he and his family moved to Charleston, (West) Virginia in 1856, where he formed a law partnership with Thomas Buroun. George Patton also served as commissioner in Chancery to the Kanawha Circuit Court and also the Kanawha County Court.

In 1856, George Patton anticipated a war developing and started to organize the militia company known as the Kanawha Minutemen at Charleston, Western Virginia. Patton, known as a strict disciplinarian had a sharp mind for tactics. He held drills on a regular basis at the Old Mercer Military School in Joel Ruffner's Meadow. The Brooks Hall or the Assembly Room, as it is known today was where this formation took place. Privately financed, the Kanawha Minutemen’s’ ranks swelled with some of Charleston’s most prominent citizens. They consisted of men who were lawyers and also socially known throughout the Kanawha Valley region. Within two weeks company elections took place, officers were elected and the Kanawha Minutemen changed their name to the Kanawha Rifles and elected George Patton as Captain. During another meeting in November of 1859, the Kanawha Rifles soon voted on a change of name to the Kanawha Riflemen.

Captain George Patton personally designed the uniforms that his men wore. The uniforms were similar in appearance to the Richmond Light Infantry Blues. The frock (over) coat was dark green with a cape and it was laced with black trim on the cuffs and collar. It featured a nine-button front, with epaulets of gold braid. The trousers were also dark green with a single black stripe down the leg for enlisted men, and a gold stripe for the officers. A wide brim slouch hat with ostrich feathers dangling down from the side with the letters "KR" on the front completed the outfit. White Berlin gloves were worn to Charleston’s social events. The Kanawha Rifles, as resources state, were armed with the latest two band fifty-four caliber Mississippi rifles with the sword bayonets.

The men were highly disciplined and were regarded as the best militia company in the area. Some say that this was in part due to their social standing in the city of Charleston, where they were invited to social balls, dinners, parades, and other town events. On one occasion they were invited to attend a social ball in Ohio, where a fight almost broke out between an Ohio company and the Kanawha Riflemen. Due to the sharp discipline of Patton’s men, the Civil War almost started there in 1858. They held dress parades and drills with an open invitation to the public to come out and watch their routine, as they would go through every command. This was a way for the riflemen to gain the support of the citizens that they would soon be protecting. During the John Brown Raid on Harper's Ferry in 1859, the governor of Virginia contacted the Mayor of Charleston, and requested that the Riflemen be ready if the stand off had not come to an end.

The Coal River Rifles were an independent company that is believed to have evolved into the Kanawha Riflemen. The information is very sketchy, and although the company started in 1859, there is no record of their military duties during the Civil War. This would explain why the Kanawha Riflemen’s ranks swelled in the early part of 1859. However, the Coal River Rifles deserve their own spot in American history.

Promotion Papers, Colonel George Patton 1861; Archives V.M.I.

As the Civil War began in western Virginia Patton enlisted in the Confederate Army’s 1st Kanawha regiment on May 8th, 1861 as Captain of Company I (Later in 1862 became Company H) formally known as the Kanawha Riflemen. The newly formed regiment then mustered into service of the Confederacy in June 1861 in the Army of Kanawha under General Henry Wise.. On June 7, he was commissioned as Lt. Colonel of the regiment. Their first baptism of fire came on July 16-17, 1861 at the Battle of Scary Creek. Confederates used this post for lookout duty and had a cannon stationed at the mouth of the Poca River where the Little Scary Creek emptied. The Kanawha River was located toward the west of the Confederate position.

On July 16th, a Federal scouting party spotted the Confederate pickets and attempted to over run the Confederates. Once the Confederates opened fired with the cannon the Federal retreated. At 9am in the morning a larger body of Federals under the command of General Jacob Cox took up positions and met the Confederates under the command of Captain George Patton at the mouth of Scary Creek. The Confederates retreated in the face of a larger force and took up defensives on a bridge that crossed the Scary Creek. Once the Federal Cavalry started to charge, two Confederate cannon open fired. The Federal Cavalry retreated. The battle for the next several hours resulted in a stalemate. Long range rifles and cannon fired at each other. The Federals made several charges to cross the bridge, and were repulsed.

During the final charge Captain George Patton was wounded in the shoulder. Captain Albert Jenkins took over command of the 22nd Virginia and realized that the Federals were falling back. Fearing that the Federals were going to regroup and make a counter attack, the Confederates left the field.

At the battle of Scary Creek July 17th 1861, Captain Patton led the Confederates to victory. A Confederate Colonel realized that the Federals were in full retreat ordered the 22nd Virginia back on the field and claim the victory. Being severely wounded in the left shoulder he was left at Charleston, (West) Virginia as an exchanged prisoner. Patton did not return to the 22nd Virginia until April of 1862. After his release one month later he was wounded at Giles Court House May 10th of 1862 and again exchanged as a prisoner on the 25th of May. Upon his return he was commissioned Colonel of the 22nd Virginia.

Once General John Echols became commander of the forces in West Virginia in 1863, Colonel Patton often commanded General Echols Brigade due to the Generals' often illness and political absences throughout 1863 and 1864. Naming his forces the Army of South Western Virginia, the 22nd Virginia spent the spring on a series of raids called the Jones and Imboden Raid. The raid went completely around West Virginia and entered Oakland, Maryland. The purpose of the raid was to destroy the B & O railroad over hangs that were vital to the Federals. On April 24, the raid carried over to Beverly, West Virginia. Once settled in Beverly, the 22nd Virginia was engaged in a skirmish that captured several Union troops and some much needed supplies.

During the month of August, the 22nd Virginia was stationed near Lewisburg in White Sulphur Springs. This town had a famous health spa and was a scene of a huge battle between The 22nd Virginia and Federal forces under the command of General Averell. The federal objective was to seize the law books at the Virginia State Law Library at Lewisburg. These books contained information on the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals for the convenience of lawyers and judges. Colonel Patton marched his army down Anthony's Creek Road and the Union army went by the way of the James River Pike. The two forces met at the intersection of these two roads. Colonel Patton deployed his men at once, immediately blocking the road. The battle lasted all day and carried over into the following day. Both armies were running low on supplies, and the Federal army was forced to withdraw from the field. Colonel Patton a decisive victory had been won for the Confederates.

The 22nd Virginia's high tide of the Civil War was at the Battle of Droop Mountain, West Virginia on November 6, 1863. This was the biggest battle to take place in the state of West Virginia. Even though the battle of Droop Mountain was classified as a Confederate defeat, General Echols managed to survive the main thrust of the Union Army and caused General Averell to incomplete their raid in Virginia and Tennessee. Even so, after the battle of Droop Mountain (West) Virginia the Army of South Western Virginia was almost destroyed. The Confederates held their ground and this forced General Averell to send a detachment of troops to the west, where they were ordered to attack the Confederate's left. Colonel Patton became aware that the left flank was on the verge of collapse and informed General John Echols of this at once. The Army of the Ohio almost wiped out the 22nd Virginia Infantry and the Army of South Western Virginia. As the 22nd Virginia recovered it's loss, General Lee called on the Army of South Western Virginia early in the spring to help clear the Federals out of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia.

The battle of New Market (May 15th, 1864) would be the biggest victory that the 22nd Virginia would participate in. Colonel Patton led his men again in the battle of Cold Harbor, Virginia that was the bloodiest single hour to ever take place on American soil. Being placed into General Breckenridge’s Division that was part of General Early’s corps, the 22nd Virginia would take part of Early's Raid on Washington (DC). After marching north through the Shenandoah Valley from Lynchburg, the Confederate army of Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early sidestepped the Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry and crossed the Potomac River at Shepherdstown into Maryland on July 5-6.

On July 8 at Turners Gap, near Middletown MD, the 22nd Virginia may have engaged in a series of skirmishes. They consisted of Antietam Creek, South Mountain, Catoctin Creek, Ballenger Creek, and finally ending at Frederick in the late evening hours. The 22nd Virginia Infantry pushed the Federal cavalry back into the city of Frederick on a 12-mile stretch from the foot of South Mountain. This is something that was honorable, because not too many regiments during the Civil War were able to fight one constant battle after another all during one day. On July 9, 1864, 6,000 Union troops under the command of Major General Lew Wallace attempted to stop General Early's invading Confederate divisions along the Monocacy River, outside of Frederick, Maryland. During the time of the battle, the 22nd Virginia served as reserves during the battle of Monocacy.

General Early's invasion across the Potomac River during the latter part of June and early July 1864, resulted in the diversion of Union reinforcements, headed toward Petersburg, to the defense of Washington. As General Early's Maryland Campaign faltered with the arrival of Federal reinforcements, Early returned to the Valley.

A Union column, consisting of the VI Corps and elements of the XIX Corps under Major General Horatio Wright, pursued Early's army while it withdrew from the outskirts of Washington. On July 17, the Union cavalry passed through Snickers Gap and attempted to force passage of the Shenandoah River at Snickers Ford (Castleman's Ferry). On the morning of July 18, the vanguard of the Union infantry moved through Snickers Gap. Colonel Joseph Thoburn (of Crook's command) led his division downstream to cross the river at Judge Richard Parker's Ford. Early's three nearby infantry divisions moved to defend the fords.

In the afternoon, Rodes's division attacked and shattered Thoburn's right flank on the Cool Spring plantation. Thoburn made a stand behind a stonewall at the river's edge and beat off three attacks until darkness enabled him to withdraw. Union pursuit of Early was delayed several days. The Confederate forces at Cool Springs almost completely wiped out the Army of West Virginia.

July 23rd saw Confederate cavalry move aggressively down the Valley Pike pushing Union cavalry back from Newtown (Stephens City) to Kernstown. Union Brigadier General George Crook ordered Duval's infantry to deploy across the road and drive the Confederates from the town. This was accomplished quickly and the Union infantry of Duval was ordered back to Winchester and positioned behind Abrams Creek. General Crook left a brigade of cavalry to hold Kernstown.

Jubal Early's army was camped near Strasburg. At dawn of July 24th the Confederate force broke camp and moved up the Valley Pike. When they reached Bartonsville, the army divided and moved toward Winchester from several different directions. Ramseur's division was ordered to move west to the Middle Road by means of area side roads. Gordon, Wharton, and Rhodes' divisions were to remain on the Valley Pike and continue in the direction of Winchester. Early ordered two columns of cavalry to move east and west and converge on the Union rear at Winchester.

General Early ordered his army North, and splitting his army into two columns, the first column under the command of General John McCausland to burned Chambersburg, PA July 30th. The second column under General Early set forth to Moorefield, while General McCausland crossed the Potomac River at Cumberland and headed toward Chambersburg.

After the burning Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, on July 30, Johnson and McCausland's cavalry brigades rode toward Cumberland, Maryland, to disrupt the B&O Railroad. The Confederates destroyed the vital bridges along the B&O Railroad at Flocks Mill near Cumberland, Maryland.

General Benjamin Kelly organized a small force of soldiers and citizens to meet the Confederate advance. On August 1, Kelly ambushed Rebel cavalrymen near Cumberland at Flock's Mill, and skirmishing continued for several hours. Eventually the Confederates withdrew. Being encamped at Moorfield, General Early was attack and was forced to retreat back into Virginia and to take possession of the Shenandoah Valley from the Federals under the command of General Sheridan.

As a result of the Battle of Second Kernstown and General Early's ventures north, General Grant was forced to take action to ensure that the Valley would no longer prove a problem to him. General Phillip Sheridan was sent to take total control of the Valley in August of 1864. Just in Revelations, General Sheridan brought new tactics of warfare to the chapters of history books. His policy of "Scoured Earth" would devastate the citizens of Shenandoah Valley as most of the Valley was brunt in order to repress the Southern Armies strong hold and to starve out the Confederacy that was entrenched in Richmond and Petersburg Virginia.

The Battle of Opequon or Third Winchester as it is sometimes referred to, was the largest and the most important battle fought in the Shenandoah Valley. It marked the decline of Confederate power in the Valley and the rise of Union domination. General Grant had sent General Phillip Sheridan to the Valley and ordered him to put an end to the problem of the Valley once and for all. General Sheridan became to the Valley what General Sherman was to Atlanta.

On September 16th, 1864 the Confederate Army of the Valley Division was holding a vital link to the Shenandoah Valley. This link was known as the town of Winchester, Virginia. General Sheridan with an army of 38,000 men attacked General Early's 12,000-man army. During the third battle of Winchester, Virginia Colonel Patton riding his horse down an ally was shot by a Union bullet being wounded he was taken prisoner. The wound from his leg would take his life on September 25,1864 because he would not have his leg amputated, Patton was only 32 years of age. Colonel George Patton is buried at the Stonewall Cemetery in Winchester, Virginia. The marker says: "here asleep in one grave, the Patton brothers". Colonel George Patton is buried with his brother W. Tazwell Patton who was killed at the battle of Gettysburg July 3rd, 1863.

In a letter to Mr. R.A. Brock from George Patton’s Brother John, a discrepancy toward General John Echols’ behavior on the battlefield as General was in question. John Patton took it upon himself to write to the War Department in Richmond about the promotion of Colonel George Patton to Field General. John Patton Stated: “Echols was Patton’s Brigadier, but from ill health and political causes, was never with the brigade in “action” but once – at the Battle of Droop Mountain WVA where the brigade was routed and when the advice of Col. Patton was disregarded. Col. Patton commanded it, I think – indeed quite sure – in every other battle, and was, so far as I remember, uniformly successful.”

Apparently, the War Department felt that George Patton deserved his commission as Brigadier General. This is what the War Department stated: “Patton had won his commission several times and he should have it, Mr. Seddon, then secretary, told me that the trouble was for Echols, who was himself a public man and the double brother in law to Senator Capeton.”

Colonel George Patton stated on behalf of himself: “I desire no influence to be exerted whatsoever, toward my promotion. If my services in the field have not earned my promotion, I should not value it.”

 

Colonel Isaiah G. W. Steedman

Colonel Isaiah George Washington Steedman was the commander of the northern portion of the river batteries at Port Hudson, and on May 22, 1863, was given command of the entire left wing of the Confederate defensive forces, which included Fort Desperate.
Born in South Carolina, Steedman moved to Alabama and became a physician.  He volunteered for military service as soon as Alabama seceded, and became Colonel of the 1st Alabama Infantry Regiment in February, 1862.  Steedman and most of this regiment was captured at Island No. 10, and after being released in September, 1862, Steedman and the unit were sent to Port Hudson, arriving on October 4, 1862.After the surrender of Port Hudson on July 9, 1863, Col. Steedman and the rest of the officers were sent to New Orleans.  Steedman and others were sent on to Governor’s Island, New York by sea, and thence to Johnson’s Island, Ohio, where he was held until the spring of 1865.  While there he was in charge of the prison hospital.  At the close of the war, he was paroled and returned to Alabama where he began practicing medicine.  He moved to St. Louis in 1866 and practiced there as a physician until retiring in 1880.  He died on May 15, 1917 and is buried at the Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, MO.

Colonel John L. Logan

Colonel John L. Logan was the commander of the Confederate cavalry and mounted infantry forces which operated at the rear of the Union forces throughout the battle and siege of Port Hudson.  Based primarily around Clinton, LA, his troops raided and harassed the Federals, and also also participated in the battle at Plains Store and fought several skirmishes with Colonel Grierson's Union Cavalry.  On June 3rd near Clinton, he defeated and forced to retreat a large cavalry unit led by Grierson which had been sent by Banks to eliminate him.  He served an important intelligence role by supplying information on Federal troop movements and strengths to General Gardner and other Confederate commanders.John L. Logan was born in South Carolina and was in the mercantile business in Camden, Arkansas before the war. 

He enlisted in 1861 and was elected captain, and commanded Co. B of the "Camden Knights" of Ouachita County, Arkansas, which became part of 11th Arkansas Infantry Regiment.  Colonel Logan was commander of the 11th/17th Consolidated Mounted Infantry from March until November of 1863.   He later commanded a brigade under General Albert Johnson.  He was living in New Orleans at the time of the 1870 Census, and reportedly died there of a Cholera epidemic in the 1870's.

Colonel John Singleton Mosby

Colonel John Singleton Mosby

Colonel John Singleton Mosby, son of Alfred D. Mosby. of Amherst county, was born December 6, 1833 at Edgemont, Powhatan county, the residence of his maternal grandfather, Rev. McLaurin. At the age of sixteen years he entered the university of Virginia, where his course of study was terminated by an unfortunate difficulty with a fellow student, in which the latter was wounded. Mosby was punished for this affair by imprisonment, but the attorney who had vigorously prosecuted him aided him during this confinement in the study of law, the profession which he subsequently followed at Bristol, Va.. until the secession of Virginia. During his residence at Bristol he married Pauline, daughter of Beverely J. Clarke, of Kentucky, prominent in the United States Congress, and the diplomatic service.

He was first advised of the action of the Virginia convention, at Abingdon, and immediately enlisted in the Washington Mounted Rifles, under Capt. William E, Jones. He joined Stuart's cavalry at Bunker Hill, and made his first scout at Bull Run. When Jones became colonel of the First Virginia cavalry he was appointed adjutant of the regiment, with the rank of lieutenant. He captured his first prisoners in a scout from Warrenton in the spring of 1862.  When Jones was transferred to another regiment, Mosby was invited by Stuart to remain with him as a scout, and, in this capacity, he made a reconnaissance prepatory to Stuart's famous Chickahominy raid, and as guide led that expedition. After the Seven Days' campaign, being sent in the direction of Fredericksburg, he saw the opportunity for independent service in Fauquier county, and asked for such orders, but instead was sent to General Jackson. En route he was captured, but was exchanged in time to give Lee the information of Burnside's movement toward Fredericksburg, and serve with Stuart in the Second Manassas and Maryland campaigns. He made an important scouting expedition before the battle of Fredericksburg and soon afterward was granted independent command.  General Lee, in his report of Confederate successes during the winter, noticed that Lieutenant Mosby had done much to harass the enemy, attacking him boldly on many occasions and capturing many prisoners. Thus began his famous operations, which continued throughout the war, and contributed in no slight degree to the success of the army. While in a sense independent, his command was always part of the cavalry of the army, and he made reports regularly to General Stuart or Lee.

During this period he was still of youthful appearance-was not of imposing frame, scarcely of medium height.In manner he was undemonstrative, but his brilliant gray eye revealed the gallant and friendship he was warm and tenacious. His mode of warfare, the object of which was to cut off the enemy's Supplies and disturb his communications, was the same that made Platoff the hero of Russia during the French invasion, and was commended by Jomini. His men had no superiors in the saddle and were expert pistol shots. They used neither sabers nor carbines. They were never very numerous, but what they lacked in numbers was Compensated for by high intelligence, inspired by reckless daring. Among them were some who deserve to rank with the heroes of romance. His rank in March, 1863, was captain, but he was soon promoted major, and toward the close of the war had the rank of colonel.

Often large forces were sent against him, but he always evaded and frequently defeated them, capturing many prisoners. In March, 1863, he captured the Federal General Stoughton, in camp near Fairfax, and a number of his men. During the battle of Chancellorsville he attacked a Federal cavalry brigade, capturing several hundred prisoners. Near Chantilly, again, he defeated a large body of Federal cavalry, leading General Lee to exclaim: "Hurrah for Mosby! I wish I had a hundred like him." Near Dranesville, with 65 men, he defeated 200 of the enemy and captured 83 prisoners. One of his most daring adventures was a reconnaissance in the Federal lines, by order of General Lee, after the battle of Chancellorsville, in which he and one companion captured six men, and with two of them, rode undetected past a column of Federal cavalry.

On another occasion he rode in sight of the Washington capitol, and by a countryman, sent President Lincoln a lock of his hair, a token which Lincoln's keen sense of humor fully appreciated. In addition to the numberless encounters along the border, he was of valuable service to Stuart in all his famous raids, including the movement into Pennsylvania, preceding the battle of Gettysburg.

Another very important service was his defeat of Sheridan's plan to join Ulysses S. Grant, in the fall of i864, by rendering it impossible for the Federals to rebuild the Manassas Gap railroad, necessary to furnish Sheridan supplies and transportation. After the surrender at Appomattox, it was understood that he was not to be included in the terms granted to Lee, and on April 18th he made a truce with General Hancock at Winchester, pending negotiations. General Grant secured proper treatment of the brave officer and he surrendered at Salem, April 21, 1865, having then 600 men in line. His subsequent life was influenced greatly by the strong friendship between him and the great general who had ordered his honorable parole. He supported the candidacy of Grant for the presidency as the best way to restore amity in the Union, but declined office. Finally accepting the consulship at Hong Kong, under the administration of President Hayes, he won distinction by the official life. Subsequently he returned to the practice of law and made his residence at San Francisco.

Daniel Harris Reynolds

Daniel Harris Reynolds

BORN: 1832 in Centerburg, OH.DIED: 1902 in Lake Village, ARK.CAMPAIGNS: Wilson's Creek, Chickamauga, Atlanta,Carolinas, Nashville and BentonvilleHIGHEST RANK ACHIEVED: Brigadier General

Daniel Harris Reynolds was born on December 14, 1832, in Centerburg, Ohio. After studying at Ohio Wesleyan University, he moved to Somerville, Tennessee and studied law there. Admitted to the bar in 1858; he settled in Lake Village, Arkansas, and established a law practice. By the time the Civil War began, he had adopted the Confederate cause. Reynolds raised a company, which became part of the 1st Arkansas mounted Rifles, and become captain. Taking part in the Battle of Wilson's Creek, skirmishes and engagements in Missouri and Arkansas, he was promoted through the ranks. He fought at the Battle of Chickamauga, and was promoted to brigadier general to rank from March 5, 1864. Reynolds led a brigade through the Atlanta and Carolinas Campaign, and was severely wounded at Bentonville. The wound led to his leg being amputated. Reynolds was captured, then paroled two months later in Charlottesville, Virginia. He returned to his legal practice in Arkansas, and, after the war, served in the state senate. Reynolds died in Lake Village, Arkansas, on March 14, 1902.

Edmund Winston Pettus

Edmund Winston Pettus

BORN: 1821 in Limestone County, AL
DIED: 1907 in Hot Springs, NC.
CAMPAIGNS: Port Gibson, Vicksburg, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge, All of the 1864 Campaigns of the Army of Tennessee, Nashville, Kinston, Bentonville.
HIGHEST RANK ACHIEVED: Brigadier General

Edmund Winston Pettus was born in Limestone County, Alabama, on July 6, 1821. He obtained a basic education in local common schools, then studied at Clinton College in Tennessee. He studied law in Tuscumbia, Alabama, and was admitted to the bar in 1842. After setting up a practice in Gainesville, he was elected solicitor for the 7th Circuit Court. Pettus served in the Mexican War, then left the army and went to California, returning to Alabama two years later. During the secession crisis, he was appointed a commissioner to Mississippi, while his brother John J. Pettus was governor of that state, to discuss the state's plans for secession.

He joined the Confederate military, and took part in the defense of Fort Gibson. Captured when the garrison fell, he escaped before he could be exchanged. After fighting in the Siege of Vicksburg, he was again captured, but soon exchanged. He was promoted to brigadier general as of September 18, 1863, after his service at Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge. As part of the Army of Tennessee, he fought in all its campaigns up through 1864, including the fighting at Nashville, Kingston and Bentonville. Wounded at Bentonville, he surrendered at Durham Station, and went home. Pettus settled in Selma, Alabama, and established his law practice there. Representing Alabama at the national Democratic convention from 1876 to 1896, he was elected twice to the US Senate, in 1896 and 1902. Pettus died on July 27, 1907, in Hot Springs, North Carolina.; while serving his second senatorial term.

Edward Porter Alexander

 

May 26, 1835 - April 28, 1910

As soon as the right to secede was denied by the North, I strongly approved of its assertion and maintenance by force if necessary . . . The Confederacy was raising an army. The only place for me was in that army," Porter Alexander wrote matter-of-factly in his memoirs. The Georgia native graduated third in his class from West Point in 1857, and then helped develop for the army the wigwag (semaphore) communications system of sending messages by means of signal flags. Alexander entered Confederate service as a captain in the Engineer Corps and used his signaling system at the 1st Batle of Bull Run to alert the Rebel line of the Union movement around their left flank.

Few soldiers saw more service during the war than Porter Alexander. He watched the 1862 Battle of Gaines's Mill from an observation balloon while he was serving as chief of the army's ordnance. But by the end of that year, he had been promoted to colonel and given command of the I Corps artillery. His well placed cannon at the Battle of Fredericksburg played a huge role in defeating the Union army, and again at Chancellorsville, he skillfully deployed his weapons in that Rebel victory.

Alexander commanded 140 cannon in the bombardment that preceded Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg, and then campaigned in Tennessee with the I Corps that fall. He was promoted to brigadier general in the spring and fought in the Battles of Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor. He recovered from a sharpshooter's bullet in the shoulder received at Petersburg in time to participate in the final march to Appomattox.

Alexander was a prominent and valuable citizen after the war, but his greatest gift may well be the memories of the war he recorded for posterity. He eloquently recounted his experiences and described the soldiers and commanders of the great Rebel army with wonderful candor. His recollections of the sights, sounds, and smells of the battle and camp were fascinating.

George Edward Pickett

 

January 25, 1825 - July 30, 1875

Confederate Army officer during the American Civil War, known for Pickett's Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg.

After graduating last in his class from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., (1846), Pickett served with distinction in the Mexican War (1846-47). He resigned his commission in June 1861 and entered the Confederate Army, in which he was made brigadier general in February 1862. Pickett rose to major general in October and was given command of a Virginia division. At the Battle of Fredericksburg he commanded the centre of Gen. Robert E. Lee's line but saw little action.

At Gettysburg (July 3, 1863) three brigades of Pickett's division (4,300 men) constituted somewhat less than half the force in the climactic attack known as Pickett's Charge.

The attack was actually under the command of Gen. James Longstreet. Its bloodily disastrous repulse is often considered the turning point of the war. Although Pickett was much criticized and charged by some with cowardice, Lee retained him in divisional command throughout the Virginia Campaign of 1864.

Eight days before the surrender at Appomattox (April 9, 1865), Pickett's division was almost destroyed at Five Forks while he was attending a shad bake. After the war he worked in an insurance business in Norfolk, Va.

George Washington Gordon

George Washington Gordon

BORN: 1836 in Giles County, TN. DIED: 1911 in Memphis, TN. CAMPAIGNS: Stone's River, Chickamauga, Chattanooga, Kenasaw Mountain, Atlanta, Franklin and Nashville,.HIGHEST RANK ACHIEVED: Brigadier General.

George Washington Gordon was born in Giles County, Tennessee, on October 5, 1836. He grew up and was educated in rural Mississippi and Texas. At the Western Military Institute in Nashville, Tennessee, he studied engineering under Bushrod R. Johnson, future Confederate general. After graduating in 1859, he became involved in surveying. In 1861, he joined the Confederate military as drillmaster of the 11th Tennessee Infantry. He served in East Tennessee, first under Brig. Gen. Felix K. Zollicoffer, then under Maj. Gen. E. Kirby Smith. Gordon fought in the Battles of Stone's River, Chickamauga, Chattanooga and Kennesaw Mountain, as well as the fighting in Atlanta. He was appointed a brigadier general to rank from August 15, 1864. Gordon led a brigade in Gen. John B. Hood's Franklin and Nashville Campaign. Commanding troops at the Battle of Franklin in 1864; he penetrated deeper into the Union center than the rest of the Confederate force, but was wounded and captured. He spent the rest of the war as a prisoner, ending the war in Fort Warren, Boston. In July of 1865, he was released. Gordon moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and studied law. After becoming an attorney, he worked as a state railroad commissioner, a US Indian agent and a school supervisor in Memphis. He was the last Confederate general to serve in the US House of Representatives, entering Congress in 1906 and being reelected twice. Gordon was made commander-in-chief of the United Confederate Veterans twice, and died in Memphis, Tennessee, on August 9, 1911.

Heinrich Hartmann Wirz

November 1823 - November 10, 1865

Heinrich H. Wirz was born in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1823 and educated at the universities in Paris and Berlin before emigrating to the United States in 1849. He eventually settled in Louisiana, where he married and worked as a physician. When the war broke out Wirz enlisted in the Confederate army and was wounded in the Battle of Seven Pines. He lost the use of his right arm, which never healed and gave him constant pain. Wirz was promoted to captain and traveled to Europe on Confederate business from December 1862 to February 1864. The next month he was named commandant of the newly opened Camp Sumter Prison at Andersonville, Ga.

Andersonville was the worst of all the Civil War prisons, and news of the atrocious conditions and horrible suffering of Union prisoners spread through the North in the spring of 1865. Wirz had a thick German accent, a quick temper, and was prone to curse and shout. Described as having a countenance of "ferocity and brutality" and as being "repulsvie in appearance," many malicious and murderous deeds were reported to have been perpetrated by Wirz, who has been called the "monster of Andersonville."

However many others, including some Union prisoners, have described Wirz as "good hearted by nature, and had nothing cruel about him," a man who "would not have mistreated anybody." Whether anyone else in the impossible position of Andersonville's commandant could have performed the duties better, or that the prisoners would have suffered any less, remains doubtful. But at the end of the war, the North demanded that someone pay for the atrocities, and Wirz was quickly arrested, tried, and executed as a war criminal.

Wirz maintained his innocence to the end. The proceedings at his military trial were questionable: Most testimony regarding his alleged crimes was hearsay evidence, and one of his most articulate accusers was later discovered to be a Union deserter who was given a government job for his testimony.

Henry Watkins Allen

Henry Watkins Allen

BORN: 1820 in Prince Edward City, VA. DIED: 1866 in Mexico City, MX CAMPAIGNS: Shiloh and Baton Rouge.HIGHEST RANK ACHIEVED: Brigadier General

Born on April 29, 1820 in Prince Edward County, Virginia, Allen worked in business, but soon quit the position. He attending college briefly and taught, but soon found that the life of a soldier appealed to him most. He volunteered to fight in the War for Texas Independence.

After moving to Louisiana, he studied law for one year at Harvard University and returned to Louisiana to begin a political career. The Civil War interrupted his political career as Allen enlisted in the Louisiana Infantry. Although he was wounded in the face at Shiloh, he refused to leave the field and, although his leg was later shattered by a shell fragment at Baton Rouge, he refused to have his leg amputated. By September 1863, he was physically unfit for service.

Allen was promoted to the rank of brigadier general and transferred to the Trans-Mississippi. Soon after his return to Louisiana, he was elected governor, in which position he helped revitalize the war-time economy of Louisiana.

Allen began trade with Mexico, began a state welfare system, and allowed people to pay with Louisiana or Confederate currency, introducing economic stability to the region. When the Confederacy surrendered, Allen supported Kirby Smith's attempt to keep fighting. By May 1865, however, Allen suggested that the army be disbanded, and he fled to Mexico in fear for his life. Allen published an English-language newspaper based in Mexico City, but, having never fully recovered from his battle wounds, he died on April 22, 1866.

Hiram Bronson Granbury

Hiram Bronson Granbury

BORN: 1831 in Copiah County, MS.
DIED: 1864 in Battle of Franklin.
CAMPAIGNS: Fort Donelson, Vicksburg, Chickamauga, Chattanooga,
Missionary Ridge, Franklin and Nashville.
HIGHEST RANK ACHIEVED: Brigadier General.

Hiram Bronson Granbury was born on March 1, 1831, in Copiah County, Mississippi. He was educated at Oakland College, in Rodney, Mississippi, then moved to Waco, Texas in the 1850s. Granbury became an attorney and official in county government. When Texas seceded from the Union, Granbury organized the Waco Guards, and was sent to Kentucky and Tennessee. Captured in the fall of Fort Donelson in 1862, he was exchanged and returned to Confederate duty. Granbury took part in the Vicksburg Campaign, the Battle of Chickamauga, the Siege of Chattanooga and the Battle of Missionary Ridge. Appointed a brigadier general on February 29, 1864, he led several Texas regiments through engagements to Atlanta and in the Franklin and Nashville Campaign. Granbury died in the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864, one of six Confederate generals to die as a result of a battle.

James Longstreet

 

1821 - 1904

General Longstreet was reared to the age of twelve years at Augusta, Ga., whence after the death of his father he accompanied his mother to North Alabama. From that State he was appointed to the United States military academy in 1838. He was graduated in 1842, and with the brevet of second-lieutenant went on duty at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., with the Fourth infantry.

The command was joined next year by Lieutenant U. S. Grant, whom Longstreet introduced to his cousin, Miss Julia Dent, subsequently the wife of the Federal general. In 1844 Longstreet joined the army in Louisiana under General Taylor, and in 1845, promoted lieutenant of the Eighth regiment, was at St. Augustine, Fla., until he was ordered to Taylor's army in Texas.

He participated in the battles of Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma, Monterey, Vera Cruz, Cerro Gordo, San Antonio, Churubusco, and Molino del Rey, winning the brevets of captain and major. At Chapultepec he was severely wounded. He was promoted captain in 1852, and in 1858 major and paymaster, and stationed at Albuquerque, N. M. Resigning this office he reported at Richmond June 29, 1861, and asked an appointment in the pay department, having resigned "aspirations for military glory." But he received a commission as brigadier-general July 1st, and was ordered to report to Beauregard at Manassas, where, in command of the First, Eleventh and Seventeenth Virginia regiments, he repulsed the Federal attack at Blackburn's Ford, July 18th, and during the battle of July 21st threatened the Federal rear.

On October 17th he was promoted to major-general, and with this rank he commanded a division of the army under Joseph E. Johnston, and at the battle of Williamsburg was in immediate command of the field, manifesting here those sturdy qualities which gave him to such a great degree the confidence of his men, and won their admiration. He commanded the right wing of the army before Richmond during the two days' battle of Seven Pines, and was in command of his own and A. P. Hill's division, under Robert E. Lee, in the successful battles of Gaines' Mill and Frayser's Farm, and was preparing to make a flank movement against the Federals at Malvern Hill when the series of battles ended by the safe retreat of McClellan to the James. After following the retreating enemy to Harrison's landing, he there entered upon his command of the First corps of the army of Northern Virginia, Stonewall Jackson leading the Second.

Jackson marched at once to confront Pope in northern Virginia, and Longstreet soon followed. While Jackson flanked the enemy from their strong position on the Rappahannock he engaged them at various points on the river, and finally forcing the passage of Thoroughfare Gap, participated in the crushing defeat of Pope's army. In the Maryland campaign he moved his division from Frederick to Hagerstown, with part of his command holding the South Mountain passes, while Jackson captured Harper's Ferry, and at Sharpsburg he won additional renown for stubborn and heroic fighting.

October 9, 1862, he was promoted to lieutenant-general. At Fredericksburg the fighting of the left wing, including the heroic defense of Marye's Hill, was under his supervision. In the spring of 1863 he operated with part of his corps at Suffolk, Va., but rejoined Lee at Fredericksburg after the battle of Chancellorsville and the mortal wounding of Jackson.

It was decided at this crisis to make a diversion by a campaign in Pennsylvania, and in accordance with the general plan Longstreet moved his command to Chambersburg, Pa., and thence to Gettysburg, reaching the field in person on the afternoon of the first day of the battle. General Lee having been successful thus far, decided to continue the fight on the Federal front.

Longstreet's troops, having arrived, participated in the second day's battle, and on the third day, under orders from Lee, Pickett's division, reinforced by Pettigrew and Trimble, made the memorable charge against the Federal position on Cemetery Hill. After the Confederate army had retired to Virginia, Longstreet, with Hood and McLaws' divisions, was sent to reinforce Bragg in north Georgia, and as commander of the left wing at Chickamauga he crushed the Federal right, becoming, as D. H. Hill wrote, "The organizer of victory on the Confederate side, as Thomas was the savior of the army on the other side."

After Rosecrans was shut up in Chattanooga Longstreet was detached for the capture of Knoxville. Marching to that point in November, on heavy roads, he had begun assaults upon the works when apprised of the defeat of Bragg at Chattanooga. Rejoining the army of Northern Virginia before the fighting began in the Wilderness, on May 6 he reached the field opportunely and led his men in a successful assault which promised the defeat of Grant's army, when in the confusion a Confederate volley seriously wounded him and killed his favorite brigade commander, the gallant General Jenkins.

During the greater part of the siege at Richmond and Petersburg he commanded on the north side of the James, and on the movement to Appomattox he commanded the advance and the main portion of the army. After hostilities closed he was told by President Johnson that he was one of three, the others being Mr. Davis and General Lee, who could never receive amnesty.

It was subsequently bestowed, however, and he engaged in business at New Orleans. During Grant's presidency he was appointed surveyor of the port of that city, and afterward supervisor of internal revenue and postmaster. In 1880 he was appointed United States minister to Turkey, and under President Garfield he was United States marshal for the district of Georgia, in which State he has made his residence of recent years, at the town of Gainesville. In October, 1897, he was appointed United States railroad commissioner to succeed General Wade Hampton resigned.

Jeb Stuart

 

Febuary 6, 1833 - May 12, 1864

An 1854 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., Stuart resigned his commission to share in the defense of his state when Virginia seceded from the Union (April 1861). At the First Battle of Bull Run (called First Manassas by the South) that July, he distinguished himself by his personal bravery. Later in the year he was promoted to brigadier general and placed in command of the cavalry brigade of the Army of Northern Virginia. Just before the Seven Days' Battle--fought in June 1862 in defense of Richmond--Stuart was sent out by Confederate general Robert E. Lee to locate the right flank of the Federal army under General George B. McClellan. He not only successfully achieved his mission, but he also rode completely around McClellan's army to deliver his report to Lee. In the next campaign he had the good fortune, in his raid against Federal communications, to bring back a staff document from which Lee was able to discover the strength and position of Federal forces.

Stuart, promoted to a major general and commander of the cavalry corps, was present at the Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas, August 1862) and again circled the Federal army, returning with 1,200 enemy horses. During the Maryland campaign that followed, he brilliantly defended one of the passes of South Mountain (Crampton's Gap), thus enabling Lee to concentrate his army in time to meet McClellan's attack. By the winter of 1862 Stuart's extraordinary skill as an intelligence officer was fully recognized, and Lee called him the "eyes of the army."

At the Battle of Fredericksburg (December 1862) Stuart's horse artillery rendered valuable service by checking the Federal attack on General T.J. ("Stonewall") Jackson's corps. The following May at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Stuart was appointed by Lee to take command of the 2nd Army Corps after Jackson had been wounded.

The next campaign at Gettysburg, Pa. (July 1863), was preceded by the cavalry Battle of Brandy Station (June 9), at which for the first time Stuart and his men were met by worthy opposition from the Federal cavalry. The Confederates' northward march to the Potomac River was screened by Stuart's cavalry corps, which held the various approaches on the right flank of the army. Stuart's conduct at Gettysburg was long a subject of controversy. Though ordered by Lee to deploy his cavalry as a screen while also gathering intelligence for the advancing Confederate army, Stuart instead struck off on a raid, was delayed, and arrived at Gettysburg too late to provide Lee with vital information on the positions and movements of the Union forces. When Stuart did rejoin Lee's army at Gettysburg on July 2, the battle had already begun, and his exhausted forces were of little help.

Throughout the winter of 1863-64 Stuart continued to supply the Confederate command with accurate knowledge of Northern troop movements. But soon after the opening of the 1864 campaign his corps was drawn away from Lee's army by General Philip Sheridan's Federal cavalry forces. In attempting to keep the enemy from reaching Richmond, during the engagement generally known as Spotsylvania Courthouse, Stuart's army met defeat (May 11), and he himself was mortally wounded at close range the next day.

Jefferson Davis

1808 - 1889

Davis's parents moved to Mississippi when he was a boy. He was given a classical education at Transylvania Univ. and was appointed to West Point, where he was graduated in 1828. He spent the next seven years in various army posts in the Old Northwest and took part (1832) in the Black Hawk War. In 1835 he married the daughter of Zachary Taylor, but she died three months later. Davis spent the next 10 years in the comparative quiet of a Mississippi planter's life. In 1845 he married Varina Howell.

Early Political Career

Elected (1845) to the House of Representatives, he resigned in June, 1846, to command a Mississippi regiment in the Mexican War. Under Zachary Taylor he distinguished himself both at the siege of Monterrey and at Buena Vista. Davis was appointed (1847) U.S. Senator from Mississippi to fill an unexpired term but resigned in 1851 to run for governor of Mississippi against his senatorial colleague, Henry S. Foote, who was a Union Whig. Davis was a strong champion of Southern rights and argued for the expansion of slave territory and economic development of the South to counterbalance the power of the North. He lost the election by less than a thousand votes and retired to his plantation until appointed (1853) Secretary of War by Franklin Pierce. Throughout the administration he used his power to oppose the views of his Northern Democratic colleague, Secretary of State William L. Marcy. Davis favored the acquisition of Cuba and opposed concessions to Spain in the Black Warrior and Ostend Manifesto difficulties, and he also promoted a southern route for a transcontinental railroad, therefore favoring the Gadsden Purchase. Reentering the Senate in 1857, Davis became the leader of the Southern block.

The Confederacy and After

Davis took little part in the secession movement until Mississippi seceded (Jan., 1861), whereupon he withdrew from the Senate. He was immediately appointed major general of the Mississippi militia, and shortly afterward he was chosen president of the Confederate provisional government established by the convention at Montgomery, Ala., and inaugurated in Feb., 1861. Elected regular President of the Confederate States, he was inaugurated at Richmond, Va., in Feb., 1862. Davis realized that the Confederate war effort needed a strong, centralized rule. This conflicted with the states' rights policy for which the Southern states had seceded, and, as he assumed more and more power, many of the Southern leaders combined into an anti-Davis party.

Originally hopeful of a military rather than a civil command in the Confederacy, he closely managed the army and was involved in many disagreements with the Confederate generals; arguments over his policies raged long after the Confederacy was dead. Lee surrendered without Davis's approval. After the last Confederate cabinet meeting was held (April, 1865) at Charlotte, N.C., Davis was captured at Irwinville, Ga. He was confined in Fortress Monroe for two years and was released (May, 1867) on bail. The federal government proceeded no further in its prosecution of Davis. After his release he wrote an apologia, The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government (1881). He was buried at New Orleans, but his body was moved (1893) to Richmond, Va.