Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

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Union colonel James Martinus Schoonmaker
James Martinus Schoonmaker had proved himself as a military leader in the years leading up to a Civil War battle in which his actions would make him one of the first Pittsburghers awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. Born June 30, 1842, he left what is now the University of Pittsburgh in 1861 at age 19 to enlist in the Union Army. He was promoted from private to corporal to sergeant in less than a year. In August 1862 he was placed in charge of the 14th Pennsylvania Calvary and by November, was promoted up the ranks to colonel. Just 20, he was thought to be the youngest colonel in the North.
by pittsburghlive :: 2008-03-31 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

The Grey Ghost - John Singleton Mosby's Fairfax raid has 145th anniversary
The Confederate partisan ranger John Singleton Mosby, the Grey Ghost, is a legend of Northern Virginia history. He led his Mosby's Rangers on exploits during the Civil War, and he is the subject of history tours, books and a 1950s TV show. The Mosby Heritage Area and the John S. Mosby Highway and Fairfax neighborhood Mosby Woods also bear his name. "He had no military background at all, but in his career as fighter ... he created something that didn't exist before," said Don Hakenson, of the Mosby's Confederacy bus tour. Mosby was a innovator of guerilla warfare, whose style was to come from nowhere, hit and disperse.
by connectionnewspapers :: 2008-03-17 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Michigan's first civil war general: Alpheus S. Williams
Civil War general Alpheus S. Williams will be focus of conversation at the Ellis Reference and Information Center. He crusaded in many of the Civil War's bloodiest battles: Antietam, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. He commanded troops in Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman's March to the Sea. Yet, few people have heard of Alpheus S. Williams. "Gen. Williams fought in some of the most horrific battles of the Civil War in both the Eastern Theater and in the West. He started poorly but steadily improved as a combat general, close to his troops and to the front lines during the action," said Jeff Charnley.
by monroenews :: 2008-01-10 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Civil War general's life fascinating - William Tecumseh Sherman
"Sherman: Fighting Prophet" by Lloyd Lewis. A few small facts stand out in this biography of Civil War Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman. He was given the first name Tecumseh by his parents, he married his foster sister, he did say "War is all hell" in a speech in Ohio in 1880. By 1861 he was a nervous and brilliant man worrying "almost to lunacy" about the fate of the farm boys he soon would lead into the battles. Sherman's fame rests on 3 campaigns in Georgia and the Carolinas in 1864: the fight for Atlanta, the march from Atlanta to the sea, and the winter march from Savannah through South Carolina to Columbia.
by nwitimes :: 2007-06-04 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Gen. David Hunter issued emancipation edicts long before Lincoln
Civil War General David Hunter has faded into obscurity, but his efforts at Fort Pulaski to enlist just-freed African Americans into the Union Army sent shock waves across the nation. Historian Charles J. Elmore recounts these events in book General Hunter's Proclamation. The Federal army that forced Fort Pulaski to surrender on April 11, 1862. Two days later, Hunter, the commander of the Department of the South, issued General Order No. 7, freeing "all persons of color lately held to involuntary service by enemies of the US in Fort Pulaski and on Cockspur Island ..." The next month, he went further: General Order No. 11 freed the slaves in 3 states.
by savannahnow :: 2007-02-23 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

The United States has suffered some really bad presidents
Millard Fillmore, 1850-1853, hated Catholics, Jews, and African Americans to the point that he ran for President as a Nativist on the Know Nothing Party ticket, their aims were just like those of the Ku Klux Klan in 1914 by Hiram Evans. -- Franklin Pierce, 1853-1857, was drunk for most of his time. He did nothing while the country fell apart. Kansas had its own mini civil war, and the country drifted toward the big Civil War during. James Buchanan, 1857-1861, also watched as the nation drifted into the Civil War. Bleeding Kansas was still a fact of life. His Secretary of War, Jefferson Davis, shipped arms and ammunition to southern military posts.
by milforddailynews :: 2006-12-15 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Fredericksburg: when a brigadier general served under a colonel
I was asked about Union Brig. General Thomas Welsh's role in the Battle of Fredericksburg. The name was unfamiliar to me, which was strange, since a brigadier general would have commanded a brigade, and I knew the names of all the Union brigade and division commanders at Fredericksburg. A quick check of Ezra Warner's "Generals in Blue," a reliable source, confirmed that Welsh was a brigadier general at the Battle. Curiously, he commanded the 45th Pennsylvania that was part of a brigade commanded by Colonel Daniel Leasure. I had never come across an occasion when a brigadier general served under a colonel.
by fredericksburg :: 2006-11-26 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Controversies amplify lore of General Nathan Bedford Forrest
Article no longer available from the original source.
By historical accounts, he was a handsome man who overcame poverty and a lack of education to become one of the military's most respected tacticians. As a general, he was decisive under pressure, the kind of leader men wanted to follow. He embraced his reputation as a tough guy, once stating that "war means fighting and fighting means killing." But the full history of Nathan Bedford Forrest is far from glorious. A controversial Civil War slaughter and his role in the birth of the Ku Klux Klan have made him a lightning rod for controversy.
by tennessean :: 2006-11-25 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Was Confederate General Stuart at fault for Gettysburg fiasco
One of the more inexhaustible arguments stemming from the War Between the States involves Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart and his untimely arrival at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863. The quarrel, both then and now, revolves around the absence of his cavalry on the first day of fighting and the devastating results that followed. Military historians have speculated that Stuart's presence might have helped to prevent the fight in Adams County altogether. Some have proposed that the Confederate cavalry's reconnaissance would have enabled the Army of Northern Virginia to meet the Union army on ground of its own choosing.
by fredericksburg :: 2006-11-06 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Maryland's two Confederate admirals
It is ironic that Maryland, a state with strong Southern sympathies, did not secede from the Union yet produced the only Confederate naval officers to attain the rank of admiral. Franklin Buchanan became the Confederacy's highest-ranking naval officer, while Raphael Semmes became its most famous naval hero. The Confederate navy was top-heavy with Marylanders. In addition to the only two admirals, Maryland provided one commodore, seven captains, 4 commanders, 7 lieutenants commanding vessels or shore batteries and 15 other lieutenants. In all, 163 Marylanders served as officers in the relatively small Confederate navy.
by washingtontimes :: 2006-10-29 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Stonewall Jackson - Book and film
Article no longer available from the original source.
Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson was an extraordinary general and a slave owner. He also taught slaves to read. Jackson, a Confederate General and professor, is the subject of Richard G. Williams Jr.'s book, "Stonewall Jackson: The Black Man's Friend," and an aspiring movie by Ken Carpenter. He starts filming "Stonewall Jackson: Light Before the War" in Lexington. "The qualities that Gen. Jackson embodied are those that should make any man proud," he said. "What I find attractive about Williams' book is that it sheds light on the fact that Gen. Jackson's character transcended societal borders."
by newsleader :: 2006-10-13 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Confederate general: Morgan's band of Confederate horsemen
Around 80 members of the Morgan's Men Association met in Parkersburg to honor General John Hunt Morgan, the Confederacy's hero, and visited the Meigs County battlefield where he met his Waterloo. His war exploits seem more fitted for Hollywood than a history book. Morgan's band of Confederate horsemen not only sent the Union midwest into panic during the famous 1863 raid, Morgan and a handful of his officers were the first to escape from the Ohio State Penitentiary. Morgan led several successful raids deep into Union territory in 1862, but his 24-day, 1,000-mile July 1863 raid is the most famous and known simply as "Morgan's Raid."
by mariettatimes :: 2006-08-29 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Illinois Civil War hero -- Union General John A. Logan
You know about Abraham Lincoln and General U.S. Grant. But do you know who was the next most popular civil war hero from Illinois? When Lincoln was assassinated, there was such outrage among troops at Raleigh, N.C., that they were prepared to destroy that city. However, General Logan rode in front of the Union cannons and soldiers and declared they would have to shoot him first. He lost half of his infantry division while leading them into battle at Fort Donelson. He had been shot 3 times in that battle; yet, he returned to the fight after each wound. He rallied his troops at the battle of Atlanta, and helped turn possible stinging defeat into a stunning victory.
by rockrivertimes :: 2006-08-25 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

The first Union officer to die in the Civil War
Article no longer available from the original source.
He was the North's first hero of the Civil War, and he didn't fall in battle. Colonel Elmer Ellsworth's death reportedly brought Abraham Lincoln to tears. Now, experts are studying a scrap of cloth believed to have been part of a flag Ellsworth pulled down from a hotel because Lincoln could see it from the White House. The hotel's owner killed Ellsworth, who's believed to have been the first Union officer to die in the Civil War. A large cloth star believed to have been part of the Confederate flag was found in a box in a town of Saratoga office. Archivists will try to verify its authenticity.
by wcax :: 2006-08-07 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Lost Causes of Confederate Colonel William C. Oates
Gettysburg Requiem: The Life and Lost Causes of Confederate Colonel William C. Oates, By Glenn W. LaFantasie. The Civil War may well have been decided at Gettysburg as troops of the 20th Maine Infantry turned back repeated assaults by the 15th Alabama Regiment. The Confederate commander was William C. Oates is hardly remembered at all except as the man who led his regiment against Union commander Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Oates appears given to moods: Sickened by the carnage at the Second Manassas in August 1862, he mounted his horse and roamed for a while, finding a farmhouse where he napped until awakened by the sound of cannon as the battle resumed.
by boston :: 2006-07-25 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Union artillery's role in battle during Pickett's Charge
Civil War generals gain fame for their stirring quotes, but that's what Brig. General Henry Hunt probably would have said to his troops during the Battle of Gettysburg. After all, his ears would be ringing from commanding 58 batteries for 3 days of booming artillery barrages. Hunt's role was one of the more crucial to the battle. Those taking part in the Battle Walks can learn about Hunt's role and the debate over how well Union artillery was managed on the battle's final day during Pickett's Charge. Hunt was a noted artillery expert. He felt the artillery was his area of expertise, and had no care for the functions of infantry or cavalry.
by eveningsun :: 2006-07-02 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Kilpatrick a dashing general? History of cavalry battles
If you're interested in dashing Civil War generals or the history of cavalry battles, the summer seminars at the Graffiti House might be for you. Sunday's seminar focuses on Judson Kilpatrick, who was described as one of the "Union's most dashing generals," led a large force of cavalry against Richmond in the late winter of 1863-64. However, he got within one mile of the Confederate White House and then turned back. The seminar will answer why he changed tactics, identify the role of Confederate soldiers and address some accusations of attempted atrocities, which made this attempt famous ever since.
by starexponent :: 2006-06-20 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

General Marmaduke honored during Civil War re-enactment
A small cross made of sticks, the sword of a fallen soldier and the Confederate flag were part of a ceremony for Major General John Sappington Marmaduke. He led several successful cavalry raids into Missouri. Battle of Chalk Bluff took place on May 1-2, 1863. He commanded the Confederate cavalry, Brigadier General William Vandever commanded the Union's 2nd Division, Army of the Frontier. Vandever pursued Marmaduke to the point where he planned to cross river at Chalk Bluff. Marmaduke set up a rear guard in an effort to protect crossing. The rear guard got heavy casualties, but hold off Vandever. Due to the casualties, Marmaduke was forced to end the expedition.
by piggotttimes :: 2006-05-11 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Civil War forged bond between generals
In 1981, Charles Bracelen Flood paid tribute to Robert E. Lee in Lee: The Last Years, which chronicles the last five years of the Confederate general's life. A quarter of a century later, Flood gives Ulysses S. Grant his due along with another Union general, William T. Sherman, in Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War. "It was a close friendship, beyond being a military partnership," Flood said in an interview.
by dispatch :: 2006-05-04 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

Biography of General James G. Blunt - Tarnished Glory
Robert Collins: General James G. Blunt -- Tarnished Glory. "No one had done a biography of General Blunt before. He seemed interesting enough to sustain the book, and I found some interesting things about him that haven't appeared in other histories of the area that had mentioned General Blunt. General Blunt was Kansas' highest-ranking and most important Civil War general. He commanded troops in several battles in this region including Cane Hill, Prairie Grove, Honey Springs, Westport and the Second battle of Newtonia. It was his escorts that were killed at the Baxter Springs massacre."
by nevadadailymail :: 2006-04-25 :: Civil War Generals and Military Leaders

American Civil War in the News is a edited review of American Civil War related news and articles, providing collection of hand-picked 1861-1865 era history.