The general officers of the Confederate States Army (CSA) were the senior military leaders of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War of 1861–1865. They were often former officers from the United States Army (the regular army ) before the Civil War, while others were given the rank based on merit or when necessity demanded. Most Confederate generals needed confirmation from the Confederate States Congress , much like prospective generals in the modern U.S. armed forces.
208-560: James Longstreet (January 8, 1821 – January 2, 1904) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War and was the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee , who called him his "Old War Horse". He served under Lee as a corps commander for most of the battles fought by the Army of Northern Virginia in the Eastern Theater , and briefly with Braxton Bragg in
416-430: A cholera epidemic while visiting Augusta in 1833. Although James's mother and the rest of the family moved to Somerville, Alabama , following his father's death, James remained with his uncle. As a boy, Longstreet enjoyed swimming, hunting, fishing, and riding horses. He became adept at shooting firearms. Northern Georgia was very rural frontier territory, and Southern aristocratic traditions had not yet taken hold. As
624-613: A civil rights activist and Pan-Africanist who also spoke out against Lost Cause memorials. In 1931, in the official magazine for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People , The Crisis , he wrote that it "would be an inscription something like this: 'sacred to the memory of those who fought to Perpetuate Human Slavery'". On January 3, 1966, Sammy Younge Jr. was murdered in Tuskegee, Alabama , two years after
832-468: A Confederate colonel, as well as Joseph E. Johnston who wore a Colonel's insignia with a larger six pointed star in the center, similar to the stars worn by George Washington during the American Revolution. Wade Hampton additionally wore shoulder straps with general stars to denote his specific general's rank, and was apparently the only Confederate general to ever do so. The only visible difference
1040-483: A brigade in McLaws' division that was positioned at the front of the stone wall, was killed. One Union general compared the scene before Marye's Heights to "a great slaughter pen" and said that his men "might as well have tried to take Hell". McLaws estimated that only one Union soldier lay dead within 30 yards of the wall, the rest having fallen much farther back. Jackson, meanwhile, managed with much greater difficulty to repel
1248-404: A cause, the cause of constitutional liberty (though God only knows what the sequel might have demonstrated). I think there is something of proper dignity in the word Cause; then The Lost Cause is an advertisement of something valuable that is gone; besides, the associations of the title are tender and reverential, there is a strain of mourning in it. How do you like it?" "Excellently well," replied
1456-474: A corps commander. Lee prevented this by telling Davis that parting with large numbers of troops would force him to move his army closer to Richmond, and instead advanced a plan to invade Pennsylvania . A campaign in the North would relieve agricultural and military pressure that the war was placing on Virginia and North Carolina, and, by threatening a federal city, disrupt Union offensives elsewhere and erode support for
1664-448: A cotton plantation close to where the village of Gainesville would be founded in northeastern Georgia. James's ancestor Dirck Stoffels Langestraet immigrated to the Dutch colony of New Netherland in 1657, but the name was Anglicized over the generations. James's father was impressed by his son's "rocklike" character, giving him the nickname Peter , and he was known as Pete or Old Pete for
1872-621: A counterfeit varnish of patriotism, so that the precipitators of rebellion might go down in history hand in hand with the defenders of the government, thus wiping out with their own hands their own stains. Memorial associations such as the United Confederate Veterans , the United Daughters of the Confederacy , and Ladies Memorial Associations integrated Lost Cause themes to help white Confederate-sympathizing Southerners cope with
2080-673: A defense against a Northern threat to a Southern way of life and declares that this threat violated the states' rights guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States . The Lost Cause's assertion that any state had the right to secede was strongly denied in the North. Lost Cause arguments universally portray slavery as more benevolent than cruel . In its mythology and peculiarly Southern iconography, Confederate generals are characterized as morally flawless, deeply religious, and saintly or Christ-like. The term "Lost Cause" first appeared in
2288-522: A defensive rather than an offensive war. Lee did detach two divisions from the First Corps but ordered them to Richmond, not Tennessee. The Confederate Army was suffering from an acute food shortage. Southern Virginia was said to have large quantities of cattle and substantial stores of bacon and corn. Meanwhile, seaborne movements of the Union IX Corps were thought to be aimed at launching an invasion of
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#17331058574952496-565: A devoted family man with an exceptionally happy marriage. Longstreet next served several months of recruiting duty in Poughkeepsie, New York . After travelling to St. Louis for the Grant wedding, Longstreet and his wife moved to Carlisle Barracks , Pennsylvania. On January 1, 1850, he was appointed Chief Commissary for the Department of Texas, responsible for the acquisition and distribution of food to
2704-608: A dispatch to Washington. On May 31, during the Battle of Seven Pines , Longstreet received his orders verbally from Johnston but apparently misremembered them. He marched his men in the wrong direction down the wrong road, causing congestion and confusion with other Confederate units, diluting the effect of the Confederate counterattack against McClellan. He then got into an argument with Major General Benjamin Huger over who had seniority, causing
2912-571: A division in the newly reorganized and renamed Confederate Army of Northern Virginia under Johnston (formed from the previous Army of the Potomac and the Army of the Shenandoah ) – with four infantry brigades commanded by Generals D.H. Hill, David R. Jones , Bonham, and Louis Wigfall , as well as Hampton's Legion commanded by Wade Hampton III . On January 10, 1862, Longstreet traveled under orders from Johnston to Richmond, where he discussed with Davis
3120-489: A general battle at such a distance from our base, unless attacked by the enemy." The Army of Northern Virginia was reorganized after Jackson's death. Two division commanders, Richard S. Ewell and A.P. Hill, were promoted to lieutenant general and assumed command of the Second and the newly created Third Corps respectively. Longstreet's First Corps gave up R.H. Anderson's division during the reorganization, leaving Longstreet with
3328-466: A giant hammer" with Longstreet actively directing artillery fire and sending brigades into the fray. Longstreet and Lee were together during the assault and both of them came under Union artillery fire. Although the Union troops put up a furious defense, Pope's army was forced to retreat in a manner similar to the embarrassing Union defeat at First Bull Run, fought on roughly the same battleground. Longstreet gave
3536-578: A grand triumph. To this, he readily assented as an important and material adjunct to his general plan. There is conflicting evidence for the veracity of Longstreet's account. It was written years after the campaign and is affected by hindsight, both of the results of the battle and of heavy postbellum criticism. In letters of the time, Longstreet made no reference to such a bargain. In April 1868, Lee said that he "had never made any such promise, and had never thought of doing any such thing". Yet in his post-battle report, Lee wrote, "It had not been intended to fight
3744-523: A groomsman", and Longstreet biographer Donald Brigman Sanger called the role of best man "uncertain" while noting that neither Grant nor Longstreet mentioned such a role in their memoirs. Later in 1844, the regiment, along with the Third Infantry , was transferred to Camp Salubrity near Natchitoches, Louisiana , as part of the Army of Observation under Major General Zachary Taylor . On March 8, 1845, Longstreet
3952-516: A lawyer, judge, newspaper editor, and Methodist minister, was a fierce states' rights partisan who supported South Carolina during the Nullification crisis (1828–1833), ideas to which Longstreet probably would have been exposed. Augustus was also known for drinking whiskey and playing cards at a time when many Americans considered them immoral, habits he passed on to Longstreet. In 1837, Augustus attempted to obtain an appointment for his nephew to
4160-484: A little over 24 hours and Lee did not attempt to get his army concentrated any faster. When Longstreet's men arrived on the field around midday on August 29, Lee planned a flanking attack on the Union Army, which was concentrating its attention on Jackson. Longstreet demurred to three suggestions from Lee urging him to attack, recommending instead a reconnaissance in force to survey the ground in front of him. This confirmed
4368-569: A long-lasting literary and cultural phenomenon. The 1881 publication of The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government by ex-Confederate President Jefferson Davis , a two-volume defense of the Southern cause, provided another important text in the history of the Lost Cause. Davis blamed the enemy for "whatever of bloodshed, of devastation, or shock to republican government has resulted from
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#17331058574954576-531: A minor artillery duel at the First Battle of Rappahannock Station . The Confederate Washington Artillery was heavily damaged and a Union shell landed feet away from Longstreet and Wilcox but failed to explode. Meanwhile, Stuart's cavalry rode around the Army of Virginia and captured hundreds of soldiers and horses as well as some of Pope's personal belongings. Jackson executed a sweeping flanking maneuver that captured Pope's main supply depot. He placed his corps in
4784-493: A minor role in the fighting. Between 5 and 6 in the evening, Longstreet received an order from Brigadier General Joseph E. Johnston instructing him to take part in the pursuit of the Federal troops, who had been defeated and were fleeing the battlefield. He obeyed, but when he met Brigadier General Milledge Bonham 's brigade, Bonham, who outranked Longstreet, ordered him to retreat. The same order soon arrived from Johnston. Longstreet
4992-429: A positive light: [T]he greatest efforts made by the defeated insurgents since the close of the war have been to promulgate the idea that the cause of liberty, justice, humanity, equality, and all the calendar of the virtues of freedmen, suffered violence and wrong when the effort for southern independence failed. This is, of course, intended as a species of political cant, whereby the crime of treason might be covered with
5200-404: A result, Longstreet's manners were sometimes rather rough in spite of his plantation background. He dressed unceremoniously and at times used coarse language, although not in the presence of women. In later life, Longstreet described his aunt and uncle as caring and loving. He made no known political statements before the war and appears to have been largely uninterested in politics. But Augustus, as
5408-729: A second aspect: "The reunion was exclusively a white man's phenomenon and the price of the reunion was the sacrifice of the African Americans." The historian Caroline Janney stated: Providing a sense of relief to white Southerners who feared being dishonored by defeat, the Lost Cause was largely accepted in the years following the war by white Americans who found it to be a useful tool in reconciling North and South. The Yale historian David W. Blight wrote: The Lost Cause became an integral part of national reconciliation by dint of sheer sentimentalism, by political argument, and by recurrent celebrations and rituals. For most white Southerners,
5616-508: A significant delay. When D.H. Hill subsequently asked Longstreet for reinforcements, he complied, but failed to properly coordinate his brigades. Only one of Longstreet's brigades and none of Huger's reached the field. Late in the day, Major General Edwin Vose Sumner crossed the rain-swollen Chickahominy River with two divisions. General Johnston was wounded during the battle. Although Johnston preferred Longstreet as his replacement, command of
5824-605: A staff officer only. The post of adjutant general was filled by Samuel Cooper (the position he had held as a colonel in the U.S. Army from 1852 until resigning) and he held it throughout the Civil War, as well as the army's inspector general . Initially, the Confederate States Army commissioned only brigadier generals in both the volunteer and regular services; however, the Congress quickly passed legislation allowing for
6032-494: A stone wall at the foot of Marye's Heights. After a lengthy delay, caused by waiting for the arrival of supplies to build pontoon bridges , Burnside attempted to cross the Rappahannock on December 11. Soldiers attempting to lay pontoon bridges encountered fierce resistance from Confederate troops inside Fredericksburg, led by William Barksdale 's brigade of McLaws' division. Burnside subsequently ordered an artillery bombardment of
6240-431: A strong Union assault spearheaded by the division of George Meade . Sensing that the rest of his troops would be adequate to defend his position on the Confederate left on the heights, Longstreet had ordered Hood to reinforce Jackson, and Pickett to cooperate with him, but Hood hesitated in sending his division forward, and by the time he did, the fighting on Jackson's front had mostly ended. Longstreet expressed regret after
6448-561: A town on the North Carolina coast which had fallen to the Union in March 1862. The campaign was unsuccessful but netted a considerable amount of supplies. In April, Longstreet besieged Union forces in the city of Suffolk, Virginia . Fighting was light and nothing came of the siege. At the end of April, Longstreet was ordered by Secretary of War James Seddon to join Lee's army as it faced attack from
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6656-408: A veil. We have elevated the entire conflict to the realm where it is no longer explosive. It is a part of American legend, a part of American history, a part, if you will, of American romance. It moves men mightily, to this day, but it does not move them in the direction of picking up their guns and going at it again. We have had national peace since the war ended, and we will always have it, and I think
6864-557: A year in Leavenworth he was transferred to Colonel Garland's department in Albuquerque, New Mexico , to serve as paymaster, where he was joined by Louise and their children. Knowledge of Longstreet's prewar life is extremely limited. His experience resembles that of many Civil War generals insofar as he went to West Point, served with distinction in the War with Mexico, and continued his career in
7072-659: Is currently the same rank structure used by the U.S. Army (in use since shortly after the Civil War) and is also the system used by the U.S. Marine Corps (in use since World War II ). Lost Cause of the Confederacy The Lost Cause of the Confederacy (or simply the Lost Cause ) is an American pseudohistorical and historical negationist myth that claims the cause of the Confederate States during
7280-502: Is known of their courtship or marriage. Longstreet rarely mentions her in his memoirs, and never reveals any personal details. There are no surviving letters between the two. Most anecdotes about their relationship come through the writings of Longstreet's second wife, Helen Dortch Longstreet . Novelist Ben Ames Williams , a descendant of Longstreet, included Longstreet as a minor character in two novels. Williams questioned Longstreet's surviving children and grandchildren, and depicted him as
7488-454: Is made that the main factor was not qualitative inferiority in leadership or fighting ability but the massive quantitative superiority of the Yankee industrial machine. At the peak of troop strength in 1863, Union soldiers outnumbered Confederate soldiers by over two to one, and the Union had three times the bank deposits of the Confederacy. After the Civil War, white Southerners wanted to portray
7696-471: The American Civil War was just, heroic, and not centered on slavery . First enunciated in 1866, it has continued to influence racism , gender roles , and religious attitudes in the Southern United States into the 21st century. Historians have dismantled many parts of the Lost Cause mythos. Beyond forced unpaid labor and denial of freedom to leave the slaveholder, the treatment of slaves in
7904-590: The American Revolutionary War , consistent with the U.S. Militia Act of 1792. They went by various names such as state "militia", "armies", or "guard" and were activated and expanded when the Civil War began. These units were commanded by "militia generals" to defend their particular state and sometimes did not leave the state to fight for the Confederate Army. The Confederate militias used the brigadier and major general officer ranks. The regulations in
8112-774: The Army of Tennessee in the Western Theater . After graduating from the United States Military Academy at West Point , Longstreet served in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War . He was wounded at the Battle of Chapultepec , and during recovery married his first wife, Louise Garland. Throughout the 1850s, he served on frontier duty in the American Southwest . In June 1861, Longstreet resigned his U.S. Army commission and joined
8320-542: The Army of the Potomac , launched the Peninsula campaign intending to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond. In his memoirs, Longstreet wrote that while in temporary command of the Confederate army, he proposed to Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson that he march to Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley and combine forces. No evidence has emerged for this claim. Following the delay of the Union offensive against Richmond at
8528-402: The Battle of Chancellorsville on the night of May 2, 1863. Replacing these fallen generals was an ongoing problem during the war, often having men promoted beyond their abilities (a common criticism of officers such as John Bell Hood and George Pickett , but an issue for both armies), or gravely wounded in combat but needed, such as Richard S. Ewell . The problem was made more difficult by
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8736-518: The Battle of Churubusco , a pivotal battle as the U.S. Army moved closer to capturing Mexico City. The Eighth Infantry was the only force in Worth's division to reach the Mexican earthworks. Longstreet carried the regimental banner under heavy Mexican fire. The troops found themselves stuck in a ditch and could only scale the Mexican defenses by standing on each other. In the fierce hand-to-hand combat that ensued,
8944-530: The Battle of Malvern Hill the next day, Longstreet surrendered A.P. Hill's entire division to John B. Magruder , and marched his remaining troops toward the Union positions on the Confederate extreme right. His men were exposed to fire on their flanks from McClellan's troops and were forced to withdraw without success. Throughout the Seven Days Battles, Longstreet had operational command of nearly half of Lee's army—15 brigades—as it drove McClellan back down
9152-501: The Battle of Monterrey in September 1846, during which about 200 Mexican lancers drove back a group of American troops. Longstreet, commanding companies A and B, led a counterattack, killing or wounding almost half of the lancers. On February 23, 1847, he was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant. General-in-Chief Winfield Scott ordered Worth's division out of Taylor's army and under his direct command to participate in an assault on
9360-400: The Battle of Thoroughfare Gap . Ricketts had been ordered to delay Longstreet's march towards the main Confederate army, but he took up his position too late, allowing George T. Anderson 's brigade to occupy the high ground. Lee and Longstreet watched the battle together and decided to flank the Union position. Hood's division and a brigade under Henry L. Benning advanced towards the gap from
9568-807: The Battle of the Wilderness in 1864, where he was seriously wounded by friendly fire. He later returned to the field, serving under Lee in the Siege of Petersburg and the Appomattox campaign . Longstreet enjoyed a successful post-war career working for the U.S. government as a diplomat, civil servant, and administrator. His support for the Republican Party and his cooperation with his pre-war friend President Ulysses S. Grant , as well as critical comments he wrote about Lee's wartime performance, made him anathema to many of his former Confederate colleagues. His reputation in
9776-532: The George Floyd protests , several Confederate monuments were defaced with graffiti. From 2020 to 2021 in Virginia, many Confederate monuments were removed from Monument Avenue . Lost Cause monuments continue to evoke conversations about racial injustice in the United States. They shift the memory of the Civil War away from themes of slavery and emancipation to states' rights with a romanticized version of slavery and
9984-530: The Mexican–American War with the 8th U.S. Infantry. He fought under Zachary Taylor as a lieutenant in May 1846 in the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma . He recounted both of these battles in his memoirs but wrote nothing about his personal role in them. On June 10, Longstreet was given command of Company A of the Eighth Infantry of William J. Worth 's Second Division. He fought again with Taylor's army at
10192-640: The Second Corps (following the reassignment of Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell to other duties) and led the Corps as an army into the third Confederate attack on the United States in July 1864 during the Battle of Monocacy near Frederick, Maryland and the Battle of Fort Stevens outside the U.S. capital city, Washington, D.C. , until December 1864, when he too reverted to a major general. Likewise, both Stephen D. Lee and Alexander P. Stewart were appointed to fill vacancies in
10400-518: The Siege of Yorktown , Johnston oversaw a tactical withdrawal to the outskirts of Richmond, where defenses had already been prepared. Longstreet's division formed the rearguard, which was heavily engaged at the Battle of Williamsburg on May 5. There, Union troops beginning with Joseph Hooker 's division of the Union III Corps , which was commanded by Samuel P. Heintzelman , came out of a forest into open ground to attack Longstreet's men. To protect
10608-534: The Tuskegee Confederate Monument . The monument was defaced, including with the phrase " Black Power ". Protestors unsuccessfully tried to pull it down with a rope and chain. The grounds are owned by the United Daughters of the Confederacy. During the 1950s and 1960s, white supremacists erected Confederate monuments in opposition to the civil rights movement. On the night of August 20, 2018, at
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#173310585749510816-399: The United Daughters of the Confederacy and Sons of Confederate Veterans ) sought to ensure that Southern whites would know what they called the "true" narrative of the Civil War and would therefore continue to support white supremacist policies such as Jim Crow laws . White supremacy is a central feature of the Lost Cause narrative. They say that history is written by the victors, but
11024-467: The United States Military Academy , but the vacancy for his congressional district had already been filled. Longstreet was appointed the following year by a relative, Reuben Chapman , who represented the First District of Alabama, where Mary Longstreet lived. Longstreet was a poor student. By his own admission in his memoirs, he "had more interest in the school of the soldier, horsemanship, exercise, and
11232-634: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in North Carolina, hundreds of protestors gathered at " Silent Sam ", a one-hundred-year-old Confederate Monument and demanded its removal. By 9:30 p.m., students pulled down the statue with a rope. The gathering was supported by the actions of a previous student named Maya Little, when in April, Little protested the monument by pouring blood and paint on it. Some residents in North Carolina believe Confederate monuments have connections to white supremacy. In 2020, during
11440-574: The War of 1812 (1812–1815), and led an army in the field during the Mexican–American War (1846–1849), received a promotion to brevet lieutenant general by a special Act of Congress in 1855. Gen. Grant was the only U.S. Army lieutenant general in active service at the time of his promotion on March 9, 1864. Grant became General-in-Chief, commander of the United States Army (" Union Army "), answering directly to President Abraham Lincoln and charged with
11648-399: The Western Theater as "temporary" lieutenant generals and also reverted to their prior grades as major generals as those assignments ended. However, Lee was nominated a second time for lieutenant general on March 11, 1865. Originally five officers in the Confederate States Army were appointed to the rank of general, and only two more would follow. These generals occupied the senior posts in
11856-608: The "overwhelming resources and numbers" that the Confederate army had fought against. In a letter to Early, Lee requested information about enemy strengths from May 1864 to April 1865, the period in which his army was engaged against Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant (the Overland Campaign and the Siege of Petersburg ). Lee wrote, "My only object is to transmit, if possible, the truth to posterity, and do justice to our brave Soldiers." In another letter, Lee wanted all "statistics as regards numbers, destruction of private property by
12064-578: The African, and was in the interest of human improvement; and which, by the law of the land, protected the negro in life and limb, and in many personal rights, and, by the practice of the system, bestowed upon him a sum of individual indulgences, which made him altogether the most striking type in the world of cheerfulness and contentment. Pollard in The Lost Cause and its sequel The Lost Cause Regained drew inspiration from John Milton 's Paradise Lost with
12272-528: The Americans prevailed. Longstreet received a brevet promotion to captain for his actions. He received a brevet promotion to major for Molino del Rey . In the Battle of Chapultepec on September 12, he was wounded in the thigh while charging up the hill with his regimental colors; falling, he handed the flag to his friend Lt. Pickett, who was able to reach the summit. The capture of the Chapultepec fortress led to
12480-530: The Army of Northern Virginia and sent to reinforce the Army of Tennessee , where General Braxton Bragg was being challenged in Middle Tennessee by the Army of the Cumberland under Union Major General William S. Rosecrans , Longstreet's roommate at West Point. By this time, Longstreet could be identified as part of a "western concentration bloc" which believed that reinforcing Confederate armies operating in
12688-438: The Army of Northern Virginia shifted to G. W. Smith , the senior major general, for a single day. On June 1, Richardson's division of Sumner's corps engaged Longstreet's men, routing Lewis Armistead 's brigade, but the brigades of Pickett, William Mahone , and Roger Atkinson Pryor positioned in the woods managed to hold it back. After six hours of fighting, the battle ended in a draw. Johnston praised Longstreet's performance in
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#173310585749512896-416: The Army of the Potomac by Meade. Longstreet's actions at the Battle of Gettysburg would become the centerpiece of lasting controversy. Longstreet arrived on the battlefield at about 4:30p.m of the first day, July 1, 1863, hours ahead of his troops. Lee had not intended to fight before his army was fully concentrated, but chance and decisions by A.P. Hill, whose troops were the first to be engaged, brought on
13104-587: The Army of the Potomac, now commanded by Hooker, at the Battle of Chancellorsville . He moved his divisions north but could not reach the battle in time. Longstreet's foraging operations yielded enough food to feed Lee's entire army for two months. However, no further military objective was reached, and the operation caused Longstreet and 15,000 men of the First Corps to be absent from Chancellorsville. Eventually, Longstreet came under criticism from political enemies claiming that he could have marched his men back from Suffolk in time to join Lee. However, Sorrel says that it
13312-708: The CSA's cultural and martial superiority to the North, relying on nationalistic narratives of the fanciful Southern Cavalier descended from the English Royalists or the Norman knights of William the Conqueror . Lost Cause rhetoric idealized the South as a land of "grace and gentility" where planter aristocrats were indulgent of their cheerful slaves and its manhood had great courage. Whites and blacks are portrayed as joined in support of
13520-599: The Chambersburg Pike. Longstreet sent a courier down the Cashtown Road to hurry them along. They eventually bivouacked about four miles (6.4 km) behind the lines. Pickett was performing rearguard duty in Cashtown and would not be ready to move until morning. A major blunder occurred when Ewell failed to seize the heights on Cemetery Hill after being ordered to do so "if practicable" by Lee. General officers in
13728-487: The Civil War has been the rare exception. Perhaps the need for the country to stay together made it necessary for the North to sit silently and accept the South's conception of the conflict. In any case, for most of the past 150 years, the South's version of the war and Reconstruction has held sway in our schools, our literature and, since the dawn of feature films, our movies. The movement that took The Lost Cause for its name had multiple origins, but its unifying contention
13936-404: The Civil War". He identified a typical image in postwar fiction: a materialistic, rich Yankee man marrying an impoverished spiritual Southern bride as a symbol of happy national reunion. Examining films and visual art, Gallagher identified the theme of "white people North and South [who] extol the American virtues both sides manifested during the war, to exalt the restored nation that emerged from
14144-464: The Civil War. The defeat of the Confederacy devastated many white Southerners economically, emotionally, and psychologically. Before the war, many believed that their rich military tradition would avail them in the forthcoming conflict. Many sought consolation in attributing their loss to factors beyond their control, such as physical size and overwhelming brute force. The University of Virginia professor Gary W. Gallagher wrote: The architects of
14352-454: The Confederacy's depleting workforce, especially near the war's end. The last Confederate general in the field, Stand Watie , surrendered on June 23, 1865, and the war's last surviving Confederate full general, Edmund Kirby Smith , died on March 28, 1893. James Longstreet died on January 2, 1904, and was considered "the last of the high command of the Confederacy". The Confederate States Army's system of using four grades of general officers
14560-410: The Confederate Army attacked the V Corps of the Union Army under Brigadier General Fitz John Porter , which was positioned north of the Chickahominy River on McClellan's right flank. Federal troops held their lines for most of the day against attacks from the divisions of A.P. Hill and D.H. Hill, and Jackson did not arrive until the afternoon. At about 5 P.M., Longstreet received orders from Lee to join
14768-400: The Confederate Army had both professional and political generals within it. Ranks throughout the CSA were roughly based on the U.S. Army in design and seniority. On February 27, 1861, a general staff for the army was authorized, consisting of four positions: an adjutant general , a quartermaster general , a commissary general , and a surgeon general . Initially, the last of these was to be
14976-525: The Confederate Army, mostly entire army or military department commanders and advisers to Jefferson Davis. This rank was equivalent to the general in the modern U.S. Army. The grade is often referred to in modern writings as "full general" to help differentiate it from the generic term "general", meaning simply "general officer". All Confederate generals were enrolled in the ACSA to ensure that they outranked all militia officers, except for Edmund Kirby Smith , who
15184-492: The Confederate Army. He commanded Confederate troops during an early victory at Blackburn's Ford in July and played a minor role at the First Battle of Bull Run . Longstreet made significant contributions to most major Confederate victories, primarily in the Eastern Theater as one of Robert E. Lee's chief subordinates in the Army of Northern Virginia. He performed poorly at Seven Pines by accidentally marching his men down
15392-732: The Confederate Congress. This was in response to debates on February 17 about whether confirmations made by the provisional legislature needed re-confirmation by the permanent legislature, which was done by an Act of Congress issued two days later. The position of General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States was created on January 23, 1865. Gen. Robert E. Lee , the only officer appointed to it, served from February 6 until April 12. The Confederate states had maintained militias since
15600-470: The Confederate Senate. Major generals outranked brigadiers and all other lesser officers. This rank was not synonymous with use in the U.S. Army, where major generals led divisions, corps, and entire armies. This rank was equivalent in most respects to a major general in the modern U.S. Army. Not further promoted Evander McIver Law was promoted to the rank of major general on March 20, 1865, on
15808-497: The Confederate States Army Like all of the Confederacy's military forces, these generals answered to their civilian leadership, in particular Jefferson Davis , the president of the Confederate States of America and therefore commander-in-chief of the military forces of the Confederate States . Much of the design of the Confederate States Army was based on the structure and customs of the United States Army when
16016-496: The Confederate States Army and resented the ranks that President Davis had authorized. However, his previous position in the U.S. Army was staff , not line , which was a criterion for Davis regarding establishing seniority and rank in the subsequent Confederate States Army. On February 17, 1864, Congress passed legislation to allow President Davis to appoint an officer to command the Trans-Mississippi Department in
16224-827: The Confederate States Congress established the Confederate States War Department on February 21, 1861. The Confederate States Army was composed of three parts; the Army of the Confederate States of America (ACSA, intended to be the permanent, regular army), the Provisional Army of the Confederate States (PACS, or "volunteer" Army, to be disbanded after hostilities), and the various state militias. Graduates from United States Military Academy and Mexican–American War veterans were highly sought after by Jefferson Davis for military service, especially as general officers. Like their U.S. Army counterparts,
16432-707: The Confederate coast anywhere from South Carolina to Southern Virginia. In response, Lee ordered Pickett's division to the capital in mid-February. Hood's division followed, and then Longstreet himself was told to take command of the detached divisions and the Departments of North Carolina and Southern Virginia. The divisions of McLaws and Anderson remained with Lee. In March, Longstreet's men primarily conducted foraging expeditions in Virginia and North Carolina. Longstreet sent Brigadier General Richard B. Garnett 's brigade to D.H. Hill to participate in Hill's attempt to capture New Bern ,
16640-460: The Confederate generals wore uniforms like this regardless of their general grade, and all with gold-colored embroidering. The general officers of the Confederate States Army were paid for their services, and exactly how much (in Confederate dollars (CSD) ) depended on their rank and whether they held a field command or not. On March 6, 1861, when the army only contained brigadier generals, their pay
16848-560: The Confederate lieutenant generals were in the PACS. The Confederate Congress legalized the creation of army corps on September 18, 1862, and directed that lieutenant generals lead them. These generals were to be nominated by President Davis and confirmed by the C.S. Senate. Lieutenant generals outranked major generals and all other lesser officers. Most were graduates of the United States Military Academy and were former officers in
17056-521: The Confederate success at Second Manassas, Lee, holding the strategic initiative, decided to take the war to Maryland to relieve Virginia and hopefully induce foreign nations to come to the Confederates' aid. Longstreet supported the plan. "The situation called for action", he later said, "and there was but one opening – across the Potomac." His men crossed into Maryland on September 6 and arrived in Frederick
17264-423: The Confederate victory at Chancellorsville , as he and most of his soldiers had been detached on the comparatively minor Siege of Suffolk . Longstreet's most controversial service was at the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863, where he openly disagreed with Lee on the tactics to be employed and reluctantly supervised several unsuccessful attacks on Union forces. Afterward, Longstreet was, at his own request, sent to
17472-402: The Confederates. Instead, Lee exclaimed, "If the enemy is there tomorrow, I will attack him." Longstreet replied, "If he is there tomorrow it is because he wants you to attack." Lee, energized by the success of his army that day, again refused. Longstreet suggested an immediate assault on the federal positions, but Lee insisted on waiting for Hood and McLaws, who were marching towards Gettysburg on
17680-586: The East, which would allow him to better educate his children. He was granted a six-month leave, but the request for assignment in the East was denied, and he was instead directed to serve as major and paymaster for the 8th Infantry in Leavenworth, Kansas . He left his son Garland in a school at Yonkers, New York , before journeying to Kansas. On the way, Longstreet came across his old friend Grant in St. Louis, Missouri . After about
17888-474: The Far West, with the rank of general in the PACS. Edmund Kirby Smith was the only officer appointed to this position. Braxton Bragg was appointed a general in the ACSA with a date of rank of April 6, 1862, the day his commanding officer Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston died in combat at Shiloh/Pittsburg Landing . The Confederate Congress passed legislation in May 1864 to allow for "temporary" general officers in
18096-480: The Federal troops, &c." because he intended to demonstrate the discrepancy in strength between the two armies and believed it would "be difficult to get the world to understand the odds against which we fought". Referring to newspaper accounts that accused him of culpability in the loss, he wrote, "I have not thought proper to notice, or even to correct misrepresentations of my words & acts. We shall have to be patient, & suffer for awhile at least.... At present
18304-575: The First Corps) and Jackson was given command of the Left Wing. Over time, Lee and Longstreet became good friends and set up headquarters very near each other. Despite sharing with Jackson a belief in temperance as well as a deep religious conviction, Lee never developed as strong a friendship with him. Piston speculates that the more relaxed atmosphere of Longstreet's headquarters, which included gambling and drinking, allowed Lee to relax and take his mind off
18512-423: The Lost Cause "facilitated the reunification of the North and the South". He quotes historian Gaines M. Foster, who wrote that "signs of respect from former foes and northern publishers made acceptance of reunion easier. By the mid-eighties, most southerners had decided to build a future within a reunited nation. A few remained irreconcilable, but their influence in southern society declined rapidly." Nolan mentioned
18720-461: The Lost Cause acted from various motives. They collectively sought to justify their own actions and allow themselves and other former Confederates to find something positive in all-encompassing failure. They also wanted to provide their children and future generations of white Southerners with a "correct" narrative of the war. Yale University history professor Rollin G. Osterweis summarizes the content that pervaded Lost Cause writings: The Legend of
18928-431: The Lost Cause began as mostly a literary expression of the despair of a bitter, defeated people over a lost identity . It was a landscape dotted with figures drawn mainly out of the past: the chivalric planter; the magnolia-scented Southern belle ; the good, gray Confederate veteran, once a knight of the field and saddle; and obliging old Uncle Remus . All these, while quickly enveloped in a golden haze, became very real to
19136-404: The Lost Cause evolved into a language of vindication and renewal, as well as an array of practices and public monuments through which they could solidify both their Southern pride and their Americanness. In exploring the literature of reconciliation, the historian William Tynes Cowa wrote, "The cult of the Lost Cause was part of a larger cultural project: the reconciliation of North and South after
19344-440: The Lost Cause mythology embraced by the South after the Civil War to the "lost cause" of the ideals held by such Northern intellectuals as Ralph Waldo Emerson , Herman Melville , Henry Adams , and Henry James , who had strived to establish an American humanism free of mythologizing and were disillusioned that the Union victory was followed by the materialism of Gilded Age America. American historian Alan T. Nolan states that
19552-474: The Lost Cause, like the memory itself, remains contested. The white South, most agree, dedicated enormous effort to celebrating the leaders and common soldiers of the Confederacy, emphasizing that they had preserved their and the South's honor. However, it was the articles written by General Jubal A. Early in the 1870s for the Southern Historical Society that firmly established the Lost Cause as
19760-421: The Mexican capital of Mexico City . Worth's division was sent first to Lobos Island, then sailed 180 miles (289.7 km) south to Veracruz . Worth led Scott's army in its amphibious approach on the city, arriving there on March 9. Scott besieged the city and subjected it to regular bombardments. It surrendered on March 29. The American army then marched north towards the capital. In August, Longstreet served in
19968-555: The PACS and three in the ACSA: Samuel Cooper , Robert E. Lee , and Joseph E. Johnston . The Confederate States Congress authorized the organization of regiments into brigades on March 6, 1861. Brigadier generals commanded them, and these generals were nominated by Davis and confirmed by the Confederate Senate. Though close to the U.S. Army in assignments, Confederate brigadiers mainly commanded brigades, while U.S. brigadiers sometimes led divisions and brigades, particularly in
20176-531: The PACS, to be appointed by Davis and confirmed by the C.S. Senate and given a non-permanent command by Davis. John Bell Hood was appointed a "temporary" general on July 18, 1864, the date he took command of the Army of Tennessee in the Atlanta Campaign , but the Congress did not later confirm this appointment, and he reverted to his rank of lieutenant general in January 1865. Later in March 1865, shortly before
20384-459: The Peninsula. Longstreet performed aggressively and quite well in his new, larger command, particularly at Gaines's Mill and Glendale. Lee's army suffered from poor maps, organizational flaws, and weak performances by Longstreet's peers, including, uncharacteristically, Stonewall Jackson, and was unable to destroy the Union army. Moxley Sorrel wrote of Longstreet's confidence and calmness in battle: "He
20592-586: The Potomac River from June 25 to 26. Harrison reported to Longstreet on the evening of June 28 and was instrumental in warning the Confederates that the Army of the Potomac was advancing north to meet them more quickly than they had anticipated, and was already gathered around Frederick, Maryland. Lee was initially skeptical, but the report prompted him to order the immediate concentration of his army north of Frederick near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania . Harrison also brought news that Hooker had been replaced as commander of
20800-419: The South further suffered when he led African-American militia against the anti- Reconstruction White League at the Battle of Liberty Place in 1874. Authors of the Lost Cause movement focused on Longstreet's actions at Gettysburg as a principal reason for why the South lost the Civil War. As an elderly man, he married Helen Dortch Longstreet , who worked to restore her husband's image after his death. Since
21008-433: The South positively by erecting Confederate monuments to memorialize Confederate generals in support of the false narrative that Confederates had fought the war to preserve states' rights and not slavery. African Americans such as 19th-century civil rights activist Frederick Douglass opposed the erection of Confederate memorials. In 1870, Douglass wrote: "Monuments to the 'lost cause' will prove monuments of folly [...] in
21216-456: The South's benevolent and gracious civilization, superior to that of the North. The Confederate soldier is romanticized as steadfast, dashing, and heroic. Lost Cause doctrine holds that secession is a right granted by the Constitution; therefore, those who defend it are not traitors. Southern military leaders are depicted in Lost Cause hagiography as virtual saints, with Robert E. Lee occupying
21424-413: The Southern side, originated with the present writer [Pollard]. Shortly after the war he prepared to write a history of it. He offered the work he designed to a New York publisher, who thought well of it, but objected to the title, "History of the War," etc. The work thus entitled might be confounded with some other inferior memoirs of the war which the writer had already composed, mere annals," First Year of
21632-430: The United States often included sexual abuse and rape , the denial of education, and punishments such as whippings . Slaves' families were often split up by the sale of one or more family members; when such events occurred, the family members in question usually never saw or heard from one another again. Lost Cause proponents ignore these realities, presenting slavery as a positive good and denying that alleviation of
21840-592: The United States Army on May 9, 1861, intending to join the Confederacy . He had already accepted a commission as a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate States Army on May 1. His resignation from the United States Army was accepted on June 1. Longstreet arrived in Richmond, Virginia , with his new commission. He met with Confederate President Jefferson Davis at the executive mansion on June 22, 1861, where he
22048-403: The United States Army throughout the war, in the ratio of about 5-to-1 for the Confederacy compared to roughly 12-to-1 for the United States. The most famous of them is General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson , among the best-known Confederate commanders, after General Robert E. Lee. Jackson's death was the result of pneumonia which emerged subsequently after a friendly fire incident had occurred at
22256-488: The United States Army, with the exceptions of Richard Taylor , Wade Hampton , and Nathan Bedford Forrest . This rank was not synonymous with the U.S. Army's use of it; Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885) was one of only two U.S. lieutenant generals during the war, the other being Winfield Scott (1786–1866), General-in-Chief of the United States Army 1841–1861, at the beginning of the American Civil War who also served in
22464-416: The War," etc. "Could not some title be found more unique and captivating, and not quite so heavy?" The writer promised to think of such a title. The next day he presented himself to the publisher and said, "I have thought of a name for the work I design: it is The Lost Cause . You see the bulk of the people in the South were persuaded that we really contended for something that had the dignity and importance of
22672-615: The Western Theater to fight under Braxton Bragg, where his troops launched a ferocious assault on the Union lines at Chickamauga that carried the day. Afterward, his performance in semi-autonomous command during the Knoxville campaign resulted in a Confederate defeat. Longstreet's tenure in the Western Theater was marred by his central role in numerous conflicts amongst Confederate generals. Unhappy serving under Bragg, Longstreet and his men were sent back to Lee. He ably commanded troops during
22880-399: The Western Theater to protect the states in that part of the Confederacy from invasion was more important than offensive campaigns in the Eastern Theater . This group also included Johnston and Louis Wigfall, now a Confederate senator, both of whom Longstreet was very close with. These people were generally cautious and believed that the Confederacy, with its limited resources, should engage in
23088-404: The act of 1792 provided for two classes of militia, divided by age. Class one included men from 22 to 30 years old, and class two consisted of men from 18 to 20 years and from 31 to 45 years old. The various Confederate states used this system during the war. All Confederate generals wore the same uniform insignia regardless of their general rank, except for Robert E. Lee, who wore the uniform of
23296-485: The appointment of major generals as well as generals, thus providing clear and distinct seniority over the existing major generals in the various state militias. On May 16, 1861, when there were only five officers at the grade of brigadier general, this legislation was passed, which stated in part: That the five general officers provided by existing laws for the Confederate States shall have the rank and denomination of 'general', instead of 'brigadier-general', which shall be
23504-525: The army on February 5. He rushed back to Richmond later in the month when Garland took a turn for the worse, but came back after he recovered. The losses were devastating for Longstreet and he became withdrawn, both personally and socially. In 1861, his headquarters were noted for parties, drinking, and poker games. After he returned, the headquarters social life became for a time more somber. He rarely drank, and his religious devotion increased. That spring, Union Major General George B. McClellan , commander of
23712-403: The army's supply wagons, Longstreet launched a counterattack with the brigades of Cadmus M. Wilcox , A. P. Hill , Pickett, Raleigh E. Colston , and two other regiments. The assault drove the Union soldiers back. Finding the ground he occupied untenable, Longstreet requested reinforcements from D.H. Hill's division a little further up the road and received Early's brigade, to which was later added
23920-519: The artillery described Fredericksburg as "the easiest battle we ever fought." In October 1862, Longstreet had suggested to Joe Johnston that he be sent to fight in the war's Western Theater . Shortly after Fredericksburg, Longstreet vaguely suggested to Lee that "one corps could hold the line of the Rappahannock while the other was operating elsewhere". In February 1863, he made a more specific request, suggesting to Wigfall that his corps be detached from
24128-523: The battle. Biographer William Garrett Piston calls it "the lowest point in Longstreet's military career". Longstreet's report unfairly blamed Huger for the mishaps. On June 1, the President's military advisor Robert E. Lee assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia. In his memoirs, Longstreet suggested that he initially doubted Lee's capacity for command. He wrote that his arrival "was far from reconciling
24336-532: The battle. Longstreet's fresh brigades under Pickett and Richard H. Anderson , accompanied by the brigades of Brigadier General John Bell Hood and Colonel Evander M. Law from William H.C. Whiting 's division, charged the Union lines, forcing them to retreat across the Chickahominy. Longstreet was engaged again on June 30 with about 20,000 men at Glendale . He departed from his usual strategy of placing troops several lines deep and instead spread them out, which in
24544-583: The beginning of the American Civil War , Longstreet was paymaster for the United States Army and stationed in Albuquerque. After news of the Battle of Fort Sumter , he joined his fellow Southerners in leaving the post. In his memoirs, Longstreet calls it a "sad day", and records that a number of Northern officers attempted to persuade him not to go. He writes that he asked one of them "what course he would pursue if his State should pass ordinances of secession and call him to its defence. He confessed that he would obey
24752-404: The brigade of Israel B. Richardson . An infantry charge pushed Longstreet's men back, and in his own words Longstreet "rode with sabre in hand for the leading files, determined to give them all that was in the sword and my horse's heels, or stop the break". Colonel Jubal Early 's brigade arrived to reinforce Longstreet. One of Early's regiments, the 7th Virginia , fired a volley while Longstreet
24960-729: The call." Longstreet was not enthusiastic about secession from the Union , but he had long been infused with the concept of states' rights and felt he could not go against his homeland. Although he was born in South Carolina and brought up in Georgia, he offered his services to Alabama, which had appointed him to West Point and where his mother still lived. He was the senior West Point graduate from that state, which meant that he could potentially be placed in command of that state's soldiers. After settling his accounts, he submitted his resignation letter from
25168-452: The center of the battle. The first Union assault on Longstreet's men at Marye's Heights was a disastrous failure, causing approximately 1,000 casualties within 30 minutes. When Lee expressed apprehension that the Federal troops might overrun Longstreet's men, Longstreet replied that as long as he had sufficient ammunition he would "kill them all" before any of them reached his line. He advised him to look towards Jackson's more tenuous position to
25376-559: The central cause of the war was slavery. The Lost Cause reached a high level of popularity at the turn of the 20th century, when proponents memorialized Confederate veterans who were dying off. It reached a high level of popularity again during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s in reaction to growing public support for racial equality. Through actions such as building prominent Confederate monuments and writing history textbooks , Lost Cause organizations (including
25584-474: The city and dispatched Jackson to hinder Pope's advance. Jackson won a major victory at the Battle of Cedar Mountain . After learning that McClellan, as ordered, had dispatched troops north to assist Pope, Lee ordered Longstreet north as well, leaving only three divisions under G.W. Smith to protect Richmond against McClellan's reduced force. Longstreet's men began their march on August 17, aided by Stuart's cavalry. On August 23, Longstreet engaged Pope's position in
25792-537: The conditions of slavery was the central cause of the American Civil War . Instead, Lost Cause proponents frame the war as a defense of states' rights and of the Southern agrarian economy against supposed Northern aggression . Lost Cause proponents attribute the Union victory to greater numbers and greater industrial wealth, while they portray the Confederate side of the conflict as being more righteous and having greater military skill. Modern historians overwhelmingly disagree with these characterizations, noting that
26000-422: The conflict, and to mute the role of African Americans". Historian and journalist Bruce Catton argued that the myth or legend helped achieve national reconciliation between North and South. He concluded that "the legend of the lost cause has served the entire country very well", and he went on to say: The things that were done during the Civil War have not been forgotten, of course, but we now see them through
26208-550: The confrontation. The battle on the first day was a strong Confederate victory. Two Union corps had been driven by Ewell and Hill from their positions north of Gettysburg back through the town into defensive positions on the heights to the south. Meeting with Lee, Longstreet was concerned about the strength of the Union defensive position on elevated ground and advocated a strategic movement around their left flank, to "secure good ground between him and his capital", which would presumably compel Meade to attack defensive positions erected by
26416-506: The creation of a conscription program. He spent much of the intervening time with Louise and their children, and was back at army headquarters in Centreville by January 20. A day or two later, he received a telegram informing him that all four of his children were extremely sick in an outbreak of scarlet fever . Longstreet immediately returned to the city. Longstreet arrived in Richmond before
26624-419: The credit for the victory to Lee, describing the campaign as "clever and brilliant". It established a strategic model he believed to be ideal—the use of defensive tactics within a strategic offensive. On September 1, Jackson's corps moved to cut off the Union retreat at the Battle of Chantilly . Longstreet's men remained on the field to fool Pope into thinking that Lee's entire army was still on his front. After
26832-543: The death of his one-year-old daughter Mary Anne on January 25. Four-year-old James died the following day. Eleven-year-old Augustus Baldwin ("Gus") died on February 1. His 13-year-old son Garland remained ill but appeared to be out of mortal danger. George Pickett and his future wife LaSalle Corbell were in the Longstreets' company throughout the affair. They arranged the funeral and burials, which for unknown reasons neither Longstreet nor his wife attended. Longstreet returned to
27040-617: The department's soldiers and animals. The job was complex and consisted mainly of paperwork, although it provided experience in administrative military work. In June, Longstreet, hoping for promotion and an income above his $ 40-per-month salary to support his growing family, requested a transfer to the cavalry but was rejected. He resigned as commissary in March 1851 and returned to the Eighth Infantry. Longstreet served on frontier duty in Texas at Fort Martin Scott near Fredericksburg . The primary purpose of
27248-420: The disaster at Gettysburg were sown in that instant—when Lee yielded to Longstreet and Longstreet discovered that he would." Wert disputes this conclusion, pointing out that in a post-war letter to Longstreet, Porter told him that had he attacked him that day, Longstreet's "loss would have been enormous". Despite this criticism, the following day was, according to Wert, one of Longstreet's finest performances of
27456-420: The discussion of the moral question of slavery. But we may suggest a doubt here whether that odious term "slavery", which has been so long imposed, by the exaggeration of Northern writers, upon the judgement and sympathies of the world, is properly applied to that system of servitude in the South, which was really the mildest in the world; which did not rest on acts of debasement and disenfranchisement, but elevated
27664-433: The districts that made up military departments and had command over the troops in their districts. Some Major generals also led smaller military departments. By the end of the war, the Confederacy had at least 88 men who had held this rank, all in the PACS. The Confederate States Congress authorized divisions on March 6, 1861, and major generals would command them. These generals were to be nominated by Davis and confirmed by
27872-499: The divisions of Hood, McLaws, and Pickett. After determining that an advance north was inevitable, Longstreet dispatched the scout Henry Thomas Harrison , whom he had met during the Suffolk Campaign, to gather information. He paid Harrison in gold and told him that he "did not care to see him till he could bring information of importance". Ewell's corps led the army north, followed by Longstreet's and Hill's. The First Corps crossed
28080-647: The end of the war, Hood's status was spelled out by the Confederate States Senate , which stated: Resolved, That General J. B. Hood, having been appointed General, with temporary rank and command, and having been relieved from duty as Commander of the Army of Tennessee, and not having been reappointed to any other command appropriate to the rank of General, he has lost the rank of General, and therefore cannot be confirmed as such. During 1863, Beauregard, Cooper, J. Johnston, and Lee all had their ranks re-nominated on February 20 and then re-confirmed on April 23 by
28288-461: The enemy's army outright. Although Longstreet earned modest grades in the course, he used similar tactics during the Civil War. Longstreet was also a disciplinary problem at West Point. He earned a large number of demerits, especially in his final two years. His offenses included visiting after taps, absence at roll call, an untidy room, long hair, causing a disturbance during study time, and disobeying orders. Biographer Jeffry D. Wert says, "Longstreet
28496-406: The entire division. Early then launched a fruitless and bloody attack well after the wagons had already been safely evacuated. Overall, the battle was a success, protecting the passage of Confederate supply wagons and delaying the advance of McClellan's army toward Richmond. The affair gave the Confederates possession of four cannon. McClellan inaccurately characterized the battle as a Union victory in
28704-561: The evening of September 18, when he withdrew his army from the battlefield and took it back across the Potomac and into Virginia. On October 9, a few weeks after Antietam, Longstreet was promoted to lieutenant general . Lee arranged for Longstreet's promotion to be dated one day earlier than Jackson's, making the Old War-Horse the senior lieutenant general in the Army of Northern Virginia. In an army reorganization in November, Longstreet's command
28912-513: The failure of Lieutenant General James Longstreet . Stories of happy slaves and benevolent slave owners became propaganda to defend slavery and to explain Southern slavery to Northerners. The United Daughters of the Confederacy had a Faithful Slave Memorial Committee and erected the Heyward Shepherd monument in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia . In explaining Confederate defeat, an assertion
29120-465: The fall of Mexico City. Longstreet recovered in the home of the Escandón family, which treated wounded American soldiers. His wound was slow to heal and he did not leave until December. After a brief visit with his family, Longstreet went to Missouri to see Louise. After the war and his recovery, Longstreet and Louise Garland were officially married on March 8, 1848. The marriage produced 10 children. Little
29328-545: The fighting, which raged for three hours. At the center of the field, D.H. Hill's division defended a 600-yard (548.6 meters) position dominated by a sunken wagon path. The position was naturally strong, made more so by the piling of planks from a wooden fence at the top of the ditch, and Hill's men firmly repulsed two successive charges from the Union divisions of William H. French and Richardson. Hill suffered significant casualties, and Longstreet sent R.H. Anderson's division, which consisted of 3,500 men, to reinforce him. Anderson
29536-478: The first years of the war. These generals also often led sub-districts within military departments, with command over soldiers in their sub-district. These generals outranked Confederate States Army colonels , who commonly led infantry regiments. This rank was equivalent to brigadier general in the modern U.S. Army. These generals were most commonly infantry division commanders, aides to other higher-ranking generals, and War Department staff officers. They also led
29744-604: The following day, beginning the Maryland campaign . At the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg) on September 17, rather than commit his forces all at once, McClellan made a series of partial attacks on Confederate troops at different places throughout the day while holding many of his troops, including the entire V Corps, in reserve. At dawn, Hood's division on the Confederate left was driven back by an assault from Hooker's and Joseph K. Mansfield 's corps until reinforced by men from Jackson's command. More troops from both sides soon poured into
29952-546: The garrison at Fort Bliss on two occasions between the spring of 1856 and the spring of 1858. The small size of the garrison allowed for easy socialization with the local people, and the fort's location allowed for visits with Louise's parents in Santa Fe . Longstreet performed scouting missions. On March 29, 1858, Longstreet wrote to the adjutant general's office in Washington, D.C. requesting that he be assigned to recruiting duty in
30160-568: The hammer and Longstreet as the anvil of the army. In the first part of the Northern Virginia campaign of August 1862, this stereotype held true, but in the climactic battle, it did not. In June, the Federal Government created the 50,000-strong Army of Virginia , and put Major General John Pope in command. Pope moved south in an attempt to attack Lee and threaten Richmond through an overland march. Lee left Longstreet near Richmond to guard
30368-489: The heights on the western side of the creek. For hours, the Union troops tried to cross the river and failed five times. Finally at 4 P.M., a flanking maneuver forced Toombs to withdraw. After the further engagement, the remainder of Jones' division was forced to give way, and Burnside's men occupied the crest overlooking the river before pressing their advantage. Their progress was arrested by the arrival of A.P. Hill's division under Jackson from Harpers Ferry . Fighting ensued in
30576-422: The highest military grade known to the Confederate States ... As of September 18, 1862, when lieutenant generals were authorized, the Confederate States Army had four grades of general officers; they were (in order of increasing rank) brigadier general, major general, lieutenant general, and general. As officers were appointed to the various grades of general by Jefferson Davis (and were confirmed), he would create
30784-446: The intention of portraying the pre-war South as a "paradise" that was lost in its defeat. The Lost Cause legend includes the assertion that slavery was not the main dispute between the North and the South and was not the cause of secession. The myth claims that it was merely a matter of time before the South would have given up slavery by its own choice and that it was the trouble-making abolitionists who manufactured disagreement between
30992-547: The late 20th century, Longstreet's reputation has undergone a slow reassessment. Many Civil War historians now consider him among the war's most gifted tactical commanders. James Longstreet was born on January 8, 1821, in Edgefield District, South Carolina , now part of North Augusta, Edgefield County . He was the fifth child and third son of James Longstreet, of Dutch descent, and Mary Ann Dent of English descent, originally from New Jersey and Maryland respectively, who owned
31200-411: The many changes during the era, most significantly Reconstruction . The institutions have lasted to the present, and descendants of Confederate soldiers continue to attend their meetings. In 1879, John McElroy published Andersonville : A Story of Rebel Military Prisons , which strongly criticized the Confederate treatment of prisoners and implied in the preface that the mythology of the Confederacy
31408-471: The memories of a wicked rebellion which they must necessarily perpetuate [...] It is a needless record of stupidity and wrong." On May 30, 1871, during the national celebration of Memorial Day at the tomb of the unknown soldier in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, Douglass delivered a speech about slavery as the meaning and cause of the Civil War. He said: "We are sometimes asked, in
31616-623: The military in Texas was to protect frontier communities against Indians, and Longstreet frequently participated in scouting missions against the Comanche . His family remained in San Antonio , and he saw them regularly. In 1854, he was transferred to Fort Bliss in El Paso , and Louise and the children moved in with him. In 1855, Longstreet was involved in fighting against the Mescalero . He assumed command of
31824-415: The name of patriotism, to forget the merits of this fearful struggle, and to remember, with equal admiration, those who struck at the nation's life, and those who struck to save it—those who fought for slavery, and those who fought for liberty and justice. I am no minister of malice. [...] I would not repel the repentant, but may [...] my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I forget the difference between
32032-424: The north and the south, respectively, while Wilcox's division followed in a six-mile march northward. Ricketts realized his position was untenable and withdrew that evening, allowing Longstreet to join up with the rest of Lee's army. Postwar criticism of Longstreet claimed that he marched his men too slowly, leaving Jackson to bear the brunt of the fighting for two days, but they covered roughly 30 miles (50 km) in
32240-412: The opinion of some military historians cost him the battle. His efforts were further damaged by the slowness of other Confederate commanders, and McClellan was able to withdraw his army to the high plateau of Malvern Hill . Jackson, engaged at White Oak Swamp , ignored reports of ways in which to cross the swamp, and refused to answer an inquiry from Longstreet's staff officer John Fairfax. Huger's advance
32448-449: The opposing capitals. On November 18, Longstreet began marching his men out of army headquarters in Culpeper towards Fredericksburg, where the Confederate army would make its stand against Burnside. Since Lee moved Longstreet to Fredericksburg early, it allowed Longstreet to build strong defenses. Longstreet ordered trenches, abatis , and fieldworks to be constructed south of the town along
32656-502: The outside game of foot-ball than in the academic courses". Longstreet ranked in the bottom third of every subject during his four years at the academy. In January of his third year, Longstreet initially failed his mechanics exam, but took a second test two days later and passed. Longstreet's engineering instructor in his fourth year was Dennis Hart Mahan , who stressed swift maneuvering, protection of interior lines, and positioning troops in strategic points rather than attempting to destroy
32864-413: The parties to that [...] bloody conflict." John Mitchell Jr. was an African American newspaper editor, politician, banker, and civil rights activist in the 19th and early 20th centuries from Richmond, Virginia, who advocated against the erection of a Robert E. Lee monument there. He tried to block its funding but was stopped by a white conservative majority. In Richmond, Virginia , on May 29, 1890, it
33072-724: The passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , which had made segregation of public places illegal. He stopped to use a public bathroom at a gas station, and the white store owner, Marvin Segrest, told him to use the segregated bathroom. He refused and told Segrest the Civil Rights Act made segregated facilities illegal. They argued, and Segrest shot Younge in the head. Segrest was not found guilty in court, which caused Black students in Tuskegee, Alabama, to express their frustrations in protest at
33280-478: The peacetime army of the 1850s. But beyond that, there are few details. He left no diary, and his lengthy memoirs focus almost entirely on recounting and defending his Civil War military record. They reveal little of his personal side while providing only a very cursory view of his pre-war activities. An 1889 fire destroyed his personal papers, making it so that the number of "[e]xisting antebellum private letters written by Longstreet [could] be counted on one hand". At
33488-506: The people of the South, who found the symbols useful in the reconstituting of their shattered civilization. They perpetuated the ideals of the Old South and brought a sense of comfort to the New . Louisiana State University history professor Gaines Foster wrote in 2013: Scholars have reached a fair amount of agreement about the role the Lost Cause played in those years, although the scholarship on
33696-481: The preeminent place as a Christ-like figure. Lost Cause advocates try to rationalize the Confederate military defeat with the assertion that the South had not actually been defeated; rather, it had been unfairly overcome by the massive manpower and resources of the deceitful Yankees. Contradictorily, they also maintain that the South would have won the war if it had prevailed in the Battle of Gettysburg , and that it lost because of Stonewall Jackson 's death in 1863 and
33904-476: The presence of Porter's V Corps in front of his lines. By 6:30 P.M., Hood's division moved forward against Porter and drove back the soldiers it encountered, but had to be withdrawn at night when it advanced too far ahead of the main lines. Despite the smashing victory that followed, Longstreet was eventually criticized for allegedly being slow, reluctant to attack, and disobedient to General Lee. Lee's biographer, Douglas Southall Freeman , wrote: "The seeds of much of
34112-466: The promotion lists himself. The dates of rank, as well as seniority of officers appointed to the same grade on the same day, were determined by Davis, "usually following the guidelines established for the prewar U.S. Army." These generals were most often infantry or cavalry brigade commanders, aides to other higher-ranking generals, and War Department staff officers. By the war's end, the Confederacy had at least 383 different men who held this rank in
34320-406: The public mind is not prepared to receive the truth." All of these themes were made prominent by Early and the Lost Cause writers in the 19th century and continued to play an important role throughout the 20th. In a November 1868 report, U.S. Army general George Henry Thomas , a Virginian who had fought for the Union in the war, noted efforts made by former Confederates to paint the Confederacy in
34528-408: The publisher; "it is just the thing." The title proved an instant success, and has since become monumental. The words "The Lost Cause" have been incorporated into the common popular language of the South; and the universality of their reception implies a significance that is itself interesting. Pollard promoted many of the themes of the Lost Cause such as the claim that states' rights were the cause of
34736-497: The rear of Pope's army, but he then took up a defensive position and effectively invited Pope to assault him. On August 28 and 29, the start of the Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas), Pope pounded Jackson as Longstreet and the remainder of the army marched from the west, through Thoroughfare Gap, to reach the battlefield. On the afternoon of the 28th, Longstreet engaged a 5,000-man federal division under James B. Ricketts at
34944-473: The recommendation of generals Johnston and Hampton just before the surrender. The promotion was too late to be confirmed by the Confederate Congress however. There were 18 lieutenant generals in the Confederate States Army, and these general officers were often corps commanders within armies or military department heads in charge of geographic sections and all soldiers in those boundaries. All of
35152-499: The regions. Enslaved African Americans were characterized as faithful and happy. Confederate President Jefferson Davis wrote about the place of the South's enslaved African Americans in his The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government (1881): [The negroe soldiers'] servile instincts rendered them contented with their lot, and their patient toil blessed the land of their abode with unmeasured riches. Their strong local and personal attachment secured faithful service ... Never
35360-542: The rest of his life. Longstreet's father decided on a military career for his son but felt that the available local education would not be adequate preparation. At age nine, James was sent to live with his aunt Frances Eliza and uncle Augustus Baldwin Longstreet in Augusta, Georgia . James spent eight years on his uncle's plantation, Westover, just outside the city while he attended the Academy of Richmond County . His father died from
35568-465: The right. Longstreet was proven correct, as from their strong position his troops easily repulsed several assaults. In some places behind the stone wall, Confederate ranks were four to five troops deep. Soldiers in the rear loaded rifles and passed them up to the front, so that the fire was virtually continuous. Confederate troops were well protected, although they did suffer one notable casualty when Brigadier General Thomas Reade Rootes Cobb , who commanded
35776-494: The same time as Longstreet began courting Louise, Grant courted Longstreet's fourth cousin, Julia Dent , and that couple eventually married. Longstreet attended the Grant wedding on August 22, 1848, in St. Louis, but his role at the ceremony remains unclear. Grant biographers Jean Edward Smith and Ron Chernow state that Longstreet served as best man . John Y. Simon, editor of Julia Grant's memoirs, concluded that Longstreet "may have been
35984-521: The task of leading the U.S. Army to victory over the Confederate States Army. The CSA lieutenant general rank is also roughly equivalent to lieutenant general in the modern U.S. Army. The Confederate Congress passed legislation in May 1864 to allow for "temporary" general officers in the PACS, to be appointed by President Jefferson Davis and confirmed by the Confederate Senate and given a non-permanent command by Davis. Under this law, Davis appointed several officers to fill open positions. Richard H. Anderson
36192-619: The title of an 1866 book by the Virginian journalist Edward A. Pollard , The Lost Cause: A New Southern History of the War of the Confederates . According to Pollard the term was created at the request of his publisher in New York City, who feared that Pollard's original title would not be catchy enough to sell books. Pollard later wrote in Appleton's Journal , This titular description of our late war [The Lost Cause], which has become so popular on
36400-501: The town of Sharpsburg until Burnside withdrew his men at dusk. The Confederates pursued their enemy but stopped once the retreating troops came under the protection of a battery on the opposite side of the river, ending the Battle of Antietam after 18 hours of fighting. At the end of that bloodiest day of the Civil War, Lee greeted his subordinate by saying, "Ah! Here is Longstreet; here's my old war-horse! " Lee held his ground at Antietam until
36608-591: The town, and by the following day had moved his army across and occupied Fredericksburg. December 12 saw only a small amount of desultory fighting. Longstreet had his men firmly entrenched. On December 13, under Burnside's orders, troops from the Union Right Grand Division under Sumner and the Center Grand Division under Hooker undertook to carry the position held by Longstreet's troops, who, contrary to some of their expectations, found themselves at
36816-477: The troops to the loss of our beloved chief, Joseph E. Johnston". He wrote that Lee did not have much of a reputation at the time that he took command and that there were therefore "misgivings" about Lee's "power and skill for field service". In late June, Lee organized a plan to drive McClellan's army away from the capital, which culminated in the Seven Days Battles . At daybreak on June 27 at Gaines's Mill ,
37024-522: The truth being told of them. In 1907, Hunter Holmes McGuire , physician of Confederate general Stonewall Jackson , published in a book papers sponsored by the Grand Camp of Confederate Veterans of Virginia, supporting the Lost Cause tenets that "slavery [was] not the cause of the war" and that "the North [was] the aggressor in bringing on the war". The book quickly sold out and required a second edition. The German historian Wolfgang Schivelbusch compared
37232-485: The war among Northern civilians. In his memoirs, Longstreet described his reaction to Lee's proposal: His plan or wishes announced, it became useless and improper to offer suggestions leading to a different course. All that I could ask was that the policy of the campaign should be one of defensive tactics; that we should work so as to force the enemy to attack us, in such good position as we might find in our own country, so well adapted to that purpose—which might assure us of
37440-445: The war and that Southerners were forced to defend themselves against Northern aggression. He dismissed the role of slavery in starting the war and understated the cruelty of American slavery, even promoting it as a way of improving the lives of Africans. Pollard's revisionist history continues to have an effect on how slavery and the Civil War are taught in the United States. For example, in 1866 Pollard wrote: We shall not enter upon
37648-661: The war for "not bringing the delinquent [Hood] to trial". Burnside intended to attack again the next day, but several of his officers, particularly Sumner, advised against it. He entrenched his men instead and withdrew on December 15. In Longstreet's report, he praised his men and officers while asking them to contribute money for the residents of Fredericksburg. Lee's report strongly commended Jackson and Longstreet. Burnside's army had suffered 12,653 casualties at Fredericksburg. About 70% of them were in front of Marye's Heights. Lee suffered only about 5,300 losses, about 1,900 of which came from Longstreet. Lt. Col. Edward Porter Alexander of
37856-490: The war". He charged that the Yankees fought "with a ferocity that disregarded all the laws of civilized warfare". The book remained in print and often served to justify the Southern position and to distance it from slavery. Early's original inspiration for his views may have come from Confederate General Robert E. Lee . When Lee published his farewell order to the Army of Northern Virginia , he consoled his soldiers by speaking of
38064-684: The war, and reminded him of his happier younger days. After the campaign, an editorial appeared in the Richmond Examiner inaccurately claiming that the Battle of Glendale "was fought exclusively by General A.P. Hill and the forces under his command". Longstreet drafted a letter refuting the article, which was published in the Richmond Whig. Hill took offense and requested that his division be transferred out of Longstreet's command. Longstreet agreed, but Lee took no action. Then, Hill refused to accede to Longstreet's repeated requests for information and
38272-414: The war. After his attacks on the 29th, Pope came to believe with little evidence that Jackson was in retreat. He ordered a reluctant Porter to pursue, and his corps collided with Jackson's men and suffered heavy casualties. The attack exposed the Union left flank, and Longstreet took advantage of this by launching a massive assault on the Union flank with over 25,000 men. For over four hours they "pounded like
38480-527: The wrong road, causing them to arrive late, but played an important role in the Confederate success of the Seven Days Battles in the summer of 1862, where he helped supervise repeated attacks that drove the Union army away from the Confederate capital of Richmond . Longstreet led a devastating counterattack that routed the Union army at Second Bull Run in August. His men held their ground in defensive roles at Antietam and Fredericksburg . He did not participate in
38688-406: Was Samuel Cooper , Albert Sidney Johnston , Robert E. Lee , Joseph E. Johnston , and Pierre G.T. Beauregard , with their seniority in that order. This ordering caused Cooper, a staff officer who would not see combat, to be the senior general officer in the CSA. That seniority strained the relationship between Joseph E. Johnston and Jefferson Davis. Johnston considered himself the senior officer in
38896-769: Was advancing on the critical Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River , Vicksburg . Longstreet argued that a reinforced army under Bragg could defeat Rosecrans and drive toward the Ohio River , which would compel Grant to break his hold on Vicksburg. He advanced these views during a meeting with Seddon, who approved of the idea but doubted that Lee would, and opined that Davis would be unlikely to go against Lee's wishes. Longstreet had criticized Bragg's generalship and may have been hoping to replace him, although he also might have wished to see Joseph Johnston take command, and indicated that he would be content to serve under him as
39104-403: Was "humanly impossible" for the men to move any faster. Following Chancellorsville and the death of Stonewall Jackson, Longstreet and Lee met in mid-May to discuss the army's summer campaign. Longstreet once more pushed for the detachment of all or part of his corps to be sent to Tennessee. The justification for this course of action was becoming more urgent as Union Major General Ulysses S. Grant
39312-565: Was $ 301 CSD monthly, and their aide-de-camp lieutenants would receive an additional $ 35 CSD per month beyond regular pay. As more grades of the general officer were added, the pay scale was adjusted. By June 10, 1864, a general received $ 500 CSD monthly, plus another $ 500 CSD if they led an army in the field. Also, by that date, lieutenant generals got $ 450 CSD and major generals $ 350 CSD, and brigadiers would receive $ 50 CSD in addition to regular pay if they served in combat. The Confederate States Army lost more general officers killed in combat than
39520-513: Was appointed a "temporary" lieutenant general on May 31, 1864, and given command of the First Corps in the Army of Northern Virginia commanded by Gen. Lee (following the wounding of Lee's second-in-command, Lt. Gen. James Longstreet on May 6 in the Battle of the Wilderness .) With Longstreet's return that October, Anderson reverted to a major general. Jubal Early was appointed a "temporary" lieutenant general on May 31, 1864, and given command of
39728-465: Was appointed general late in the war and into the PACS. Pierre G.T. Beauregard , had also initially been appointed a PACS general, was elevated to ACSA two months later with the same date of rank. These generals outranked all other grades of generals and lesser officers in the Confederate States Army. All were graduates of the United States Military Academy and were former officers in the United States Army. The first group of officers appointed to general
39936-454: Was commissioned a brevet second lieutenant in the United States Army . After a brief furlough, Longstreet was stationed for two years at the 4th U.S. Infantry at Jefferson Barracks , Missouri, under the command of Lieutenant colonel John Garland . In 1843, he was joined by his friend, Lieutenant Ulysses Grant. In 1844, Longstreet met Garland's daughter and his future first wife Maria Louisa Garland, called Louise by her family. At about
40144-540: Was designated the First Corps , and Jackson's the Second Corps . The First Corps consisted of five divisions, approximately 41,000 men. The divisions were commanded by Lafayette McLaws, R.H. Anderson, Hood, Pickett, and Robert Ransom Jr. After a lengthy interlude with little military activity, beginning on October 26, McClellan marched his army across the Potomac River. On November 7, Lincoln replaced McClellan with Burnside. On November 15, Burnside began moving his army south towards Fredericksburg, Virginia , midway between
40352-463: Was eventually arrested on Longstreet's orders. He challenged Longstreet to a duel. Longstreet accepted, but Lee intervened and transferred Hill's division into Jackson's command. The military reputations of Lee's corps commanders are often characterized as Stonewall Jackson representing the audacious, offensive component of Lee's army, with Longstreet more typically advocating and executing strong defensive strategies and tactics. Wert describes Jackson as
40560-527: Was expended. A mistaken order allowed Union troops to breach the Confederate position at the sunken road, but Confederate lines were stabilized. At this point in the afternoon, fighting largely ceased except for on the Confederate right. The Union left-wing under Major General Ambrose Burnside attempted to cross the Antietam Creek at what would become known as Burnside's Bridge , while Jones' division led by Brigadier General Robert Toombs 's brigade defended
40768-839: Was informed that he had been appointed a brigadier general with the date of rank on June 17, a commission he accepted on June 25. He was ordered to report to Brigadier General P. G. T. Beauregard at Manassas , where he was given command of a brigade of three Virginia regiments—the 1st , 11th , and 17th Virginia Infantry —in the Confederate Army of the Potomac . Longstreet assembled his staff and trained his brigade incessantly. On July 16, Union Brigadier General Irvin McDowell began marching his army toward Manassas Junction. Longstreet's brigade first saw action at Blackburn's Ford on July 18, when it collided with McDowell's advance division under Brigadier General Daniel Tyler , clashing heavily with
40976-435: Was infuriated that his commanders would not allow a vigorous pursuit of the defeated Union Army. His Chief of Staff, Moxley Sorrel , recorded that he was "in a fine rage. He dashed his hat furiously to the ground, stamped, and bitter words escaped him." He quoted Longstreet as saying afterward, "Retreat! Hell, the Federal army has broken to pieces." On October 7, Longstreet was promoted to major general and assumed command of
41184-412: Was like a rock in steadiness when sometimes in battle the world seemed flying to pieces." General Lee said shortly after Seven Days, "Longstreet was the staff in my right hand." He had been established as Lee's principal lieutenant. Lee reorganized the Army of Northern Virginia after Seven Days, increasing Longstreet's command from six brigades to 28. Longstreet took command of the Right Wing (later known as
41392-416: Was neither a model student nor a gentleman." Longstreet was popular with his classmates, however, and befriended a number of men who would become prominent during the Civil War, including George Henry Thomas , William Rosecrans (his roommate), John Pope , Daniel Harvey Hill , Lafayette McLaws , George Pickett , and Ulysses S. Grant . Longstreet ranked 54th out of 56 cadets when he graduated in 1842. He
41600-441: Was promoted to second lieutenant and transferred to the Eighth Infantry, stationed at Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Florida . He served for the month of August on court-martial duty in Pensacola . The regiment was then transferred to Corpus Christi, Texas , where he was reunited with the officers of the Third and Fourth Regiments, including Grant. The men passed the winter by staging plays. Longstreet served with distinction in
41808-407: Was slow enough to allow Federal troops to be transported away from guarding him and towards Longstreet, and Theophilus Holmes also performed poorly. Nearly 50,000 Confederate troops stood within a few miles of the field at Glendale and rendered little to no assistance. In a reconnaissance on the evening of June 30, Longstreet reported to Lee that conditions were favorable enough to justify assault. At
42016-419: Was still in front of its position, forcing him to dive off of his horse. Under the renewed Confederate strength, the Union left wavered. Tyler withdrew, as he had orders not to bring on a general engagement. The battle preceded the First Battle of Bull Run (First Manassas). When the main attack came at the opposite end of the line on July 21, Longstreet's brigade endured artillery fire for nine hours but played
42224-475: Was that slavery was not the primary cause , or even a cause at all, of the Civil War. This narrative denies or minimizes the explanatory statements and constitutions published by the seceding states—for example, the wartime writings and speeches of CSA Vice President Alexander Stephens and especially his Cornerstone Speech . Lost Cause historians instead favor the more moderate postwar views of Confederate leaders. The Lost Cause argument stresses secession as
42432-400: Was the button groupings on their uniforms; groups of three buttons for lieutenant and major generals and two for brigadier generals. In either case, a general's buttons were also distinguished from other ranks by their eagle insignia. To the right is a picture of the CSA general's full uniform, in this case, of Brigadier General Joseph R. Anderson of the Confederate Bureau of Ordnance. All of
42640-419: Was there happier dependence of labor and capital on each other. The tempter came, like the serpent of Eden, and decoyed them with the magic word of "freedom" ... He put arms in their hands, and trained their humble but emotional natures to deeds of violence and bloodshed, and sent them out to devastate their benefactors. Lost Cause advocates point to a perceived chivalric tradition of the South as evidence for
42848-401: Was unveiled during a celebration and he covered the event in the Richmond Planet . He wrote: "This glorification of States Rights Doctrine—the right of secession, and the honoring of men who represented that cause [...] fosters in the Republic, the spirit of Rebellion and will ultimately result in the handing down to generations unborn a legacy of treason and blood." W. E. B. Du Bois was
43056-434: Was well established, and that criticism of the otherwise-lionized Confederates was met with disdain: I know that what is contained herein will be bitterly denied. I am prepared for this. In my boyhood I witnessed the savagery of the Slavery agitation – in my youth I felt the fierceness of the hatred directed against all those who stood by the Nation. I know that hell hath no fury like the vindictiveness of those who are hurt by
43264-407: Was wounded and replaced by Pryor. At Pryor's request, Longstreet sent artillery support in response to Union cannon being fired at Confederates in the road from across Antietam Creek . He also ordered a flanking movement by about 900 soldiers in several regiments led by Colonel John Rogers Cooke . Union troops arrested Cooke's advance. An intense fight followed, and Cooke withdrew after his ammunition
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