NEW
BIOGRAPHY ON
MAJOR
GENERAL FRANKLIN GARDNER
A new biography has been published on
the life of Major General Franklin Gardner who commanded Confederate forces in
the epic Siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana in 1863.
The book, "Major General Franklin Gardner: Hero of the Siege of
Port Hudson," by Michael Dan Jones, is believed to be the first book
length biography on this important Confederate general. The author covers
Gardner's entire life, from his birth in New York City and growing up in
Washington D.C. to his time as a student at the West Point, his family life,
his spectacular record in the Mexican-American War, the War for Southern
Independence and his final post-war years in Louisiana.
Jones also covers new ground in that he
has corrected the historic record about Gardner's controversial departure from
the U.S. Army in April 1861. He was accused of not having resigned before he
left his last military post, which resulted in some previous historians
accusing Gardner of being a deserter from the U.S. Army. Jones, however, found
his actual resignation letter, as well as contemporary newspaper notices, which
conclusively prove that Gardner did, in fact, resign before he left his last
post.
Gardner was a brilliant military leader who proved his courage in combat
during the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848. He proved his leadership ability in numerous battles for the opening
of the war in 1846 at Fort Brown, Texas to the final dramatic victory at Mexico
City in 1847. He received two brevet promotions for his gallantry in battle and
personal praise from the commander of the American forces, General Winfield Scott.
In December 1862, Gardner was promoted to
major general and put in command of the District of Mississippi and East
Louisiana with headquarters at Port Hudson, La.
There,
he conducted one of the most gallant and effective defenses of a Confederate
fortification in the war. It was the longest siege in American military
history. The author covers the siege and its aftermath, during which Gardner
was a prisoner of war, in detail.
Gardner had married in 1850 the daughter
of former Louisiana senator and governor Alexandre Mouton, and after the war
lived the rest of his life in the state. Jones has found that Gardner had a
much more prominent and varied life in the postwar years, including jobs as a
draftsman, newspaper reporter and a parish surveyor for Lafayette Parish.
The book is published by CreateSpace.com
in Charleston, S.C. and has 218 pages, photos, maps, index and bibliography. It
is $15.95 and is available on Amazon.com, Barnesandnobles.com, Booksamillion.com
and other online booksellers
