Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 31.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 31.

1861: Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard is put in command of the Army of the Potomac, which in the future was renamed the Army of Northern Virginia. Beauregard organized the army into six brigades which he referred to as the "First Corps." This army, along with Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's Army of the Shenandoah would fight the first large battle of the war, the First Battle of Manassas.

1862: The Battle of Seven Pines, Va. started on this day and is a major turning point in the war because Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston is severely wounded and General Robert E. Lee replaces him. The Confederate Army of Northern Virginia numbered about 39,000 men and the Federal Army of the Potomac about 34,000. It is an attempt by Johnston to go on the offensive against Maj. Gen. George McClellan. The Yanke general has pushed his Federal Army up the Yorktown Peninsula to the outskirts of Richmond. Johnston is wounded on the first day of the battle and initially, Major General G.W. Smith is supposed to assume command but is incapacitated. General Lee is given the command of the Army of Northern Virginia by President Davis the next day, June 1.

Capt. Albert Rennolds, Co. F, 55th Virginia Infantry

(VMI Archives)

1863: At the Siege of Vicksburg, Miss. Confederate engineers continue their constant work to repair and strengthen the entire Confederate defense line. The breach in the redan on the left of Jackson Road is filled up and the parapet is repaired with sandbags. Confederate and Federal engineers played important roles in the siege.

1864: Skirmish in Georgia and Virginia: Maneuvering and constant skirmishing continue both in Georgia and in Northern Virginia between the Blue and the Gray. Sherman is battling Johnston in Georgia and Grant versus Lee in Virginia. All the armies have learned the value of fortifying their lines.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 31.

Major General William Henry Fitzhugh "Rooney" Lee was born on this day in 1837 at Arlington, Virginia to General Robert E. Lee and Mary Custis Lee. Unlike his older brother, George Washington Custis Lee who was at the top of the class at West Point, Rooney Lee received a civilian education at Harvard College. However, Rooney received a commission as a second lieutenant in the 6th U.S. Infantry Regiment in 1857 and resigned his commission in 1859 to operate the plantation he inherited from his grandfather, White House Plantation in Virginia. At the outbreak of war in 1861, Rooney Lee received a commission as a captain in the Confederate cavalry and worked his way up through merit to major general in the course of the war. He suffered a severe wound to the thigh in the Battle of Brandy Station in 1863 and was captured by the enemy. Lee was finally released on Feb. 25, 1865, in exchange for Federal Brig. Gen. Neal S. Dow. He then continued his outstanding record in the cavalry. His battles and campaigns included Wester Virginia, Shenandoah, Romney, the Seven Days Battles, Catlett's Station, South Mountain, Sharpsburg, the Chambersburg Raid, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Brandy Station, the Wilderness, Todd's Tavern, Spotsylvania, Petersburg, Sappony Church, First Ream's Station, Second Deep Bottom, the Beefsteak Raid, Boydton Plank Road, Namozine Church, and Appomattox. Following the war, he had a  distinguished career in farming than in politics when he was elected to the Virginia State Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. Lee died  Oct. 15, 1891, in Alexandria, Va., and was entombed in the Lee family tomb in the University Chapel on the campus of Washington and Lee University.

Maj. Gen. William H.F. Lee

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Major General Stephen Dodson Ramseur is born on this day in Lincolnton, North Carolina. He graduated from West Point in 1860 and served in the 3rd and 4th U.S. Artillery. Rameur resigned from the U.S. Army in 1861 and joined the Confederate Army in Alabama. He then became a lieutenant colonel in the 3rd North Carolina Infantry. Ramseur was elected colonel of the 49th North Carolina Infantry on April 12, 1862, brigadier general on Nov. 1, 1862, and major general in 1863. His battles included the Seven Days Battles, Malvern Hill, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, Opequon, and Cedar Creek. Severely wounded at the Battle of Malvern Hill on July 1, 1862, Ramseur was mortally wounded at the Battle of Cedar Creek on Oct. 19, 1864, and died the next day near Middletown, Virginia. He is buried in his hometown of Lincolnton. 

Maj. Gen. Stephen D. Ramseur

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Today in history (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 30.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 30.

1862: CORINTH CAMPAIGN: General P.G.T. Beauregard successfully evacuates his Army of the Mississippi from Corinth, Miss. Federal Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck had planned to besiege the city and completely capture the Confederate Army there. The Confederates go into a much better camp at Tupelo, Miss., and will be able to fight the enemy for years to come.

1863: Siege of Vicksburg: Here's Colonel Samuel H. Lockett, chief Confederate engineer at Vicksburg's report for this days activity in 1863: "On the 30th, but little work was done on the line under Captain Robinson’s charge, excepting along General Lee’s front, and during the whole siege our works, from Fort Garrott to the right, were but little injured, the enemy is kept at a considerable distance by a line of pickets kept in protected places along the ridge in front of our main line, excepting on the Hall’s Ferry road. Captain Winter and his assistants were kept constantly busy putting obstructions on the Yazoo Valley and other roads, repairing the embrasures of batteries, and thickening the parapets, which had begun to show the effects of the enemy’s continual battering. The new battery in the rear of General Moore’s center was commenced by running a covered approach to the position selected. On this day I also started a number of excavations on the Baldwin’s Ferry road, in a deep cut, for the purpose of scattering our ammunition, which was much exposed to the enemy’s fire at the depot magazine.  

Col. Samuel H. Lockett

1864: Colonel George T. Madison's 3rd Texas Cavalry Regiment numbering just 200 men camped along the Atchafalaya River in Louisiana is attacked by a large force of Federals. The Federals, including 6,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalrymen were sent to the area, called the Morganza Expedition, to disperse what they were told was a large force of Confederates crossing the river, but only found Madison's men. The Confederates are at first dispersed, but after retreating to Bayou Lafourche, the Texas cavalrymen succeed in pushing the Federals back toward Morganza. The report of Federal Maj. Gen. W.H. Emory claims the bluecoats killed 20 or 30 Confederates and captured 10. No Federal casualties are given.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 30.

Brigadier General George Doherty Johnston was born on this day in 1832 in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Prior to the war, he was the mayor of Marion, Alabama, and when war came he joined the Confederate Army as a second lieutenant in Co. G, 4th Alabama Infantry Regiment. After fighting in the First Battle of Manassas, Va., Johnston was promoted to major in the 25th Alabama Infantry and took part in every battle of the Army of Tennessee from Shiloh to Bentonville. He was promoted to colonel in September 1863 and was wounded in the leg at the Battle of Ezra Church and promoted to brigadier general in 1864. Following the war, he served as commandant of cadets at the University of Alabama. During the administration of President Grover Cleveland, he was appointed to U.S. Civil Service Commissioner. Johnston was also elected to the Alabama State Senate. Johnston died Dec. 10, 1910, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery there.

Brig. Gen. George D. Johnston

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 29.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 29.

1862: Corinth, Miss. Evacuation: General P.G.T. Beauregard ordered his Army of the Mississippi to evacuate Corinth, Miss. to avoid being besieged by Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck's 100,000. Beauregard had about 50,000 effectives. He so cleverly made the withdrawal, that Beauregard relocated the Army of the Mississippi without the enemy even discovering it was completely gone until the next day. Their new headquarters was at Tupelo, Miss.

1863: At the Siege of Vicksburg, Miss. Chief Engineer Major Samuel Lockett reports that a new battery was made in the rear of the line left of Hall's Ferry Road. The new battery in the rear of General [S.D.] Lee was improved, and "Whistling Dick" (an 18-pounder rifled piece) was put in position, and a new battery was started in the rear of General Moore's center, but the working party was driven off by Yankee sharpshooters, and the work stopped.

At the Siege of Port Hudson, La., Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner assigns engineers to command specific sectors of the defense line to facilitate quick repairs. Gardner assigns Lt. Stork command of the river defenses and extreme right; Lt. James Freret to the center fortifications and Lt. Fred Y. Dabney to the left wing. Also, the 10-inch Columbiad gun the Confederates called  "The Lady Davis," which was damaged by enemy fire is repaired and put back into service on the 29th. The bluecoats were so troubled by this big gun that they gave it the nickname "The Demoralizer."

Major John F. O'Brien

Confederate Staff Officer at Port Hudson

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1864: In the Atlanta Campaign, Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston bombarded the Federals at New Hope Church, Ga., and Dallas, Ga. but with little damage. There was also skirmishing and sharpshooting throughout the day.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 29.

Major General  Cadmus Marcellus Wilcox was born on this day in 1826 in Wayne County, North Carolina. He graduated from West Point in 1846 ranking 54th out of 56 cadets. During the Mexican-American War, he was an aid to Maj. Gen. John A. Quitman was in the battles of Veracruz, Cerro Gordo, Chapultepec, and Mexico City. Wilcox received a brevet promotion to the first lieutenant. In 1861, his resignation from the U.S. Army was accepted on Jun 8. He was promoted to colonel on July 9, 1861, to brigadier general on October 21, 1861, and to major general on August 3, 1863. His battles included First Manassas, Williamsburg, Gaines' Mill, Glendale, Second Manassas, Salem Church, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Overland Campaign, Petersburg, and Appomattox. Following the war, he was appointed by President Cleveland as chief of the railroad division in Washington, D.C. Wilcox died Dec. 2, 1890, and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

Maj. Gen. Cadmus M. Wilcox

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Brigadier General Reuben Lindsay Walker on May 29, 1827, in Albemarle County, Virginia. He was an 1845 graduate of Virginia Military Institute and became a civil engineer. During the War for Southern, Independence Walker commanded the Purcell Artillery early in the war. In the course of the war, he served in increasingly important artillery commands and was in 63 battles and engagements, including First Manassas, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, the Overland Campaign, the Siege of Petersburg, and the Appomattox Campaign. He was finally promoted to brigadier general on Feb. 18, 1865.  Following the war, Walker settled in Selma, Alabama where he ran the Marine & Selma Railroad. He also was in charge of the construction of the Virginia State Penitentiary and the Texas State Capitol building. Walker died June 7, 1890, and was buried in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Va.

Brig. Gen. Reuben L. Walker

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 28.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 28.

1863: Siege of Port Hudson, La.: In the aftermath of the severe casualties inflicted on the Federals on May 27, 1863, at the Siege of Port Hudson, La., Federal Maj. Gen. N.P. Banks sent an urgent message to Brashear City, La. ordering more reinforcements including seven regiments of infantry. Confederates were having to resort to making homemade artillery supplies, such as improvised bags of scrap iron.

This museum diorama at the Port Hudson State

Historic Site portrays trench life for the Confederate

soldiers during the Siege. (Port Hudson State Historic Site)

1864: Atlanta Campaign: Following the Confederate victory at the Battle of Pickett's Mill, Ga. Confederate skirmishers engage with the Federals. Captain Samuel T. Foster of the 24th Texas Cavalry (dismounted) writes, "We were not permitted to sit down and reflect over it, but were ordered forw'd about an hour by sun, just our Reg't. We advanced cautiously for about a mile through the wood when we found them again, and open fire upon them, and soon have them on the retreat -- There is only a skirmish line of them but that is all we have shooting at them, so we drive them about 1/2 mile to their breastworks. . ."

 Confederate General Birthdays, May 28.

General Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard was born on this day in 1818 in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana. He graduated from West Point in 1838 ranking 2nd in his class. During the Mexican-American War, Beauregard served on the staff of Gen. Winfield Scott as an engineer, along with Captain Robert E. Lee. For his performance in the battles of Contreras and Churubusco, he earned brevet promotions to captain and major. He also had important input in the planning for the attack on Chapultepec and was one of the first American officers to enter Mexico City. In 1861, he briefly served as the superintendent of West Point but was dismissed because he was a Southerner. Beauregard resigned from the U.S. Army and joined the Confederate Army. President Jefferson Davis gave him command of the Confederate forces at Charleston, S.C. and he gained early fame with early victory at Fort Sumter. He was promoted to full general and placed in command of the forces at Manassas, Va. where he and Gen. J.E. Johnston were victorious in the First Battle of Manassas on July 21, 1861. His other battles and campaigns included Shiloh, Corinth, Charleston Harbor, Fort Wagner, Second Fort Sumter, Bermuda Hundred, and Bentonville. Following the war, he rebuilt his life in the civilian sector, in New Orleans, La. as an engineer, in railroad construction, and in the Louisiana lottery. He was a voice of moderation during the tumult during Reconstruction in Louisiana, and active in the cultural life of the city. Beauregard died Feb. 20,  1893, in New Orleans and was entombed in the Tomb of the Army of Tennessee in Metairie Cemetery.

Gen. Pierre G.T. Beauregard

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Brigadier General Alpheus Baker is born on this day in 1828 in Abbeville District, South Carolina. Before the War for Southern Independence, he was a school teacher and lawyer and South Carolina and Alabama. During the war, he became a colonel and fought in the Battle of New Madrid, and was taken, prisoner. After being exchanged he was given command of the 54th Alabama Infantry. Baker was seriously wounded in the Battle of Champion's Hill, Miss. in 1863. When he recovered he was promoted to brigadier general and led an Alabama brigade in the Atlanta Campaign. He has wounded again at the Battle of Ezra Church. Baker led his brigade in defending Mobile, Ala., and finished the war in the Carolinas Campaign. Following the war, Baker resumed the practice of law and moved to Louisville, Ky. He died there on Oct. 21, 1891, and was buried in Cave Hille Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Alpheus Baker

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Brigadier General Basil Wilson Duke was born on this day in 1838 in Georgetown, Kentucky. Before the war, Duke was a lawyer in St. Louis, Mo., and supported the cause of secession and Southern Independence. He was charged with arson and treason for his secessionist activities but escaped to Lexington, Ky. where he married the sister of John Hunt Morgan and joined Morgan's command as a second lieutenant. Duke was wounded in the Battle of Shiloh. After recovering he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and wounded again in Morgan's Christmas Raid of 1862. After that, he participated in Morgan's other raids and following the death of Morgan, was promoted to brigadier general and assumed command of Morgan's forces. He surrendered to the Federals on May 10, 1865. Following the war, Duke moved to Louisville, Ky. where he practiced law, wrote a history of Morgan's Cavalry, and helped found the Filson Club. In 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt appointed him a commissioner of Shiloh National Military Park. He died Sept. 16, 1916, following several operations in a New York City hospital and was buried in the Hunt Family plot in Lexington Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Basil Duke

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History, Confederate General Birthdays, May 27.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 27.

1863: At the Siege of Vicksburg, Miss., Confederate Heavy Artillery at Fort Hill, which anchors the left flank of the Confederate defense line, wins an artillery duel with the ironclad gunboat USS Cincinnati and sends the vessel to the bottom of the river. The 1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery was in command of the heavy guns at Fort Hill. Some 40 bluejackets were either killed or wounded. 

Captain William Parks

1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery

(Library of Congress)

At The Siege of Port Hudson, La., Confederates successfully smash an all-out assault on the Confederate defense line. Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner did a masterful job in shifting troops around to the most endangered points at any one time. Maj. Gen. N.P. Banks' assault is poorly coordinated and the naval bombardment was not effective. On the north side of the assault, soldiers of the 1st and 3rd Louisiana Native Guard (Union) were in one of the strongest Confederate positions, and they were badly slaughtered. On the south end of the attack in the afternoon, Maj. Gen. Thomas Sherman was severely wounded in the assault there. Brigadier General Neal Dow was severely wounded in the center assault. Banks' frontal assault was a disaster for the Federals. Dow was later captured in the rear by Confederate cavalry.

1864: After being defeated at the Battle of New Hope Church, Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman tries again at the Battle of Pickett's Mill when he sends in Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard's men attacked the Confederate right flank, but it repulsed the attack and inflicted high casualties on the Northerners. The Federals lost 1,600 casualties and the Confederates 500.

In the aftermath of the Battle of North Anna River, Va. Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant moves his army toward Cold Harbor while Gen. Robert E. Lee moves his army to block Grant at the coming battle there.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 27.

Maj. Gen. Robert Frederick Hoke was born this day in 1837 at Lincolnton, North Carolina. He graduated from the Kentucky Military Institute in 1854 and then went into the family business. When North Carolina seceded in 1861, Hoke joined the 1st North Carolina Infantry, was promoted to major in September 1861, to colonel of the 21st North Carolina in 1862, to brigadier general Jan. 17, 1863, and to major general on April 23, 1864. His battles and campaigns were Big Bethel, New Bern, Peninsula, 2nd Manassas, Sharpsburg, Chancellorsville, Plymouth, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, Carolinas, and Bentonville. Following the war, Hoke resumed his business career in insurance, gold mining, and railroad construction. He died July 3, 1912, and was buried at Oakwood Cemetery.

Maj. Gen. Robert F. Hoke

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Brigadier General Edwin Gray Lee was born this day in 1836 in Loudoun County, Virginia. He received a law degree in 1859 and after the War for South Independence began, joined the staff of Col. Thomas J. Jackson and participated in the First Battle of Manassas, Va., Jackson's Valley Campaign of 1862, the Seven Days Battles, and the Battle of Cedar Mountain. Lee was captured and after being exchanged, was given command of the 33rd Virginia Infantry Regiment and led it at the Battle of Fredericksburg, Va. He was promoted to brigadier general on Sept. 23, 1864, and served in the cavalry in the Shenandoah Valley. Lee was assigned to a secret mission in December 1864 and he and his wife slipped through the blockade and went to Canada. They were there in Montreal until the end of the war and didn't return to Virginia until 1866. He died Aug. 24, 1870, at Yellow Sulphur Springs, Virginia, and was buried in Lexington, Va. at Oak Grove Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Edwin G. Lee

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 26.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 26.

1861: The Confederate ports of New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama are blockaded by Federal warships. These port cities did the best they could to strengthen their defenses against this blatant Northern aggression. The blockade gave foreign nations the right to recognize the Confederates as lawful combatants under international conventions and Admiralty Law.

1863: At the Siege of Port Hudson, La. a 10-inch Columbiad gun on the bluffs is dismounted for several days when it is hit by a shell from the U.S.S. Monongahela. The Confederate batteries shell a Federal work party building a bridge in a willow swamp. That night, Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner has 24-pounder rifles moved from the bluffs to the landward side in anticipation of a major assault on Confederate lines. He also adjusts his regiments, battalions, and batteries along the lines, under Col. I.G.W. Steedman on the left, Brig. Gen. W.N.R. Beall in the center, and Col. William Miles on the Confederate right. Each soldier in the line also has multiple guns at the ready.

Capt. Robert Leggett Pruyn, 4th La. Inf.

He carried a message from

Port Hudson to Jackson for

Gen. Gardner during the Siege

of Port Hudson.

 1864: The second day of the Battle of New Hope Church, Ga. takes place. There is firing across the lines throughout the day but no assaults. Maj. Gen. Alexander P. Stewart was commended by both Generals J.E. Johnston and J.B. Hood for the handling of his division in the Confederate victory.

On the third and last day of the Battle of North Anna, Va. the two sides continue to skirmish but at the end of the day Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant gives up trying to break the Confederate line and withdraws his Federals for another wide flanking maneuver. Total casualties for the Confederates are 124 killed, 704 wounded, and 724 missing or captures. The Federals lost 591 killed, 2,734 wounded and 661 captured or missing.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 26.

Brigadier General Edward Porter Alexander was born on this day in 1835 in Washington, Georgia. He graduated from West Point in 1857 ranking 3rd in a class of 38 cadets. He resigned his U.S. Army commission on May 1, 1861, joined the Confederate Army, and was assigned to Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard's staff at Manassas, Va. In the First Battle of Manassas, as a signal officer, he played a key role in warning the Confederates were being flanked. He was also notable for having commanded the artillery for Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg. During the course of the war, he was in charge of ordnance and artillery and rose steadily in rank to brigadier general. His battles and campaigns included First Manassas, Williamsburg, Gaines' Mill, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Knoxville, Spotsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, the Crater, and Chaffin's Farm. Alexander was wounded by a sharpshooter on June 30, 1864, and surrendered with Lee at Appomattox. Following the war he was a college professor, and railroad executive, and wrote a famous war memoir, Fighting for the Confederacy. Alexander died on April 28, 1910, in Savannah, Georgia, and was buried in Magnolia Cemetery in Augusta, Georgia.

Brig. Gen. Edward Porter Alexander

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 25..

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 25.

1862: The First Battle of Winchester, Va. marks one of Maj. Gen. Stonewall Jackson's major victories in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1862. Jackson's 16,500 smashes the Federal right flank of Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks. Banks commanded 6,500 men in the battle. Key to the Confederate victory was Brig. Gen. Richard Taylor's Louisiana Tiger Brigade, reinforced by Fulkerson's and Scott's brigades, overlapped the Federal left. The victory also disrupted the Federal plans in the Peninsula Campaign. The Federals lost 62 men killed, 243 wounded, and 1,714 missing. Confederate casualties were 68 killed and 329 wounded.

Col. Francis Nicholls led the 8th La. Inf. 

in the battle. He was wounded in the left

arm, which had to be amputated, and captured.

He was later promoted to brigadier general.

(Library of Congress)

1863: On this day in the Siege of Vicksburg, Miss. Federals appeared in force on the Warrenton and Hall's Ferry roads. There was the usual sharpshooting and at 6 o'clock that evening a cease-fire was agreed upon, the Federals were able to bury their dead and remove their wounded from the failed May 22 assault. About 100 prisoners were captured by the Confederates on this day.

At the Siege of Port Hudson, La., Col. I.G.W. Steedman advanced his men on the Confederate left about 500 yards to a new line of battle. He was supported by a section of Watson's Louisiana battery under the command of 1st Lt. Edmund A. Toledano. Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner sent engineers and laborers to fortify this new line to give better protection with breastworks and rifle pits. The position became known as Fort Desperate. Gardner was convinced this would be a likely point of attack by the Federals.

1864: The Battle of New Hope Church, Ga., one of the major battles of the Atlanta Campaign, occurred on this day. Sherman had 16,000 men and the Confederates 4,000. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston had anticipated Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's line of march and was waiting for him in the New Hope Church vicinity. Misjudging the Confederate force before him, Sherman ordered Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker's XX Corps attack, but when the bluecoats reached Johnston's main defense line, their attack was repulsed with severe casualties. The battle would continue into the next day. Texas Captain Samuel T. Foster, 24th Texas Cavalry (dismounted) reported that the Federals had lost 703 men killed and 350 captured on his part of the line. Overall losses were 1,665 for the Federals and 400 for the Confederates.

Pvt. Robert Patterson, Co. D, 12th Tenn. Infantry

Army of Tennessee

(Library of Congress)

In the continuing Battle of North Anna River in Virginia, the battle has settled into a stalemate. The Federals tried to outflank the Confederate defenses at the Little River crossing but found it strongly guarded by Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton's Southern cavalry.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 25.

Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley was born on this day in Natchitoches, Louisiana. He graduated from West Point in 1838 and fought in the Seminole and Mexican-American wars. Sibley invented the "Sibley tent" for the army and had extensive experience on the frontier before the War for Southern Independence. He resigned from the U.S. Army in 1861 and joined the Confederate Army. Sibley was given command of a brigade of cavalry in west Texas and with it invaded New Mexico. His battles there in 1862 included Valverde and Glorieta Pass. After returning to Texas, his command participated in the Battle of Galveston on Jan. 1. 1863 and was a major part of the victory. He led a brigade of Texas cavalry in the Bayou Teche Campaign in 1863 but was court-martialed on charges of cowardice but was found not guilty. However, he was censured and had a problem with alcoholism. Following the war, he served in the Egyptian Army from 1870 to 1873 as a military adviser but was dismissed for illness and disability. Returning to the U.S., he lived with his daughter in Fredericksburg, Va., and worked on military inventions, but died in poverty on Aug. 23, 1886, in Fredericksburg, and was buried there in the Fredericksburg Confederate Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Henry H. Sibley

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 24.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 24.

1861: Alexandria, Va. proprietor of the Madison House James Jackson shoots and kills Col. Elmer Ellsworth of the 11th New York Regiment when Ellsworth removed a Confederate flag from the roof of his hotel. Jackson is then shot and killed by Pvt. Brownell. Ellsworth is said to be the first Federal officer to be killed in the war.

1863: At the Siege of Vicksburg the Federal Navy mortar fleet kept firing upon the Confederate fortifications all day. Also that afternoon the Confederates drove off an attempt by the Federals to mine the Jackson Road. The Southerners drove off the Federals with hand grenades. The Confederates also sank an enemy coal barge. General Carter L. Stevenson's command also that night collected ammunition from the Federal dead in front of the part of the line. General John C. Pemberton said they were particularly in need of percussion caps because they had one million more cartridges than caps.

At the Siege of Port Hudson, La., Lt. Col. Paul Francis DeGournay's 12th Louisiana Heavy Artillery exchanges fire with the Federal mortar fleet. One shell from Captain W.B. Sewall's battery strikes the USS Monongahela on the bow. The Confederate batteries suffer a little damage from shell fragments but none of them were put out of action. On Colonel William Miles's segment of the line on the southern part of the Confederate fortifications, three men are killed by the bombardment and three wounded.

1864: The Battle of North Anna River, Va. continues on this day and Confederates repulse an attack by Federal Brigadier Gen. James H. Ledlie on the Confederate's Ox Ford position at the apex of the inverted V formation Gen. Robert E. Lee has intended to be a trap for the enemy. But with Lee still sick, no one else is able to carry out his plan.

At the Atlanta Campaign in Georgia, Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler's Confederate cavalry keeps the pressure on the Federal supply lines by launching sporadic attacks on it. There are skirmishes this day at Cass Station, Burnt Hickory, and near Dallas, Georgia as the two sides continue to maneuver.

Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler

Confederate General Birthdays, May 24.

Brigadier General Charles Clark is born on this day in 1811 in Warren County, Ohio. Prior to the war he practiced law in Mississippi, became a large plantation owner, and was elected to the Mississippi State Legislature. Clark also served as the colonel of the 2nd Mississippi Regiment in the Mexican-American War and was a brigadier general in the Mississippi State Militia. During the War for Southern Independence was a brigadier general and fought at the Battle of Shiloh and the Battle of Baton Rouge, La., where he was wounded and captured. When he was paroled he was promoted to major general of Mississippi State Troops and was elected governor of Mississippi. Following the war, Clark was removed from office by Federal occupiers and briefly imprisoned at Fort Pulaski, Ga. After being released, he continued serving as ex officio President of the University Board of Trustees and lived in Natchez, Mississippi. Clark died in Bolivar County, Mississippi, and was buried in his family cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Charles Clark

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 23.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 23.

1861: VIRGINIA SECESSION: Voters of Virginia go to the polls and voted 125,950 to 20,373 to endorse the state's secession from the Union.

1862: Maj. Gen. Stonewall Jackson's 16,500 Confederate Army wins an easy victory over Col. John Reese Kenly with 1,063 Federals and two artillery pieces at the Battle of Front Royal, Va. Confederate Maj. Chatham Roberdeau Wheat with his ferocious Louisiana Tigers (1st Battalion Louisiana Volunteers) and the 1st Maryland Infantry routed the Northern occupiers. The Tigers played a major role in Jackson's Shenandoah Valley Campaign. Confederate casualties are 36 killed and wounded to 773 total Federal casualties (83 killed and wounded and 691 captured).

Maj. Chatham R. Wheat

Louisiana Tiger

Unidentified, Co. C 1st Maryland Infantry

(Library of Congress)

1863: The Siege of  Vicksburg, continues but because of the massive defeat of the day before, there is little artillery fire and sharpshooting from the Federals. "Many of his dead were still lying unburied insight of our trenches," Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton reported later. The Federal keeps up its mortar fire and at night the Confederates keep busy repairing their trenches.

At the Siege of Port Hudson, Federals complete their investment of the Confederate line but on the Confederate left wing, Colonel I.G.W. Steedman, who is in command of the Confederate left wing, throws out skirmishers from the 1st Alabama Volunteers to push back on the Yankees in the swamps and ravines in that area. 

Col. I.G.W. Steedman

1st Alabama Volunteers

1864: Fighting erupts at the Battle of North Anna River and becomes severe when the Federals advance but Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill strikes back with his 3rd Corps with severe fighting at Chesterfield Bridge and Jericho Mills. That night, General Robert E. Lee has a set trap with an inverted V formation for Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant but Lee is down sick that day and can't supervise the battle, which continues until May 26.

In the Atlanta Campaign, General Joseph E. Johnston's Army of Tennessee keeps in front of Lt. Gen. U.S. Grant's Army of Tennessee with action at Stilesborough as the armies move toward Dallas, Georgia, drawing ever closer to Atlanta.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 23.

None.

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 22.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 22.

1863: Second Assault on Vicksburg: Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton and his Confederate garrison at Vicksburg, Miss. bloodily repulses the second Federal frontal assault by Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant's Federal invaders on the strong fortifications there. Grant preceded the frontal assault with an all-night artillery barrage. He then launched the corps of Sherman, McPherson, and McClernand, but each one is signally repulsed. McClernand's assaults on the Confederate right had some breakthroughs but Confederate counterattacks recovered each break in the lines. Particularly notable was the fighting at the Railroad Redoubt and the 2nd Texas Lunette. Grants gave up on taking Vicksburg by storm, and the fighting settles into a siege. Federal casualties in the failed frontal attack total 502 killed, 2,550 wounded, and 147 missing. Confederates lost about 500 men in killed and wounded.

Pvt. Charles H. Ruff, Co. G, 2nd Tex. Inf.

He served in the Siege of Vicksburg.

At the Siege of Port Hudson, Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner had sent out Col. John L. Logan's 1200 Confederate cavalrymen, partisan rangers, and two artillery pieces prior to the siege to harass Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Banks' Army of the Gulf during the siege. The horse soldiers slowed the Federal efforts at encirclement of the fortress.

1864: General Robert E. Lee once again disrupted Maj. Gen. Grant's Overland Campaign. Lee's Second Corps, under Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell, beat Grant to Hanover Junction along the North Anna River.

In the Atlanta Campaign in Georgia, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston set up his Army of Tennessee in a new defensive position at Altoona Pass. But Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman's Army of the Tennessee once again outflanks Johnston, who has to again retreat closer to Atlanta.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 22.

Brigadier General Richard Lee Turberville Beale was born on this day in 1819 in Westmoreland County, Virginia. A prewar lawyer and Virginia politician, Beale was elected to the 30th Congress in 1847-1840, and to the Virginia  Senate from 1858-to 1860. He served in the 9th Virginia Cavalry as a captain and major, then was promoted to brigadier general. His battles and campaigns included the Battle of Brandy Station, the Battle of Gettysburg, the Battle of Culpepper Court House, the Bristoe Campaign, the Mine River Campaign, the Siege of Petersburg, and the Second Battle of Ream's Station. Beale was wounded and captured on April 9, 1865, at the Battle of Appomattox Court House, Va. Following the war, Beale became active in politics again and was elected to the 45th and 46th Congresses. He also practiced law and wrote a history of the Ninth Virginia Cavalry. Beale died April 21, 1893, near Hague, Va., and was buried there in Hickory Wood Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. L.T. Beale

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 21.

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On This Day in Confederate History, May 21.

1863: The Siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana begins with the arrival of Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks' 40,000 man Army of the Gulf. The Port Hudson garrison commander is Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner with less than 6,000 effective troops. Gardner has greatly improved the defenses at Port Hudson, but there are still uncompleted portions and not enough men to man the forts and trenches around the perimeter. But  Gardner would prove to be a master in gathering intelligence on the enemy and shifting men around to threatened parts of the line.

The Battle of Plains Store, La. near Port Hudson begins the fighting in the siege. The Federal cavalry brigade of Col. Benjamin Grierson in advance of the Federal Army, skirmishes with Col. Frank W. Powers Confederate Cavalry. Gardner sends out Col. William R. Miles's infantry to reinforce Power's cavalry. The Confederate infantry at first pushes back the Federal infantry of Maj. Gen. Christopher C. Augur. But the overwhelming numerical superiority of Augur pushes the Confederates back into Port Hudson. The Confederates have 100 casualties to the 150 of the Federals.

1864: The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House ends with the withdrawal of Grant's Army of the Potomac in search of a better place to engage Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. But the Confederates continually out march the Federals and end up blocking their path to Richmond. In the battle, from May 9-21, 1864 the Federals lost 2,725 men killed, 13,416 wounded and 2,258 captured or missing. The Confederates suffered 1,515 killed, 5,414 wounded, and 5,758 captured or missing. 

Confederate General Birthdays, May 21.

Confederate Major General Dabney Herndon Maury is born on this day in 1822 in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He was an 1841 graduate of the University of Virginia and an instructor at West Point. He was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1846. Maury served in the Mexican-American War and was severely wounded in the Battle of Cerro Gordo. He authored an Army textbook, Tactics for Mounted Rifles. At the start of the War for Southern Independence, he resigned from the U.S. Army and joined the Confederate Army as a colonel and chief of staff for Gen. Earl Van Dorn. Maury was promoted to brigadier general after the Battle of Elk Horn Tavern, Ark. He led a division at the Second Battle of Corinth, Miss., and was promoted to major general in Nov. 1862. Maury was given command of the Dept. of the Gulf with headquarters in Mobile, Ala. where he finished the war. He had a varied career after the war, teaching in Fredericksburg, Va., running a business in New Orleans, La., and serving as minister of Columbia during the administration of President Grover Cleveland. Maury also organized the Southern Historical Society and promoted the reorganization of the National Guard. He died on Jan. 11, 1900, in the home of his son in Peoria, Ill., and was buried in the city cemetery in Fredericksburg, Va.

Maj. Gen. Dabney H. Maury

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Confederate Brigadier General Mosby Monroe Parsons is born on this day in 1822 in Charlottexsville, Virginia. His family moved to Cole Co., Mo. in 1835, and as an adult practiced law in Jefferson City, Mo. During the Mexican-American War, he served as a captain in Col. Alexander W. Doniphan's regiment and fought in the Battle of Sacramento where he was cited for gallantry. After that war, he served as a U.S. District Attorney and a senator in the Missouri State Senate. Parsons was also appointed a brigadier general in the Missouri State Guard and led a division at the Battle of Oak Hill, Mo. in 1861. He was appointed a brigadier general in the Confederate Army on Nov. 5, 1862. He commanded a division in the Battle of Pleasant Hill, La. and at the Battle of Jenkin's Ferry, Ark. Following the war, Parsons and two companions were traveling in Mexico when they were murdered by Mexican soldiers on Aug. 15, 1865, near China, Nuevo Leon, and buried in unmarked graves.

Brig. Gen. Mosby M. Parsons

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 19.

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On This Day In Confederate History, May 19.

1863: VICKSBURG CAMPAIGN: Confederate defenders of Vicksburg, Miss. repulse the first Federal assault on Vicksburg, Miss. Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant was overconfident because of the rout of the Confederates at Black River Bridge two days before. He ordered three of his corps to attack but Maj. Gen. John Pemberton has his Confederates well-positioned to repulse the attack. The blunder cost the Federals 1,000 casualties. The Confederate garrison suffered eight killed and 62 wounded in the attack.

Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton and staff.

1864: ATLANTA CAMPAIGN: In the Atlanta Campaign, General Joseph Johnston decides to try to launch an attack on Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman with Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood's corps at Cassville, Georgia. However Hood misjudges that Federals were getting ready to attack his right flank. Hood calls off his attack thus spoiling Johnston's plan. Then when Johnston finds Sherman moving around both his flanks, he orders a withdrawal to the south.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 19.

Brigadier General Samuel Jameson Gholson was born on this day in 1808 in Madison County, Kentucky. He practiced law in Athens, Monroe County, Miss., and served as a congressman and later a federal judge. During the war, Gholson was a brigadier general of Confederate cavalry. After the war, he served in the Mississippi House of Representatives and practiced law in Aberdeen, Miss. He died there on Oct. 16, 1883, and was buried in the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Aberdeen.

                                                

Brig. Gen. Samuel J. Gholson

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Brigadier General Felix Kirk Zollicoffer was born on this day in 1812 in Maury County, Tennessee.  Prior to the war, he was in the newspaper business, a politician, and a U.S. congressman from Tennessee. During the war, he became a brigadier general in the Tennessee state army and then, on July 9, 1861, a brigadier general in the Confederate Army and was put in command of the District of East Tennessee. He was killed in action on January 19, 1862, at the Battle of Mill Springs, Kentucky. Zollicoffer was buried in Nashville, Nashville, Tenn.

Brig. Gen. Felix K. Zollicoffer

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, May 18.

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On This Day In Confederate History, May 18.

1861: The Battle of Sewell's Point, Virginia occurs when the Federal gunboat USS Monticello, with the support of the USS Thomas Freeborn, exchange fire beginning on this day and continuing to the 21st. The Confederates have three 32-pounders manned by Captain Peyton H. Colquitt and the Columbus Light Guard of Georgia. They fought under a Georgia state flag since they had no Confederate flag yet. The artillery duel did little damage to either side. This engagement coincided with the blockage of the Rappahannock River.

Captain, later Colonel, Peyton H. Colquitt

(Library of Congress)

1863: The Siege of Vicksburg, Miss. officially begins with the arrival of Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant before the city with his Army of the Tennessee. Grant started the siege with 32,000 men, but that number will increase to 77,000 over the course of the siege. Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton has only 18,500 men at the beginning, but he manages to rally and reorganize his demoralized men from the Battle of Champion's Hill and increases his numbers to 33,000. His fortifications are among the most formidable of the war. Pemberton has four divisions under Maj. Gens. Carter L. Stevenson, John H. Forney, Martin L. Smith, and John S. Bowen. Grant has six corps under Maj. Gens. John Parke, John A. McClernand, William T. Sherman, Cadwallader C. Washburn, and James B. McPherson.

1864: The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Va. reaches its zenith in bloodshed with Lt. Gen. U.S. Grant launching two Federal army corps against Gen. Robert E. Lee's now strengthened breastworks on the Confederate left flank, and the Federals suffer another devastating repulse.

The Battle of Yellow Bayou, La. is the last battle in the long drawn out Red River Campaign, which ends with another Confederate victory, although a pyrrhic one. Maj. Gen. Richard Taylor reported, "We drove the enemy handsomely on our right, killing all the horses and most of the gunners of a battery, and forcing the enemy to abandon it. On the left, near the De Glaize, we were severely repulsed and were forced to arrest the progress of our rights. General Polignac restored order in his left brigade after a time, McMahan's battery preventing the enemy from following up on his success in this part of the field. We held the field, on which the enemy, who fell back at once, left 30 dead. Our loss will reach 500, of which 30 were killed, 50 severely wounded, and some hundred prisoners taken from the left brigade. The remaining wounds are of a trifling character. Among the killed, I regret to include Colonel [Robert] Stone, of Polignac's old brigade, a gallant and promising officer." Taylor also noted his army had been constantly fighting for 70 days. The Consolidated 18th Louisiana Infantry of Mouton's Louisiana Brigade on the Confederate is commanded by Maj. Gen. John Wharton for having signally routed the enemy on the Confederate right. Total Federal casualties are given as 360. Overall in the entire campaign, both in Louisiana and Arkansas, are 8,162 for the Federals, and 6,575 for the Confederates. The Confederates also have a net gain of 17 to 26 artillery pieces and 600 wagons. Texas and western Louisiana families remain safe, unoccupied, and with no other major invasions during the rest of the war.

Cpl. Paul Thibodaux, Co. G. 18th La. Inf.

Served in all four years of the war.

Confederate General Birthdays, May 18.

None.