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

 Click 👉Today in History (general history) July 26. 

On This Day in Confederate History, July 26.

1863: Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan and 360 of his men were captured this day at Salineville, Ohio, ending his spectacular raid through Indiana and Ohio. He began the raid on July 2, 1863, with 2,400 Confederate cavalrymen as a diversion to Federal Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans' Chattanooga Campaign. His force got whittled down as the weeks passed until he was captured, and only 400 of his men made it back to Confederate territory. He and his men were confined at the Ohio State Penitentiary rather than sent to P.O.W. camps. However, on Nov. 27, 1863, Morgan and his men escaped through a tunnel, one of the most spectacular P.O.W. escapes of the war.

1864: At the Siege of Petersburg, Va., both sides were dug in for a long siege, but Lt. Gen. U.S. Grant was planning a major assault, including digging a tunnel under Confederate lines and blowing a big hole in the line, and then staging an all-out assault to break the siege. He was also planning a diversionary movement toward Richmond, Va., to weaken the Southern line at Petersburg. This movement was assigned to Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock's II Corps and Maj. Gen. Phillip Sheridan's Cavalry.
When Gen. Robert E. Lee heard about the Federal movements, he reinforced Richmond by sending 16,500 Confederates. The result would be the First Battle of Deep Bottom Sound over the next two days.  

Confederate General Birthdays, July 26.

Brigadier General John Marshall Jones was born in 1820 in Charlottesville, Va. He was a 1841 graduate of West Point, 39th in a class of 52 cadets. Jones served as a second lieutenant in the 7th U.S. Infantry, as an instructor at West Point, helped revise rifle & artillery tactics, had duty at fort garrisons, and served in the Utah War. He resigned from the U.S. Army on May 27, 1861. Jones began the war as a captain of artillery, was promoted to colonel of infantry, and served on Stonewall Jackson's staff. He was promoted to brigadier general in May 1863 and given a Virginia infantry brigade in Maj. Gen. Edward "Allegheny" Johnson's Division. His battles included Front Royal, the Seven Days Battles, Second Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and the Wilderness. At the Battle of Gettysburg, Jones was severely wounded during the assault on Culp's Hill. He was killed in action on May 5, 1864, in the Battle of the Wilderness, Va. Lt. Gen. Richard Ewell said his loss was irreparable. He is buried in Maplewood Cemetery in Charlottesville, Va. In his personal life, he married Margaret Ann Freeman of Culpepper, Va., on Feb. 25, 1852. 

Brig. Gen. John Marshall Jones

Bugler of the 1st Louisiana Zouaves

in formation at Pensacola, FL, in 1861

CLICK👉 1st Louisiana Zouaves

Jeff Davis Pet Wolves

This is the story of one of the most unique and famed Louisiana units in the War for Southern Independence, the 1st Louisiana Zouaves, commanded by Lt. Col. Gaston Coppens. Made up largely of foreigners from many countries, the men wore the gaudy French Zouave uniform and fought with a fierce determination for the new Southern Republic. The battalion was noted for its rowdiness, and it was put under the command of Maj. J.B. Magrudrer's division on the  Yorktown Peninsula of Virginia and were fierce fighters in combat. They were also consolidated with Major Henry St. Paul's Louisiana Battalion of Chasseur à Pied (Foot Rifles). Their battles included Williamsburg, Gaines' Mill, Seven Pines & Fair Oaks, Cedar Mountain, 2nd Manassas, Sharpsburg, Chantilly, and Fredericksburg. By Jan. 1863, their numbers had been so heavily depleted that they were reorganized as the Confederate States Zouaves and assigned as garrison troops at Richmond, VA. They also participated in many skirmishes and battles in South Virginia and North Carolina. They also did scouting missions behind enemy lines for General Lee and the Confederate Secret Service.