Sept 22 - We have hints of leaving fair days and lovely moon light nights. A.m. went to auction sale of stock but could not get rid of my unsuitable horse. The horse question troubles me much of late. Put it away. To Missouri hospital and was able to speak on divine things to three men.
Sept 23 - Warmer - still see indications of a projected movement of the regiment. [John R.] Wilson of Company D quite sick at hospital. Felt somewhat depressed and homesick in the p.m. My school of six or eight contrabands three times a week and Sunday a.m. is quite interesting. Evening rumors of a reverse to Gen Rosencrans. Doubt it.
Sept 24 -Last night at 11 orders came to be ready to move. Got up and packed up. Nothing further today. Hear a raid was anticipated on M & O Rail Road*. Saw Col Swayne. Recovering. Rosencrans repulsed, not defeated. Heavy loss on both sides. Some Ohio officers killed. P.m. to Missouri hospital.
Sept 25 - Cloudy and cool. Have to cater for our mess now and instruct Jim some in cooking. Gen John Geiger here and on request made a union speech to the assembled brigade. Real good but stained by introduction of 3 oaths and a convivial allusion to whiskey - a pity. Soldiers have too much such influence already.
Sept 26 - Fine day. Mind unsettled but got it confined so as to study my sermon. Lovely moonlight nights. Over at 32nd hospital much thinned out. Health is better. Heard of auction of horses and got aroused on that question. Hear our whole corps (16th) to leave here for Rosencrans. Jim succeeded in pies. Sent trunk to Elyria by Lieutenant Kilby.
Sept 27 - Sunday. Feel much fatigued especially in mind. The regiment has been occupied somewhat with preparations for a contemplated move. Other regiments have moved in and bivouac near us. Has benefited in prayer meeting. Fond thoughts of our dear little boy.
Sept 28 - My cold in the head and anxiety about selling my horse gave me quite a dull head ache. A.m. was at horse business but accomplished nothing. P.m. pretty quite. Eve felt better. Our sick all [?] down town but we hear now we are not to go. Fine letters from Ella and Oren.
Sept 29 - When having little else to interest me I am apt to over eat and think too much of eating. My appetite is [?] controlled than formerly. Cloudy and hazy and mild, oh how dusty. Strange regiments from below are about us. Took the drinking and swearing pledge through three companies. Quite encouraged. Tea with Capt. H[errick].
Sept 30 - It has rained almost incessantly from before daylight. Much needed. [2nd] Lieutenant [Henry J]McFadden [from D company] quite sick. Went down town in the rain to have my horse sold but no auction hardly. Conclude not to waste any more time on her now. Presented quarterly report. Read much in p.m. and evening.
* The Mobile and Ohio Rail Road was chartered Jan / Feb 1848 to go between Mobile, Alabama and Cairo, Illinois. On September 13, 1940, it was merged with the Gulf, Mobile and Northern Railroad to form the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad.
Showing posts with label William S. Rosencrans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label William S. Rosencrans. Show all posts
Friday, November 18, 2011
15 - 21 Sept 1863
Sept 15 - Read papers and wrote letters. Distributed testaments in Illinois battery - well received. A private there had been a city missionary in Chicago. At Missouri hospital. Toward evening weary, but spirited a little and nervous. Anti-Vallandigham* resolutions largely signed in regiment.
Sept 16 - A little cloudy, quite a relief. Fine display of the brigade and cavalry out on inspection. Felt weary toward evening and somewhat dis-spirited and lonely but the prayer meeting did me good. Feel my work is great but must cast my care on the Lord. Feel want of family intercourse and society.
Sept 17 - Rain, clouds and cool wind. Beginning to feel the monotony of camp life. Read in "Chaplain's manual" useful instructions on dealing with sick and well. Eve to prayer meeting of 32nd Missouri. Not as interesting as ours I think. Burnside* has marched on a hoodless conquest and deliverance of E. Tennessee. Appetite less voracious.
Sept 18 - Chilly day. Rode to town on my little horse. Liked him and did not like him. The horse question has troubled me much for ten days. Rosencrans has taken Chattanooga and Burnside.
Sept 19 - Chilly still. Lib. our cook sick and Jim cooks. Studied etc. P.m. to 32nd hosp[ital]. Shall alternate daily between that and ours. Gave tracts and papers. Eve talked with Col Herrick of bringing wife and friends south in winter.
Sept 20 - Fine day. An unexpected and delightful tho' short call from Sam who has a furlough of 20 days. He is well. His regiment has suffered and is suffering much from sickness and death. In p.m. preached to an unusually good number of soldiers. Col Herrick has talked to officers about attending church. Very bad sick head ache in eve.
Sept 21 - Fine day. A.m. to Chaplain's meeting etc. P.m. school. My school room does well. Six or eight in attendance. In eve spent an hour or two with Col. Swayne who is quite sick. Prayer with him. Good letter from Ella and Henry.
* Clement Laird Vallandigham was born 29 July 1820 in Lisbon Ohio. He was elected as a Democrat to the Ohio legislature in 1845 and 1846, and by a very small margin to the U.S. Congress in 1858 and 1860 representing the district around Dayton. When the war broke out the majority anti-secession population of Dayton turned him out of office by a large margin in 1862.
He was a member of the copperhead movement and was vociferously anti-war on the basis of states rights, and perhaps racism played a part as well, as he defended the institution of slavery.
After the war, Vallandigham returned to Ohio, lost his campaigns for Senate and the House of Representatives on an anti-Reconstruction platform, and then resumed his law practice. By 1871 he won the Ohio Democrats over to a "new departure" policy that would essentially neglect to mention the Civil War.
Vallandigham's assertion that "he did not want to belong to the United States" prompted Edward Everett Hale to write The Man Without a Country. This short story, which appeared in The Atlantic Monthly in December 1863, was widely republished.
Vallandigham died on 17 June 1871 in Lebanon, Ohio, at the age of 50, after accidentally shooting himself with a pistol. He was representing a defendant in a murder case for killing a man in a bar room brawl. Vallandigham attempted to prove the victim had in fact killed himself while trying to draw his pistol from a pocket when rising from a kneeling position. As Vallandigham conferred with fellow defense attorneys in his hotel room, he showed them how he would demonstrate this to the jury. Grabbing a pistol he believed to be unloaded, he put it in his pocket and enacted the events as they might have happened, shooting himself in the process. Vallandigham proved his point, and the defendant, Thomas McGehan, was acquitted and released from custody. Pictured below
Union General Ambrose Everett Burnside was born 23 May 1824 in Liberty Indiana. He attended West Point, graduating in 1847. He fought in the Mexican-American war doing mostly garrison duty in Mexico City near the end of the war. At the close of the war, Lt. Burnside served two years on the western frontier, serving under Captain Braxton Bragg in the 3rd U.S. Artillery, a light artillery unit that had been converted to cavalry duty, protecting the Western mail routes through Nevada to California. In 1849, he was wounded by an arrow in his neck during a skirmish against Apaches in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
At the outbreak of the Civil War, Burnside was a brigadier general in the Rhode Island Militia. He raised a regiment, the 1st Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry, and was appointed its colonel on May 2, 1861. Within a month, he ascended to brigade command in the Department of Northeast Virginia. He commanded the brigade without distinction at the First Battle of Bull Run in July, committing his troops piecemeal, and took over division command temporarily for wounded Brig. Gen. David Hunter. After his 90-day regiment was mustered out of service, he was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers on August 6, and was assigned to train provisional brigades in the nascent Army of the Potomac.
General Burnside also fought in North Carolina, Antietam, Fredericksburg, East Tennessee, The Overland campaign and the Crater.
Burnside was relieved of command on August 14 and sent on leave by Grant; Meade never recalled him to duty. A court of inquiry later placed the blame for the Crater fiasco on Burnside and his subordinates. In December, Burnside met with President Lincoln and General Grant about his future. He was contemplating resignation, but Lincoln and Grant requested that he remain in the Army. At the end of the interview, Burnside wrote, "I was not informed of any duty upon which I am to be placed." He finally resigned his commission on April 15, 1865.
Burnside was noted for his unusual facial hair, joining strips of hair in front of his ears to his mustache but with chin clean-shaven; the word burnsides was coined to describe this style. The syllables were later reversed to give sideburns.
Sept 16 - A little cloudy, quite a relief. Fine display of the brigade and cavalry out on inspection. Felt weary toward evening and somewhat dis-spirited and lonely but the prayer meeting did me good. Feel my work is great but must cast my care on the Lord. Feel want of family intercourse and society.
Sept 17 - Rain, clouds and cool wind. Beginning to feel the monotony of camp life. Read in "Chaplain's manual" useful instructions on dealing with sick and well. Eve to prayer meeting of 32nd Missouri. Not as interesting as ours I think. Burnside* has marched on a hoodless conquest and deliverance of E. Tennessee. Appetite less voracious.
Sept 18 - Chilly day. Rode to town on my little horse. Liked him and did not like him. The horse question has troubled me much for ten days. Rosencrans has taken Chattanooga and Burnside.
Sept 19 - Chilly still. Lib. our cook sick and Jim cooks. Studied etc. P.m. to 32nd hosp[ital]. Shall alternate daily between that and ours. Gave tracts and papers. Eve talked with Col Herrick of bringing wife and friends south in winter.
Sept 20 - Fine day. An unexpected and delightful tho' short call from Sam who has a furlough of 20 days. He is well. His regiment has suffered and is suffering much from sickness and death. In p.m. preached to an unusually good number of soldiers. Col Herrick has talked to officers about attending church. Very bad sick head ache in eve.
Sept 21 - Fine day. A.m. to Chaplain's meeting etc. P.m. school. My school room does well. Six or eight in attendance. In eve spent an hour or two with Col. Swayne who is quite sick. Prayer with him. Good letter from Ella and Henry.
* Clement Laird Vallandigham was born 29 July 1820 in Lisbon Ohio. He was elected as a Democrat to the Ohio legislature in 1845 and 1846, and by a very small margin to the U.S. Congress in 1858 and 1860 representing the district around Dayton. When the war broke out the majority anti-secession population of Dayton turned him out of office by a large margin in 1862.
He was a member of the copperhead movement and was vociferously anti-war on the basis of states rights, and perhaps racism played a part as well, as he defended the institution of slavery.
After the war, Vallandigham returned to Ohio, lost his campaigns for Senate and the House of Representatives on an anti-Reconstruction platform, and then resumed his law practice. By 1871 he won the Ohio Democrats over to a "new departure" policy that would essentially neglect to mention the Civil War.
Vallandigham's assertion that "he did not want to belong to the United States" prompted Edward Everett Hale to write The Man Without a Country. This short story, which appeared in The Atlantic Monthly in December 1863, was widely republished.
Vallandigham died on 17 June 1871 in Lebanon, Ohio, at the age of 50, after accidentally shooting himself with a pistol. He was representing a defendant in a murder case for killing a man in a bar room brawl. Vallandigham attempted to prove the victim had in fact killed himself while trying to draw his pistol from a pocket when rising from a kneeling position. As Vallandigham conferred with fellow defense attorneys in his hotel room, he showed them how he would demonstrate this to the jury. Grabbing a pistol he believed to be unloaded, he put it in his pocket and enacted the events as they might have happened, shooting himself in the process. Vallandigham proved his point, and the defendant, Thomas McGehan, was acquitted and released from custody. Pictured below
Union General Ambrose Everett Burnside was born 23 May 1824 in Liberty Indiana. He attended West Point, graduating in 1847. He fought in the Mexican-American war doing mostly garrison duty in Mexico City near the end of the war. At the close of the war, Lt. Burnside served two years on the western frontier, serving under Captain Braxton Bragg in the 3rd U.S. Artillery, a light artillery unit that had been converted to cavalry duty, protecting the Western mail routes through Nevada to California. In 1849, he was wounded by an arrow in his neck during a skirmish against Apaches in Las Vegas, New Mexico.
At the outbreak of the Civil War, Burnside was a brigadier general in the Rhode Island Militia. He raised a regiment, the 1st Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry, and was appointed its colonel on May 2, 1861. Within a month, he ascended to brigade command in the Department of Northeast Virginia. He commanded the brigade without distinction at the First Battle of Bull Run in July, committing his troops piecemeal, and took over division command temporarily for wounded Brig. Gen. David Hunter. After his 90-day regiment was mustered out of service, he was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers on August 6, and was assigned to train provisional brigades in the nascent Army of the Potomac.
General Burnside also fought in North Carolina, Antietam, Fredericksburg, East Tennessee, The Overland campaign and the Crater.
Burnside was relieved of command on August 14 and sent on leave by Grant; Meade never recalled him to duty. A court of inquiry later placed the blame for the Crater fiasco on Burnside and his subordinates. In December, Burnside met with President Lincoln and General Grant about his future. He was contemplating resignation, but Lincoln and Grant requested that he remain in the Army. At the end of the interview, Burnside wrote, "I was not informed of any duty upon which I am to be placed." He finally resigned his commission on April 15, 1865.
Burnside was noted for his unusual facial hair, joining strips of hair in front of his ears to his mustache but with chin clean-shaven; the word burnsides was coined to describe this style. The syllables were later reversed to give sideburns.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
1 - 7 Jan 1863
Jan 1 - At Columbus, KY. First day at Mrs. Lester's. Began to be troubled with looseness of bowels. Mr. Burr and Dr. Bare of Indiana lodge in the same room. Have not heard from home since leaving.
Jan 2 - Staid in the house mostly. The trio above moved, left at evening, too expensive here. I felt quite lonely at first.
Jan 3 - Walked down town and felt worse. Felt uneasy about myself and went to a doctor. Opium powders help me.
Jan 4 - Sunday. Fine weather. Too weak to go out to church. Bowel disorder better. Had service for a few in Mrs.Lester's parlor. [?] on John 14:6. A S[unday] S[chool] for children. A good sabbath. How merciful is my Father. Heard of great battle south of Nashville between Rosencrans* and Bragg*.
Jan 5 - Monday. Weather fine. Disorder no worse. Walked down town in a.m. and got tired. Bowels feel sore. Depressed toward evening but reading psalm and prayer more like light in darkness. Wrote to Ella.
Jan 6 - A chilly wind but fair. Feel much better. Pleasant call on Mr. Burr. Saw contrabands. Wrote home. Much interested in life of Alfred and Trals [?]
Jan 7 - Wednesday. Fair weather. Pleasant interlude with Rev. Mr. Carrgill of Ky. and Mr. Scofield, chaplain in a.m. For p.m. trying to get away. Do not yet succeed. Every pleasure in devotions. Feel more used to pain of absense from home. Thinking of dear Ella and reading her old letter tonight.
* Union General William S. Rosencrans was born 6 Sep 1819 in Little Taylor Run, Kingston Twp., Delaware Co. Ohio. He had little schooling. He worked as a store clerk in Utica and Mansfield, Richland Co., Ohio. He received an appointment to West Point, graduating in 1842. When the Civil War began he was assigned by Ohio Governor William Dennison as a volunteer aide-de-camp to Major General George B. McClellan who commanded all Ohio volunteer forces at the start of the war. Rosencrans was promoted to Colonel and briefly commanded the 23rd Ohio Infantry regiment which included future presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and William McKinley. On 16 May 1861 he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. His victories at Rich Mountain and Corrick's Ford in West(ern) Virginia were among the very first Union victories of the war, but his superior Maj. General McClellan received the credit. In 1862 in the Western Theater, he won the battles of Luka and Corinth while under the command of Maj. General Ulyssis S. Grant. His brusque, outspoken manner and willingness to quarrel openly with superiors caused a professional rivalry with Grant (as well as with Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton) that would adversely affect Rosecrans's career.
Given command of the Army of the Cumberland, he fought against Confederate General Braxton Bragg at Stones River, and later outmaneuvered him in the brilliant Tullahoma campaigne, driving the Confederates from Middle Tennessee. His strategic movements then caused Bragg to abandon the critical city of Chattanooga, but Rosecrans's pursuit of Bragg ended during the bloody Battle of Chickamauga, where his unfortunately worded order mistakenly opened a gap in the Union line and Rosecrans and a third of his army were swept from the field. Besieged in Chattanooga, Rosecrans was relieved of command by Grant.
Following his humiliating defeat, Rosecrans was reassigned to command the Department of Missouri. He was briefly considered as a vice presidential running mate for Abraham Lincoln in 1864. After the war he served in diplomatic and appointed political positions and in 1881 was elected to Congress, representing California. He died 11 March 1898. Pictured below
*Confederate General Braxton Bragg was born in Warenton North Caronlina on 22 March 1817. He entered West Point at the age of 16 and graduated 5th out of 50 cadets in 1837. Bragg served in the 2nd Seminole War in Florida and then in 1843 was stationed at Fort Moultrie where he became friends with a future rival, William Tecumse Sherman. In 1844 Bragg was court-martialed for disobedience to orders and disrespect toward his superior officers for a series of nine controversial articles published in the Southern Literary Messenger called "Notes on our Army" which included specific attacks on the policies of General in Chief Winfield Scott. He was found guilty and received an official reprimand from the secretary of war and suspension at half pay for two months.
From 1845-1847 he fought with distinction in the Mexican-American War under General (later President) Zachary Taylor as well as Colonel Jefferson Davis, future President of the Confederacy. Before the start of the Civil War, Bragg was a colonel in the Louisiana Militia. On December 12, 1860, the Governor of Louisiana appointed him to the state military board, an organization charged with creating a 5,000-man army. On January 11, 1861, Bragg led a group of 500 volunteers to Baton Rouge where they persuaded the commander of the federal arsenal there to surrender. The state convention on secession also established a state army and Moore appointed Bragg its commander, with the rank of major general, on February 20, 1861. He commanded the forces around New Orleans until April 16, but his commission was transferred to be a brigadier general of the Confederate States Army on March 7, 1861. He commanded forces in Pensacola, Florida, Alabama, and the Department of West Florida and was promoted to major general on September 12, 1861. His tenure was successful and he trained his men to be some of the best disciplined troops in the Confederate Army.
Bragg commanded a corps (and was also chief of staff) under Johnston at the Battle of Shiloh, 6-7April 1862. In the initial surprise Confederate advance, Bragg's corps was ordered to attack in a line that was almost 3 miles long, but he soon began directing activities of the units that found themselves around the center of the battlefield. His men became bogged down against a Union salient called the Hornet's Nest, which he attacked for hours with piecemeal frontal assaults. After Johnston was killed in the battle, General P.G.T. Beauregard assumed command, and appointed Bragg his second in command. Bragg was dismayed when Beauregard called off a late afternoon assault against the Union's final position, which was strongly defended, calling it their last opportunity for victory. On the second day of battle, the Union army counterattacked and the Confederates retreated back to Corinth. Bragg received public praise for his conduct in the battle and on April 12, 1862, Jefferson Davis appointed Bragg a full general, the fifth man to achieve that rank and one of only seven in the history of the Confederacy.
After Perryville Don Carlos Buell was replaced in command of the Union Army of the Cumberland by Maj. General William S. Rosencrans. In late December, Rosecrans advanced from Nashville against Bragg's position at Murfreesboro. Before Rosecrans could attack, Bragg launched a strong, surprise attack against Rosecrans's right flank on December 31, 1862, the start of the Battle of Stones River. The Confederates succeeded in driving the Union army back to a small defensive position, but could not destroy it, nor could they break its supply line to Nashville, as Bragg intended. Despite this, Bragg considered the first day of battle to be a victory and assumed that Rosecrans would soon retreat. By January 2, 1863, however, the Union troops remained in place and the battle resumed as Bragg launched an unsuccessful attack by the troops of Maj. General John C. Breckinridge against the well defended Union left flank. Recognizing his lack of progress, the severe winter weather, the arrival of supplies and reinforcements for Rosecrans, and heeding the recommendations of corps commanders Hardee and Polk, Bragg withdrew his army from the field to Tullahoma, Tennessee.
At the age of 59, Bragg was walking down a street with a friend in Galveston, Texas, when he suddenly fell over unconscious. Dragged into a drugstore, he was dead within 10 to 15 minutes. A physician familiar with his history believe that he "died by the brain" (or of "paralysis of the brain"), suffering from the degeneration of cerebral blood vessels. An inquest ruled that his death was due to "fatal syncope," possibly induced by organic disease of the heart. He is buried in Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama.
Fort Bragg in Fayetteville North Carolina is named for him.
Pictured below as a young man during the war
Jan 2 - Staid in the house mostly. The trio above moved, left at evening, too expensive here. I felt quite lonely at first.
Jan 3 - Walked down town and felt worse. Felt uneasy about myself and went to a doctor. Opium powders help me.
Jan 4 - Sunday. Fine weather. Too weak to go out to church. Bowel disorder better. Had service for a few in Mrs.Lester's parlor. [?] on John 14:6. A S[unday] S[chool] for children. A good sabbath. How merciful is my Father. Heard of great battle south of Nashville between Rosencrans* and Bragg*.
Jan 5 - Monday. Weather fine. Disorder no worse. Walked down town in a.m. and got tired. Bowels feel sore. Depressed toward evening but reading psalm and prayer more like light in darkness. Wrote to Ella.
Jan 6 - A chilly wind but fair. Feel much better. Pleasant call on Mr. Burr. Saw contrabands. Wrote home. Much interested in life of Alfred and Trals [?]
Jan 7 - Wednesday. Fair weather. Pleasant interlude with Rev. Mr. Carrgill of Ky. and Mr. Scofield, chaplain in a.m. For p.m. trying to get away. Do not yet succeed. Every pleasure in devotions. Feel more used to pain of absense from home. Thinking of dear Ella and reading her old letter tonight.
* Union General William S. Rosencrans was born 6 Sep 1819 in Little Taylor Run, Kingston Twp., Delaware Co. Ohio. He had little schooling. He worked as a store clerk in Utica and Mansfield, Richland Co., Ohio. He received an appointment to West Point, graduating in 1842. When the Civil War began he was assigned by Ohio Governor William Dennison as a volunteer aide-de-camp to Major General George B. McClellan who commanded all Ohio volunteer forces at the start of the war. Rosencrans was promoted to Colonel and briefly commanded the 23rd Ohio Infantry regiment which included future presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and William McKinley. On 16 May 1861 he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. His victories at Rich Mountain and Corrick's Ford in West(ern) Virginia were among the very first Union victories of the war, but his superior Maj. General McClellan received the credit. In 1862 in the Western Theater, he won the battles of Luka and Corinth while under the command of Maj. General Ulyssis S. Grant. His brusque, outspoken manner and willingness to quarrel openly with superiors caused a professional rivalry with Grant (as well as with Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton) that would adversely affect Rosecrans's career.
Given command of the Army of the Cumberland, he fought against Confederate General Braxton Bragg at Stones River, and later outmaneuvered him in the brilliant Tullahoma campaigne, driving the Confederates from Middle Tennessee. His strategic movements then caused Bragg to abandon the critical city of Chattanooga, but Rosecrans's pursuit of Bragg ended during the bloody Battle of Chickamauga, where his unfortunately worded order mistakenly opened a gap in the Union line and Rosecrans and a third of his army were swept from the field. Besieged in Chattanooga, Rosecrans was relieved of command by Grant.
Following his humiliating defeat, Rosecrans was reassigned to command the Department of Missouri. He was briefly considered as a vice presidential running mate for Abraham Lincoln in 1864. After the war he served in diplomatic and appointed political positions and in 1881 was elected to Congress, representing California. He died 11 March 1898. Pictured below
*Confederate General Braxton Bragg was born in Warenton North Caronlina on 22 March 1817. He entered West Point at the age of 16 and graduated 5th out of 50 cadets in 1837. Bragg served in the 2nd Seminole War in Florida and then in 1843 was stationed at Fort Moultrie where he became friends with a future rival, William Tecumse Sherman. In 1844 Bragg was court-martialed for disobedience to orders and disrespect toward his superior officers for a series of nine controversial articles published in the Southern Literary Messenger called "Notes on our Army" which included specific attacks on the policies of General in Chief Winfield Scott. He was found guilty and received an official reprimand from the secretary of war and suspension at half pay for two months.
From 1845-1847 he fought with distinction in the Mexican-American War under General (later President) Zachary Taylor as well as Colonel Jefferson Davis, future President of the Confederacy. Before the start of the Civil War, Bragg was a colonel in the Louisiana Militia. On December 12, 1860, the Governor of Louisiana appointed him to the state military board, an organization charged with creating a 5,000-man army. On January 11, 1861, Bragg led a group of 500 volunteers to Baton Rouge where they persuaded the commander of the federal arsenal there to surrender. The state convention on secession also established a state army and Moore appointed Bragg its commander, with the rank of major general, on February 20, 1861. He commanded the forces around New Orleans until April 16, but his commission was transferred to be a brigadier general of the Confederate States Army on March 7, 1861. He commanded forces in Pensacola, Florida, Alabama, and the Department of West Florida and was promoted to major general on September 12, 1861. His tenure was successful and he trained his men to be some of the best disciplined troops in the Confederate Army.
Bragg commanded a corps (and was also chief of staff) under Johnston at the Battle of Shiloh, 6-7April 1862. In the initial surprise Confederate advance, Bragg's corps was ordered to attack in a line that was almost 3 miles long, but he soon began directing activities of the units that found themselves around the center of the battlefield. His men became bogged down against a Union salient called the Hornet's Nest, which he attacked for hours with piecemeal frontal assaults. After Johnston was killed in the battle, General P.G.T. Beauregard assumed command, and appointed Bragg his second in command. Bragg was dismayed when Beauregard called off a late afternoon assault against the Union's final position, which was strongly defended, calling it their last opportunity for victory. On the second day of battle, the Union army counterattacked and the Confederates retreated back to Corinth. Bragg received public praise for his conduct in the battle and on April 12, 1862, Jefferson Davis appointed Bragg a full general, the fifth man to achieve that rank and one of only seven in the history of the Confederacy.
After Perryville Don Carlos Buell was replaced in command of the Union Army of the Cumberland by Maj. General William S. Rosencrans. In late December, Rosecrans advanced from Nashville against Bragg's position at Murfreesboro. Before Rosecrans could attack, Bragg launched a strong, surprise attack against Rosecrans's right flank on December 31, 1862, the start of the Battle of Stones River. The Confederates succeeded in driving the Union army back to a small defensive position, but could not destroy it, nor could they break its supply line to Nashville, as Bragg intended. Despite this, Bragg considered the first day of battle to be a victory and assumed that Rosecrans would soon retreat. By January 2, 1863, however, the Union troops remained in place and the battle resumed as Bragg launched an unsuccessful attack by the troops of Maj. General John C. Breckinridge against the well defended Union left flank. Recognizing his lack of progress, the severe winter weather, the arrival of supplies and reinforcements for Rosecrans, and heeding the recommendations of corps commanders Hardee and Polk, Bragg withdrew his army from the field to Tullahoma, Tennessee.
At the age of 59, Bragg was walking down a street with a friend in Galveston, Texas, when he suddenly fell over unconscious. Dragged into a drugstore, he was dead within 10 to 15 minutes. A physician familiar with his history believe that he "died by the brain" (or of "paralysis of the brain"), suffering from the degeneration of cerebral blood vessels. An inquest ruled that his death was due to "fatal syncope," possibly induced by organic disease of the heart. He is buried in Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama.
Fort Bragg in Fayetteville North Carolina is named for him.
Pictured below as a young man during the war
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