Today in the Civil War. (generals, Mexican, Washington, Lincoln)
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Two for one day today in that 1864 was a leap year while 2014 is not.
On the 29th of February, General Kilpatrick's division had reached Spotsylvania Courthouse behind the Confederate lines. Here he divided his force, sending 500 men under the command of Colonel Ulric Dahlgren the son of the Federal admiral who commanded the South Atlantic blockading squadron, who was more famous as the inventer of the Dahlgren gun, the huge reinforced artillery pieces found on most Union ships of war. Ulric was just 21 years old and had opted for the cavalry rather than the navy because he felt that he needed to distinguish himself in a manner apart from his father. He had been wounded during the pursuit after Gettysburg and this resulted in the amputation of a leg. Despite this, Dahlgren volunteered to come along with Kilpatrick who was impressed enough to give him this independent command.
Dahlgren's assignment was to sweep around to the south of Richmond and launch a probing attack to draw defenders to the south. Meanwhile, Kilpatrick with 3500 troopers would wait until they heard the fight, or saw the agreed upon rocket signal, then charge into Richmond from the north.
On March 1st Kilpatrick had arrived in position north of the city, his march had been unmolested to this point because of the effectiveness of multiple feints being conducted by the rest of General Pleasonton's cavalry which drew the rebel horsemen away from the capitol. Kilpatrick's men got to within five miles of the city and there they waited for the signal from Dahlgren.
Ten am...eleven am...noon...no signal, no rockets, no sounds of battle. Kilpatrick kept waiting. While he was doing so, a ragtag defense force was formed, consisting of very much the opposition that Kilpatrick had predicted...clerks, old men and young boys, invalids, whoever the Confederates could find to rush to the defense of the capitol. They had a half dozen antiquated artillery pieces which despite their lack of training, they began to work to good effect. Kilpatrick formed the opinion that he was opposed by regulars and in a complete departure from his character, rather than charging ahead and taking his chances, he became cautious and withheld his assault.
As sundown neared, formations of regular troops were seen entering the defensive lines and worse, regular cavalry under General Wade Hampton began arriving in Kilpatrick's rear. These events made up Kilpatrick's mind for him. He called off the entire operation, turned his men around and began heading back toward Union lines.
As for Dahlgren, he had never managed to get into position that day. The plan had called for crossing the James River at one of the fords west of the city, and Dahlgren found a slave named Martin Robinson who said that he knew of a ford and was willing to guide the Union troopers there. He did, but upon arrival the ford was found to be swollen from rain and of no use to the Yankee troopers. Dahlgren lost his temper, charged the young black man with deliberate treachery, and had him hanged on the spot.
Finally arriving in position as it was growing dark, Dahlgren noted the absence of the sounds of battle and concluded correctly that Kilpatrick had not attacked. In such circumstances his orders were to return to the Union lines via Fredericksburg. The next morning he set out to do that, riding into disaster and one of the war's enduring and unsolved controversies.
In two columns, one with group 300 strong, the other, led by Colonel Dahlgren composed of the remaining 200 troopers, the force which had been sent to attack Richmond from the south was attempting to make their way back to Union lines 150 years ago today. By now the Confederacy was fully alerted and cavalry was swarming about searching for the raiders.
The larger group was the more fortunate one. In a series of skirmishes they lost 40 of their men killed, wounded and captured, but they ultimately did rejoin General Kilpatrick's main body and return safely. Not so lucky was young Dahlgren. They managed to get back across the James, cross the Pamunkey River as well, but a few miles further down the road they ran into an ambush led by general Fitzhugh Lee and his cavalry.
Dahlgren decided to try and bluff his way through, riding out ahead of his men and calling for the rebels to surrender or be shot. None of them fell for it and by way of answer, a volley was discharged with Dahlgren taking four of the bullets which killed him instantly. The rest of the 200 scattered but were eventually captured. Not only was the country flush with rebel cavalry, but citizen militia had turned out and brought their bloodhounds to hunt down the fleeing Union troopers. About a dozen eluded the net and made it back to their own lines.
Dahlgren's death might had been otherwise unremarkable, and actually convenient for Kilpatrick who now had a scapegoat to blame for the mission's failure, one who was unable to offer any contradictory testimony. What changed everything was the document found on Dahlgren's body by F. Lee's men. It was a draft of an address to his men explaining the particulars of their assignment and announcing that along with destroying bridges and liberating prisoners, they would then join with those freed Yankees to "..burn the hateful city.."...and once in the city to kill President Jefferson Davis and his cabinet.
The document was made public and generated a furious reaction in the South, many calling for the execution of those Dahlgren troopers who had been captured. In this atmosphere of hysterical reaction, Secretary of War Seddon wrote to General Robert E. Lee asking him if he endorsed the idea of executing the prisoners. Lee, a man who was never given over to barbaric practices in war, suggested that the matter be investigated and the Yankees given a chance to explain, if they could. To that end copies of the document were made and sent to General Meade along with a note from Lee asking whether he or any others had sanctioned the burning of Richmond and the assassination of the president and cabinet.
Meade called in Kilpatrick who took the position that the document was a forgery, that it did indeed reflect Dahlgren's orders, but that the rebels themselves had added the words about the burning of the city and the slaughter of the officials. Meade forwarded this response to Lee, but in a private letter to his wife expressed his opinion that Kilpatrick was lying. Meade did assure Lee that such actions never had been nor ever would be a part of the policy of the Army of the Potomac, nor of the US government.
With the recognition that hanging prisoners of war would only lead to retaliatory hangings by the US, Lee recommended that the southern government let the matter drop. The prisoners were spared.
After Richmond was captured in April of 1865, a great many Confederate documents fell into Union hands and among them was the original paper in Dahlgren's handwriting. It wound up in the hands of Secretary of War Stanton, who destroyed them, but not before proclaiming it an altered forgery. Copies made by the Confederacy survive with the controversial passages still intact, but whether these copies match the original is never going to be known.
Ever since historians have argued over the authenticity of Dahlgren's supposed threat, with some arguing for fraud and others claiming legitimacy. Among those arguing for legitimacy, there are sub arguments concerning whether the document was just Dahlgren's idea, or it originated with Kilpatrick or possibly with Stanton. A 1998 book, "The Dahlgren Affair: Terror and Conspiracy in the Civil War" by Duane P. Schultz concluded that no terror plot ever existed and the documents were forged. This was countered by Stephen W. Sears who devotes a chapter to the controversy in "Controversies and Commanders, Dispatches from the Army of the Potomac." Sears concludes that it was on the level. Other historians have argued that the Dahlgren affair was the inspiration for John Wilkes Booth's determination to assassinate Lincoln by way of retaliation and revenge.
What isn't debated is that the incident served to increase Southern hostility and enhance their resolve to resist. Their newspapers were full of editorials which concluded that the Yankees were set on a war of complete extermination and unlimited plunder. It did not help Federal credibility that when Dahlgren's men were fleeing, they had wildly jettisoned the packs of amnesty leaflets which they had been given to distribute. They were found scattered all around and cited by the rebels as proof of Yankee treachery, as in promising amnesty while all along planning to murder. No compromise with the North of any sort was possible, they wrote, and there was no longer any choice but to fight to the death. Kilpatrick's raid accomplished none of the objects for which it was conceived and served only to make the prevailing animosity more severe.
Last edited by Grandstander; 03-01-2014 at 05:17 PM..
George Michael Decker Hahn, who went by Michael Hahn, probably has the American record for having the most political offices dissolve from under him.
If there is such a record.
Hahn was from a German family which had come to America in the 1830's and eventually settled in New Orleans. At the age of 22 Hahn was respected enough to be elected to the city school board, soon becoming its director. Hahn was a strong opponent of both slavery and secession and refused to swear an oath to the Confederacy.
When the Union captured New Orleans in 1862, it re-established the vacant 2nd Congressional District seat in the US Congress, and in an election confined to loyalist voters, Hahn won. After one session, Congress than decided to eliminate the office once again and leave it dormant until a full reconstruction plan was in place for the entire state. Hahn's seat in Congress evaporated.
Then in 1864, in response to President Lincoln's urgings to get Louisiana organized and rehabilitated politically, General Banks established a new state government and in the first vote for Governor, Hahn won. 150 years ago today he took the oath and assumed the office.
This honor would last a few months until Banks left to launch his Red River campaign and was replaced as military governor of Louisiana by General Stephen A. Hurlbut. Hurlbut took the view that the newly formed state government was nothing but an impediment to his supreme authority in the state, so he refused to allow them to exercise any power. With nothing to do, Hahn resigned as governor.
Hahn then ran for the office of US Senator from Louisiana and was elected in 1865 just as the war was ending. Then Lincoln was assassinated and in a fury, Congress decided to expel all southerners, so Hahn had a third elected office shot out from under him.
After the war Hahn went on to be a successful newspaper publisher, four term state legislator, state circuit judge, and finally in 1884 he was back in the US Congress, representing that same 2nd District which was now back in operation.
Hahn was able to complete his full term, he died of a heart attack in 1886.
When we last looked in on the CSS David it was October of 1863 and the little cigar shaped torpedo boat was unsuccessfully trying to sink the USS New Ironsides in Charleston Harbor.
150 years ago today the David made another attack, although this time on a lesser Goliath. The target was the USS Memphis, a 227 foot long steamer built in Scotland and sold to the Confederacy as a blockade runner. It in turn had been captured in July of 1862 when trying to run the blockade on an outbound voyage. The USS Navy purchased it and converted it into a seven gun warship which now was on blockade duty at Charleston.
The David's weapon was the same as before, a torpedo at the end of a fifty foot long spar. It managed to approach the Memphis which was cruising in the North Edisto River and got close enough before detection to ram its torpedo into the forward port quarter. It did not detonate. The David, now under small arms fire, backed off, circled around for another run and this time struck the Memphis on the starboard side. Again, the torpedo failed to explode.
By now the crew of the Memphis had rallied and were working their heavy guns. The David lost its smokestack to a shot and its engine's efficiency was greatly reduced, causing the crew to decide to retreat. It managed to get away without significant damage. There were no casualties on either side.
The David would have a third and final mission the following month, attempting to attack the USS Wabash, however that ship had spotted it coming and used its superior speed to avoid an attack. After three missions with no positive results, the experiment in semi submarine warfare was abandoned and the David remained in port for the rest of the war. After Charleston was captured, no one was able to specifically identify the David among the vessels taken by the Union. Its ultimate fate remains unknown.
150 years ago today a 41 year old Union officer, wearing a private's uniform with only the badges on his shoulders to indicate his rank, accompanied by a fourteen year old boy, walked out of the rain and into the Willard Hotel in Washington DC. He asked the desk clerk for a room and the employee, sizing him up as no one of special consequence, assigned him to a small room on the top floor, six flights of stairs required to reach it.
The officer accepted the room without complaint and he and the boy turned to head for their lodgings. It was then that the clerk noticed the name..."U.S. Grant and son, Galena, Ill." The clerk hustled to retrieve the new commanding general of all the United States Army and insist that he be given the hotel's finest suite.
Grant was in town to receive his commission as Lieutenant General and to confer with President Lincoln and Secretary Stanton about his vision for ending the war. Word of the arrival quickly spread and the rest of the day Grant was besieged by the curious, the ambitious and the admiring everywhere he went, making it nearly impossible for him to move about town or even have a meal without continuous interruption.
That evening Grant went to the White House in response to an invitation from the president. Grant went anticipating a private conference and did not know that Tuesday evenings were traditional weekly reception nights. As he entered the East Room this very private man was once more thrown into a swirl of people all vying for his attention. The president recognized him at once.."Why here is General Grant, what a great pleasure." The two leading war figures for the North now met for the first time, but the crowded reception meant that nothing of substance would be said between them until they were alone. Meantime more and more people were pressing into the room to get a look at Grant, who ultimately was forced to stand on a couch just to accommodate all those demanding to see him in person.
Grant of course hated every moment of the fuss and bother, exiting as soon as he could politely get away. The war strategy conference would take place the next morning, after the ceremony where Grant received his promotion. Having given so little of himself apart from appearing, the newspaper articles covering his arrival concentrated on his appearance. Grant, who up until then had typically been described as very ordinary and a little seedy looking, now was transformed into a resolute looking man with clear blue eyes of determination and so forth.
With his son Fred and his moral guardian adjutant General Rawlins, General Grant returned to the White House 150 years ago today for the short ceremony which would install him as the United States first Lieutenant General since George Washington. The President, his cabinet and General Halleck were on hand and Lincoln took Grant aside for a moment to discuss his remarks.
Lincoln informed Grant of the few comments which he would make, and suggested that Grant include something in his which would ease the anticipated jealousy from the generals of the Army of the Potomac. Whether Grant wished to establish himself as independent right away, forgot, or did not think it appropriate, he wound up ignoring Lincoln's wishes in favor of reading his own brief speech.
Quote:
``Mr. President:
``I accept this commission with gratitude for the high honor conferred.
``With the aid of the noble armies that have fought on so many fields for our common country, it will be my earnest endeavor not to disappoint your expectations.
``I feel the full weight of the responsibilities now devolving on me and know that if they are met it will be due to those armies, and above all to the favor of that Providence which leads both Nations and men.''
The in depth discussion of the war which Lincoln had anticipated having never quite materialized. The president indicated that his major concern was eliminating the Army of Northern Virginia and capturing Richmond, something the Army of the Potomac had been failing at for years. Grant replied that given the proper army, he thought that it could be done. Lincoln promised the general that he would have that proper army and Grant said that in that case, it could be done. Beyond that, Grant had yet to develop any wider war winning strategy, he wanted to assume command, review his resources, and then confer with General Sherman, his most trusted subordinate. Then he would present his ideas.
Never one to waste a moment on ceremony or sentimentality, Grant did not stay for any congratulatory social affairs but instead boarded a train to take him south for a conference with General Meade and an introduction to the Army of the Potomac. He made one stop first at Mathew Brady's photography studio to have his official portrait as Commander in Chief made. Grant was seated facing the cameras when Brady decided more light was needed and dispatched an aid to the roof to pull back the shade which was covering a skylight. The aid stumbled and his feet crashed through the glass, sending a shower of shards down upon the new Lieutenant General and photographer. Brady admitted his own fright, but reported that Grant did not even move, glancing up for a moment to take in the disturbance, and then returning his gaze to the cameras. Brady said that it was "..the most remarkable display of nerve I have ever witnessed." Secretary of War Stanton, who had accompanied Grant to the studio, swore Brady to secrecy, claiming that otherwise people will think that the incident had been an assassination attempt.
What then of Henry Halleck, the officer Grant was dislodging as general in chief? With no objections from Grant, it was decided to keep him on as Chief of Staff, a strictly administrative position which would not truly distinguish it from the manner in which Halleck had always treated the job. A facilitator rather than a visionary, Halleck had been an efficient clerk but never a man with a grand strategic plan. Grant had a mixed history with Halleck, first suffering from Halleck's caution, then unfairly persecuted when he began to garner more fame and achievement than his superior. Later they became allies due to their mutual contempt for the scheming political general, John Alexander McClernand.
With Grant now on top he was in a position to repay Halleck for the early mistreatment, but Grant seemed to hold no grudge, viewed Halleck as the most qualified for the post, and had no difficulty working with him for the remainder of the war. In a sense Halleck was an exception to the Peter Principle, he was being demoted to the level of his competence.
A Calm Looking Grant Poses for Mathew Brady. Minutes Before Grant Had Survived A Surprise Glass Shower.
When General Grant traveled to meet with General Meade and be introduced to the Army of the Potomac, everyone was aware that Meade's job was on the line and that Grant would be deciding whether to take personal command of that army, replace Meade with someone else, or leave Meade in place.
Meade was older and had graduated from West Point eight years before Grant, but they had met during the Mexican War. Apart from that brief encounter, Grant knew little about Meade personally, but he did know that the administration thought him overly cautious, not a virtue in their eyes when it appeared to the president and war secretary that the Confederacy was teetering and that one more great blow might topple it completely. While grateful for Meade's victory at Gettysburg, the failure to destroy Lee before he got back across the Potomac, followed by fire and fall back Mine Run Campaign, had marked Meade in the administration's eyes as a repeat of General McClellan, someone unwilling the run the necessary risks. Still, the final decision was in Grant's hands.
After enduring yet another fuss, the official welcome of the Army of the Potomac with bands, parades etc, Meade and Grant held their private meeting. In his memoirs Grant admits that while traveling to the meeting, he was of the mind that Meade would have to be replaced. But Grant was so favorably impressed by Meade's utter absence of political interests, his complete candor about military matters, and his professed willingness to step down if Grant had someone in mind that he thought would be more capable, that Grant changed his mind. Meade's pledge to continue serving the Union cause in whatever capacity Grant deemed appropriate, gave Grant "..even a more favorable opinion of Meade than did his great victory at Gettysburg.
Grant wound up assuring Meade that he had no thought of replacing him and that General Sherman could not be spared from the West. The single catch in all this was that Grant intended to make his headquarters in the field, with the Army of the Potomac, wherever it marched. Meade would be constantly under the eye of his chief.
From all this there eventually arose a viable working relationship.
As for the soldiers of the Army of the Potomac, they were withholding judgment. While aware that Grant had brought victory after victory in the west, they believed that he would find Virginia and General Lee a completely different proposition. The last western general to be brought east to set matters straight had been John Pope and that had resulted in the disaster of Second Bull Run. At least Grant could not be worse than Pope was the general conclusion. For those who managed to get a look at Grant in person while he was there, all sorts of opinions were formed on that superficial basis, but most seemed to agree that Grant was no primadonna, he looked like he meant business.
General Grant wrapped up his conference with General Meade 150 years ago today and boarded a train for Washington. When General Sherman had first learned of Grant's promotion, he had written his congratulations and included a warning...stay out of Washington or you will be hounded to death by the politicians.
Given Grant's natural distaste for all things political, this did not seem like advice he really needed. Whether by personal inclination, or heeding his friend's caution, Grant did not linger. He stayed only long enough to transfer to a train headed for Tennessee and a meeting with Sherman. It would be there, not Washington, where the strategic design for eliminating the rebellion would be crafted.
To date in the war the Federal government had engaged in two incredibly costly army/navy military campaigns which had produced zero strategic results. The first had been General McClellan's Peninsula Campaign, the second was the still ongoing siege of Charleston, and 150 years ago today saw the launch of the third.
This was political general Nathaniel Banks return to field operations. It was the last major effort conceived and approved under General Halleck's time as Commander in Chief, had it been up to Grant it would never have taken place and the troops employed would have been used against Mobile. Further, it was a pet project of President Lincoln.
It was the Red River Campaign with several goals in mind. The first was to capture Shreveport, headquarters for General Kirby Smith's Army of the West. When it fell, Federal authority would be re-established in NW Louisiana, and nearly the entire state under Union control. This was cotton plantation country and the planners envisioned an economic coup by seizing every bale they could find. From there Banks' force would move south along the Sabine, taking control of east Texas down to the Gulf, cutting that state out of the Confederacy.
What made this plan especially appealing to the president was that he was most anxious to establish a US presence in Texas to send a message to the French government. The previous year the French, acting under the justification of unpaid debts, had assaulted Mexico, toppled the government and planted their own puppet on the Mexican throne, Emperor Maximillian. President Davis had quickly offered southern recognition of Maximillian's legitimacy in return for Napoleon III's recognition of the Confederacy. France had not as yet accepted, but it concerned Lincoln greatly. Using the distraction of America's internal war, France was thumbing its nose at the Monroe Doctrine.
Banks expedition would be composed of 35,000 troops, 20,000 of his own Gulf Department men, 5000 from General Steele's Arkansas department, and 10,000 on loan from General Sherman's Army of the Tennessee. Those latter soldiers came with an expiration date, Sherman had made it clear that he would be needing them for his own spring campaign and they were to be returned no later than the end of April.
Escorting the army would be a huge flotilla under Admiral Porter. Ten ironclad gunboats, three river Monitors, eleven tinclad gunboats, a timberclad, a ram and numerous supporting vessels composed the fleet.
To oppose this invasion, Kirby Smith had three small armies presently scattered about a wide area. There were 10,000 under General Richard Taylor at Shreveport, General Sterling price commanded 11,000 in Arkansas, and the theatrical Prince John Magruder, late of General Lee's army following the disaster at Malvern Hill, led 15,000 cavalrymen in Texas. As it would turn out, Taylor would handle the bulk of the fighting without a great deal of help from Smith's other commands.
General Banks' Red River campaign began with a delay, the largest of the river Monitors grounded on a sandbar and took the better part of a day to get free. After that things went well on the military front.
The first defensive obstacle on the river was Fort De Russy in Avoyelles Parish. It represented the most forward of General Taylor's outposts. Upon learning of the immense size of the combined force coming against him, Taylor decided to pull back and leave a token force of 315 men to defend De Russy.
150 years ago in the early evening, General Mower's division of the 16th Corps was sent forward and they easily swept away the defenders, capturing the entire garrison as well as the only heavy guns possessed by Taylor's army. There were fifty Union casualties.
Not present for any of the action was General Banks. He had devoted the entirety of the day aboard a steamboat filled with cotton speculators who Banks had arranged to purchase the confiscated bales as the expedition progressed. The speculators were furious, Banks had no cotton to sell to them because the navy had been beating the army to it. Arriving first at the wharfs and docks along the river, Porter's sailors had grabbed everything in sight. They were far more motivated than the soldiers to make these captures because unlike the army, half of the proceeds from the sale of the contraband went back to the officers and crew of the capturing vessel. Banks stood to gain the political support of some wealthy cotton dealers, but that was of no benefit, nor was a motivation, for his troops.
Porter was disinclined to anger his fleet by remedying this situation in Banks' favor. He made comments to the effect that Banks should have been spending more time paying attention to his military duties and less time trying to make political hay with cotton merchants. Banks took offense and the army/navy relationship turned rather chilly and less cooperative.
Storming Fort DeRussy..Looks More Heroic Than It Was Since It Was 5000 Attackers VS 315
Defenders
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