The FReeper Foxhole Profiles William Tecumseh Sherman - Mar. 29th, 2003

http://www.civilwarhome.com/sherbio.htm ^

[SAMWolf]

Dear Lord,

There's a young man far from home,
called to serve his nation in time of war;
sent to defend our freedom
on some distant foreign shore.

We pray You keep him safe,
we pray You keep him strong,
we pray You send him safely home ...
for he's been away so long.

There's a young woman far from home,
serving her nation with pride.
Her step is strong, her step is sure,
there is courage in every stride.
We pray You keep her safe,
we pray You keep her strong,
we pray You send her safely home ...
for she's been away too long.

Bless those who await their safe return.
Bless those who mourn the lost.
Bless those who serve this country well,
no matter what the cost.

Author Unknown

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FReepers from the USO Canteen, The Foxhole, and The Poetry Branch
join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time.

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William Tecumseh Sherman
(1820-1891)

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He never commanded in a major Union victory and his military career had repeated ups and downs, but William T. Sherman is the second best known of Northern commanders. Born on February 8, 1820 in Lancaster, Ohio. His father died when he was nine years old. Widowed and unable to care for the entire family, his mother sent his brother Thomas to be raised by an aunt and William became a foster child to Thomas Ewing, his father's friend. Cump, as he was known, later married Mr. Ewing's daughter, Ellen. Through the influence of his patron, he obtained an appointment to West Point. Only five cadets of the class of 1840 graduated ahead of him, and he was appointed to the artillery. He received a brevet for his services in California during the Mexican War but resigned in 1853 as a captain and commissary officer.

The years until the Civil War were not filled with success. Living in California and Kansas, he failed in banking and the law. In 1859 he seemed to have found his niche as the superintendent of a military academy which is now Louisiana State University. However, he resigned this post upon the secession of the state and went to St. Louis as head of a streetcar company and then volunteered for the Union army.

His assignments included:

• Colonel, 13th Infantry (May 14, 1861)
• Commanding 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, Army of Northeastern Virginia June-August 17, 1861)
• Brigadier General, USV (August 7, 186 1, to rank from May 17)
• Commanding brigade, Division of the Potomac (August 17-28, 1861)
• Second-in-Command, Department of the Cumberland (August 28 - October 8, 1861)
• Commanding the Department (October 8 - November 9, 1861)
• Commanding District of Cairo, Department of the Missouri (February 14 - March 1, 1862)
• Commanding 5th Division, Army of the Tennessee (March 1 - July 21, 1862)
• Major General, USV (May 1, 1862)
• Commanding 5th Division, District of Memphis, Army of the Tennessee July 21 - September 24, 1862)
• Commanding lst Division, District of Memphis, Army of the Tennessee (September 24-October 26, 1862)
• also Commanding the District July 21 - October 26, 1862)
• Commanding District of Memphis, 13th Corps, Army of the Tennessee (October 24 - November 25, 1862)
• Commanding Yazoo Expedition, Army of the Tennessee (December 18, 1862 January 4, 1863)
• Commanding 2nd Corps, Army of the Mississippi January 4-12, 1863)
• Commanding 15th Corps, Army of the Tennessee January 12 - October 29, 1863)
• Brigadier General, USA July 4, 1863)
• Commanding Army and Department of the Tennessee (October 24, 1863 - March 26, 1864)
• Commanding Military Division of the Mississippi (March 18, 1864 - June 27, 1865)
• Major General, USA (August 12, 1864)
• Lieutenant General, USA July 25, 1866)
• General, USA (March 4, 1869)
• Commander-in-Chief, USA (March 8, 1869-November 1, 1883)

Appointed to the colonelcy of one of the regular army's newly authorized infantry regiments, he led the brigade of volunteers of the lst Division which crossed Bull Run to aid the 2nd and 3rd divisions after the attack on the enemy left had begun. Despite being caught up in the route-he already had a low opinion of volunteers-he was named a brigadier general the next month. Briefly commanding a brigade around Washington, he was then sent to Kentucky as deputy to Robert Anderson. He soon succeeded the hero of Fort Sumter in command of the department but got into trouble over his overestimates of the enemy strength. The newspapers actually reported him as being insane.

Removed from command, he was given another chance by his friend Henry W. Halleck in Missouri. But again, while inspecting troops in the central part of the state, he allowed his overactive imagination to run away with him. During the campaign against Forts Henry and Donelson he was stationed at Paducah, Kentucky and charged with forwarding reinforcements to Grant. Forming a good working relationship with the future commander-in-chief, Sherman offered to waive his seniority rights and take a command under him.



Commanding a division, he was largely responsible for the poor state of preparedness at Shiloh but redeemed himself during the defensive fighting of the first day and was wounded. The next day his command played only a minor role. Praised by Grant, he was soon made a major general of volunteers. He was instrumental in persuading Grant to remain in the army during his difficulties with Halleck during the advance on Corinth, Mississippi.

During the early operations against Vicksburg he ordered a doomed assault at Chickasaw Bluffs and a few days later was superseded by John A. McCiernand who accepted Sherman's proposal to attack Arkansas Post. Grant initially criticized this movement as unnecessary but declared it an important achievement when it succeeded and he learned that Sherman had suggested it. Sherman's corps did little fighting in the advance on Vicksburg in May until the disastrous assaults were made.

Following the fall of the river city he was named a brigadier general in the regular army and led an expedition against Jackson. That fall he went to the relief of Chattanooga where he failed to achieve his objectives in the assault against Tunnel Hill at the end of Missionary Ridge. Nonetheless, he was highly praised by Grant who then sent him to relieve the pressure on Burnside at Knoxville, Back in Mississippi, he led the Meridian expedition and then succeeded Grant in overall command in the West, Facing Joseph E. Johnston's army, he forced it all the way back to Atlanta where the Confederate was replaced by John B. Hood who launched three disastrous attacks against the Union troops near the city. Eventually taking possession of Atlanta, Sherman ordered the population evacuated and the military value of the city destroyed. Sending George H. Thomas back to Middle Tennessee to deal with Hood, he embarked on his March to the Sea.


Sherman and his son Thomas, San Francisco, 1865

Taking Savannah, he announced the city as a Christmas gift to the president and the country. Marching north to aid Grant in the final drive against Richmond, he drove through the Carolinas and accepted Johnston's surrender at Durham Station. His terms were considered too liberal and touching upon political matters and they were disapproved by Secretary of War Stanton. This led to a long-running feud between the two. Terms were finally arranged on the basis of the Appomattox surrender.

During the last two campaigns Sherman had earned a reputation for destruction and for the lack of discipline of his troops-his marauding stragglers being known as "Sherman's bummers." Especially resented by Southerners was the burning of Columbia, South Carolina. But there are indications that the fires had spread from cotton set ablaze by the retreating Confederates under Wade Hampton.



On August 12, 1864, Sherman had been promoted to major general in the regular army, and he vacated his volunteer commission. Also, he was the only man to twice receive the Thanks of Congress during the Civil War-first for Chattanooga and second for Atlanta and Savannah. After the war he remained in the service, and was promoted to full general, replacing Grant as commander-in-chief. One of his most important contributions after the war, was the establishment of the Command School at Ft. Leavenworth. He retire from the Army on February 8, 1884.He was noted for his absolute refusal to be drawn into politics. In 1886 he made his home in New York City, where he died on February 14, 1891. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis.

[Colt .45]

"Ten football fields measure 3,000 feet long."

Oops ... my mistake ... shall we say 3 1/2 football fields then. Still is a long way off from the precision achieved now. But the point is dumb bombs aren't precise, as the aiming of the Norden bombsight wasn't precise, there were too many f*cking variables when they bombed. But I never called the pilots war criminals, your buddy Non-Sequiter brought that anology into the fray.

What doesn't change are the way ground troops fight. "Total war" is the same thing today as it was in WW2, the War of Northern Aggression, back unto ancient times ... the killing of non-military as well as legitimate military targets. Why in the name of God, do you think they made the Geneva Convention, the Hauge Convention of 1910, and the Lieber Code of 1863?! To proscribe "acceptable and humane" rules of conduct in warfare! What Sherman did was to go beyond the bounds of those rules of the Lieber Code which strictly forbade making war on civilians. The self same rules that the United States Army and the tyrant Lincoln agreed to in 1863! So stop your damnYankee sanctimonious blathering about "the good soldier" Sherman ... he was a paid arsonist war criminal ... nothing more! he targeted NON-MILITARY CIVILIANS as well as military!

As for your replies about the secessionist being traitors, it shows how obtuse you are about history. I'm quite sure the Founding Fathers' were considered traitors by the British, however we call them patriots! You know the old saying "One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter."

[WhiskeyPapa]

So stop your damnYankee sanctimonious blathering about "the good soldier" Sherman ... he was a paid arsonist war criminal ... nothing more! he targeted NON-MILITARY CIVILIANS as well as military!

You'll not name a single civilian murdered on Sherman's order during the march to the Sea.

You'll find some CSA POW's executed to prevent this type of thing:

"Sir:

"I have the honor to report that I was with the command of Brevet Major- General Burbridge in the attack on Saltville, Va., October 2, 1864, and that I was left with the wounded and was captured October 3, and paroled by Major-General Breckinridge."

"I would state that on Monday morning, October 3, there came to our field hospital several armed men, as I believe soldiers in the Confederate service, and took 5 men, privates, wounded (negroes), and shot them."

"I would further state that on Friday evening, October 7, at Emory and Henry College Hospital, Washington County, Va., to which place our wounded had been removed, several armed men entered the said hospital about 10 p.m. and went up into the rooms occupied by the Federal wounded prisoners, and shot 2 of them (negroes) dead in their beds."

"I would further state that on Saturday, October 8, at Emory and Henry College Hospital, several armed men wearing the Confederate uniform, and, as I believe, soldiers in the Confederate service, entered the same hospital about 4 p.m., overpowered the guard that had been placed there by the surgeon in charge, and went up into the rooms occupied by the Federal wounded prisoners, and shot Lieut. E. C. Smith, Thirteenth Regiment Kentucky Cavalry, dead in his bed, where he lay severely wounded. They at the same time called out for the other Federal officers confined there, particularly Colonel Hanson, Thirty- Seventh Regiment Kentucky Volunteers, and Captain Degenfeld, Twelfth Ohio Cavalry, swearing that they intended to kill all of them; and I believe that they were only prevented doing so by the exertions of Surgeon Murfree, the surgeon in charge, the steward, Mr. Acres, and the other attendants of the hospital. I would also further state that Surgeon Murfree, the other surgeons, and the hospital attendants did all in their power, even at the risk of their lives, to prevent the perpetration of these outrages; and that they assisted in removing Colonel Hanson and Captain Degenfeld, as well as myself, to a place of safety."

"I would further state that we left about 70 of our wounded prisoners in the said hospital, and that I have been informed that these outrages have been perpetuated on them since we left there."

"Respectfully, your obedient servant, WM. H. GARDNER, Surgeon, Thirtieth Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Infantry"

[Source: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Vol. XXXIX, Part I, pp. 554-555.]

"Upon the capture of Plymouth by the rebel forces all the negroes found in blue uniform, or with any outward signs of a Union soldier upon him, was killed. I saw some taken into the woods and hung. Others I saw stripped of all their clothing and then stood upon the bank of the river with their faces riverward and there they were shot. Still others were killed by having their brains beaten out by the butt end of the muskets in the hands of the rebels. All were not killed the day of the capture. Those that were not were placed in a room with their officers, they (the officers) having previously been dragged through the town with ropes around their necks, where they were kept confined until the following morning, when the remainder of the black soldiers were killed."

"The regiments most conspicuous in these murderous transactions were the Eighth North Carolina and, I think, the Sixth North Carolina."

"SAMUEL (his x mark) JOHNSON. Witnessed by John L. Davenport, lieutenant and acting aide-de-camp. Sworn and subscribed to before me this 11th day of July, 1864. John Cassels, Captain and Provost- Marshal."

[Source: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series II, Vol. VII, pp. 459-460.]

You'll find nothing in the record like this regarding General Sherman or his men.

Walt

[WhiskeyPapa]

"Total war" is the same thing today as it was in WW2, the War of Northern Aggression, back unto ancient times ... the killing of non-military as well as legitimate military targets.

"Total War" as a concept pretty much includes warring on the civilians only since civilians could actively aid operations, and that by being the "backers-up" of war by working in war factories or whatever. Wars in the past typically have not involved "Regime Change" the way total war does now. When the Goths were sacking Rome, that wasn't total war, and it wasn't total war when Napoloen was attacking Russia. You might call the Punic Wars total war, but even that didn't involve warring on the people the way we've seen it since Sherman's time.

I'm sure you are aware that Hood planned to cross into Kentucky and practice some depredations of his own, but this pie-in-the-sky went wrong when he met a Virginian named Thomas.

Walt

[Godebert]

"I'd vote for Gore again over Bush jr. It was a no-brainer that if Junior was elected, we'd have Senior running things, and I bet he is. Surely no one thinks that Junior has enough brains to get all this rolling. Cheney and Powell are going to run the war -- to clean up the mess they made 12 years ago."---Whiskey Papa

Jim Robinson still letting you hang around, eh?

[WhiskeyPapa]

[Godebert]

Whiskey Papa on why he voted for Al Gore----post #19

[Non-Sequitur]

What Sherman did was to go beyond the bounds of those rules of the Lieber Code which strictly forbade making war on civilians.

Where does it say that? Lieber code

[stand watie]

obviously YOU. as i've said before, you can't stand being WRONG!

furthermore, in your world, NO damnedyankee was EVER less than honorable,was ever hatefilled,self-righteous OR filth.

in the real world the bluebellies did MANY atrocities.

BTW, when are you going to admit that at least 15,000 CSA POWs were MURDERED in coldblood by those "oh, so wonderful & oh, so saintly" federals at just ONE yankee DEATH CAMP?

free dixie,sw

[Non-Sequitur]

BTW, when are you going to admit that at least 15,000 CSA POWs were MURDERED in coldblood by those "oh, so wonderful & oh, so saintly" federals at just ONE yankee DEATH CAMP?

Those were the 15,000 that were deliberately drowned by those devil Yankee guards? Those that weren't shot in the back of the head, of course. I'll admit it when evidence is shown it happened. I suppose that evidence is available at the Lawrence History Museum, too? I'll have to look it up. </sarcasm>

[stand watie]

NO EVIDENCE will convince YOU, as you want to defend the INDEFENSIBLE.

in the world you live in, all the damnyankee war criminals were "honorable", no matter what the historical record says.

and all of the CSA soldiers, sailors & marines were dishonorable, because we southrons wanted to be FREE!

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

thanks for posting your SELF-portrait. nice pants!

that's the first baby picture i've ever seen of a scalawag.

and to think all this time, i thought you'd look like a grown-up fool.

free dixie,sw

[Non-Sequitur]

NO EVIDENCE will convince YOU, as you want to defend the INDEFENSIBLE.

I'm still waiting for verifiable evidence of any kind from you.

[stand watie]

what exactly WOULD you accept???

do i have to take you to the site and let the ranger hand you numerous SKULLS with nearly identical .36 caliber holes in the right rear?

would you believe THEN?

my guess is NO to that too. you'd think up SOME REASON to say we rebs are wrong about that too.

those who don't want to believe, will do ANYTHING to continue to deny. damnyankees remind me of the post-WW2 german generation who are DESPERATELY trying to deny the Holocaust.

the post-WW2 deniers look STUPID, but no more so than the damnyankee REVISIONISTS.

free dixie,sw

[Non-Sequitur]

do i have to take you to the site and let the ranger hand you numerous SKULLS with nearly identical .36 caliber holes in the right rear?

Yeah, that would be a start. Especially since the most commonly issued sidearm in the Union army was a .44 caliber Colt or Remington revolver. The .36 caliber Navy Colt was more predominant in the southern army. Maybe they were suicides?

[stand watie]

the GUARDS at PLPOWC were issued .36 caliber Navy Colt's revolvers, shotguns & obsolete .69 caliber rifled (and evidently some smooth-bore muskets too, as some have been dug up on the grounds) muskets.

when you are guarding/abusing/torturing/murdering DEFENSELESS POWs, most any weapon will do. even a rock.

FRee dixie,sw

[Non-Sequitur]

the GUARDS at PLPOWC were issued .36 caliber Navy Colt's revolvers, shotguns & obsolete .69 caliber rifled (and evidently some smooth-bore muskets too, as some have been dug up on the grounds) muskets

How convenient. I would ask for your supporting evidence but I'm sure it'll be some uncheckable, possibly ficticious source. BTW I thought at one time that you said most of the murdered POWs were drowned? when you are guarding/abusing/torturing/murdering DEFENSELESS POWs, most any weapon will do. even a rock.

Just ask the folks at Andersonville.

[stand watie]

MUCH of the stuff in the Point Lookout State Park Museum was the personal property & US issued property of the guard force, including a LOT of the weapons.

may i gently suggest that you call the museum curator @PLSP and ASK him.

TRUTH is you don't WANT to believe the UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH. accepting the truth will cause you to look at the damnyankee army in a new & MUCH different light;that you can't handle, imVho.

free dixie,sw

[Non-Sequitur]

MUCH of the stuff in the Point Lookout State Park Museum was the personal property & US issued property of the guard force, including a LOT of the weapons.

And no doubt they are part of an organized conspiracy to make sure that the TRUTH about Point Lookout is KEPT AWAY from THE public FOR THEIR OWN GOOD?

[stand watie]

truthfully, i think many people, like you for example KNOW, but do NOT care.

ONLY the desendents of the POWs care a damn. SAD but true.

there are SEVERAL books, including PORTALS TO HELL & TO DIE IN CHICAGO, that are well documented, but ignored.

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

i also know a lot of scholars who know precisely WHO was guilty of the atrocities committed against POWs & innocent civiians BUT have made the INTENTIONAL decision to cover up the TRUTH, for a multiplicity of reasons.

there is furthermore the wish to turn one's face away from such a sad story, on the part of many people. there are others who would sooner not know; it is UNCOMFORTABLE to face the truth.

there is NO conspiracy, just UNCARING & WILLFUL ignorance.

FRee dixie,sw