Benjamin Huger (General)

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Benjamin Huger

Benjamin Huger (born November 22, 1805 in Charleston , South Carolina ; † December 7, 1877 there ) was an officer in the US Army and major general in the Confederate Army during the Civil War .

Birth and education

Huger was born into a prominent southern family in South Carolina, and his ancestors included Major General Thomas Pinckney .

In 1821 he was appointed to the US Military Academy West Point , New York and graduated on July 1, 1825 as the eighth of his class. He became a lieutenant in the 3rd US Artillery Regiment .

US officer

From 1828 to 1830 Huger visited Europe, after which he commanded the arsenal Fort Monroe , Virginia (1832–39, 1841–46, 1848–51) with interruptions . Commands at the depots in Harpers Ferry and Pikesville , Maryland followed.

For his achievements in the war against Mexico in the siege of Veracruz and the storming of Chapultepec , he was promoted to Brevet Lieutenant Colonel.

In November 1860, Huger was instructed to take command of the Charleston Arsenal. In this capacity he negotiated with Major Robert Anderson at Fort Sumter and tried to secure a surrender. On April 12th, he participated in the artillery attack on the fort.

CS general

On April 22, 1861, Huger resigned from the US Army; on March 16, he was taken over as a lieutenant colonel in the regular Confederate army. On June 17th he became Brigadier General of the Volunteers and on October 7th Major General.

Norfolk

From May 1861 to June 1862 he commanded the military district around Norfolk and failed to send the requested reinforcements to his subordinate Brigadier General Henry A. Wise . Then Roanoke Island, defended by Wise, fell to the Union; Huger had to evacuate Norfolk and move his command to Petersburg , Virginia, where he commanded the short-lived Appomattox Defense District.

The seaport of Norfolk, including the shipyards and factories, remained under the control of the USA until the end of the war, and Secretary of War Judah Philip Benjamin and Huger were confronted with serious allegations on the part of Confederate politics.

Peninsular campaign

In June, Huger served as division commander under the command of James Longstreets during the peninsula campaign at the Battle of Seven Pines . Associations of the Longtreets division hindered Huger's advance, but Longstreet accused Huger of default and mentioned him negatively in the battle report. Huger therefore asked to be brought before a court martial.

Trans Mississippi Department

After the Battle of Malvern Hill , Huger was released from active field command and appointed inspector of artillery and supplies for the Northern Virginia Army . On August 26, 1862, he was transferred to the Trans-Mississippi Military Area on the same post; from July 1863 he was responsible for all military supplies and held this post until the surrender in 1865.

After the military career

Benjamin Huger worked as a farmer in Virginia and North Carolina after the Civil War . He is buried in Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore , Maryland .

Trivia

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f John H. Eicher, David J. Eicher: Civil War high commands , Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3 , p. 308
  2. ^ A b Edward S. Cooper: Traitors: the Secession period, November 1860-July 1861 , Associated University Presse, 2008, ISBN 0-8386-4144-X , p. 152
  3. ^ Benjamin Huger - Vice President: 1852–1867. aztecclub.com, June 15, 2006, accessed March 30, 2015 .
  4. ^ A. Wilson Greene: Civil War Petersburg: Confederate city in the crucible of war , University of Virginia Press, 2006, ISBN 0-8139-2570-3 , p. 88
  5. ^ Robert N. Rosen: The Jewish Confederates , Univ. of South Carolina Press, 2000, ISBN 1-5700-3363-3 , p. 72f
  6. ↑ John H. Eicher, David J. Eicher: Civil War high commands , p. 72
  7. ^ Tomb of Benjamin Huger in the database of Find a Grave (English).
personal data
SURNAME Huger, Benjamin
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Major General in the Confederate Army
DATE OF BIRTH November 22, 1805
PLACE OF BIRTH Charleston , South Carolina
DATE OF DEATH December 7, 1877
Place of death Charleston , South Carolina