Charles Clark (politician, 1811)

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Charles Clark

Charles Clark (born May 24, 1811 in Lebanon , Ohio , † December 18, 1877 in Doro , Mississippi ) was Governor of the State of Mississippi and Major General of the Mississippi Militia and Brigadier General of the Confederate States of America in the Civil War .

Life

In 1831, Clark, who was originally from Ohio, moved to Jefferson County , Mississippi, where he practiced law and was involved in politics. For several years he represented the interests of Jefferson County in the Mississippi House of Representatives . During the Mexican-American War from 1846 to 1848 he organized the Thomas Hinds Guards , an infantry company that later became part of the 2nd Mississippi Volunteer Regiment. After the departure of the regimental commander Reuben Davis , Clark was appointed as his successor.

After the war ended, Clark resigned from the military, moved to Bolivar County in Mississippi and continued to work in politics. In 1851 he became a member of the Mississippi Constituent Assembly and opposed secession. As a member of the Whigs , he represented Bolivar County in his state's House of Representatives from 1856 to 1861. When the civil war broke out, he changed his mind about secession and joined the Confederate Army .

1863, after the fall of Vicksburg at the Battle of Vicksburg on May 18–4. July 1863, the population of Mississippi was divided over opinion on the continuation of the war. Clark ran for governor and war advocate. He won the election and took office on November 16, 1863 as the successor to John J. Pettus , which he held until June 13, 1865. On that day he was arrested away from his office by troops of the Union Army and replaced by William L. Sharkey , a well-known judge of his time and a declared anti-secessionist. He spent his imprisonment in Fort Pulaski .

After his release, he went back to Bolivar County, where he resumed his practice as a lawyer. In 1876, after the reconstruction phase was over, he was elected Chancellor of the 4th judicial district. He held this position until his death on December 17, 1877.

literature

  • David J. Eicher: The Civil War in Books: An Analytical Bibliography. University of Illinois, 1997, ISBN 0-252-02273-4 .
  • Richard N. Current: Encyclopedia of the Confederacy. 1993 (4 vol.), ( ISBN 0132759918 )
  • John H. Eicher & David J. Eicher: Civil War High Commands. Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3 .
  • Ezra J. Warner: Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders. Louisiana State University Press, 1959, ISBN 0-8071-0823-5 .

Web links