Stuart, George Hume

George Hughes Stewart was born on August 24, 1828 in Baltimore , in a family of Scottish descent. The eldest of nine sons in the family, he grew up in a family estate known as Maryland Square, which was located near the intersection of modern Baltimore Street and Monroe Street. The Stuarts were large planters, active supporters of the institution of slavery, and there was a long tradition of military service in their family. George was the son of Major General George H. Stuart and Anna Erundel Conti (often confused with his father). Major General Stuart led the Maryland militia during the 1812 war, and after the war, commanded the First Light Division of Maryland Volunteers. The Baltimore people called the Stuarts “Old General” and “Young General”. Stuart Sr. in 1842 owned 2,000 acres of land and 150 slaves.

On July 1, 1844, Stuart entered West Point Military Academy, and graduated from it on July 1, 1848, 37th in academic achievement. He was identified as interim second lieutenant in the 2nd Dragoon Regiment ^[2] . The regiment fought against the Indians and Stuart served in the Jefferson Barracks in Missouri, and in 1849 he served on the border at Fort Leavenworth (Kansas) and participated in an expedition to the Rocky Mountains, on November 11, 1849 received the permanent rank of second lieutenant. March 3, 1855 became the first lieutenant of the regular army, and December 20, 1855 received the rank of captain of the 1st cavalry regiment. He participated in the Cheyenne expedition in 1856 and in the Mormon Wars of 1857-1858, as well as in the expedition against the Comanches in 1860.

On January 14, 1858, he married Maria Kinzy. They met in Kansas and after the wedding lived in Fort Levenworth. They had two daughters - Maria (1860-) and Anna (1864-).

Although Maryland remained part of the Federation, Stuart's sympathies were on the south side. In April 1861, he commanded the Baltimore city militia, just in those days when federal troops occupied the city. In a letter to his father, Stuart wrote:

“I felt nothing but disgust, watching during my journey these crazy enthusiasm for the Union ... It seems that we are doomed to march along with these troops that have captured our staff and survive all the consequences of the occupation.”

On April 16, 1861, he quit the federal army and joined the Confederate army with the rank of captain of the cavalry. His father, a major in the federal army, did the same, despite his age (he was 71 years old). This decision cost the Stuarts dearly: the feds confiscated his family home and on May 25, 1862, he was turned into a hospital. Stuart was hailed in the South as "one of Maryland's most gifted sons," and his deed generated hope that other Marylandians would follow suit.

First Bull Run

Soon, Stuart became a lieutenant colonel of the newly formed 1st Maryland Infantry Regiment, which was part of the Arnold Elzie brigade in the Shenandoah Army . This team last participated in the first battle of Bull Run . At the end of the battle, General Edmund Kirby Smith personally led the brigade, replacing Elsie as commander of the 1st Maryland Regiment, but he was soon injured, Elsie again led the brigade, and Stuart the regiment. The brigade went to Chinn Branch Creek and opened fire on two federal regiments: Colonel Whiting's 2nd Vermont Regiment and Colonel Berry's 4th Michigan Regiment. Elzie's brigade forced the enemy to retreat from the hill and occupied the hill itself. This was the last battle of that battle ^[3] .

After the battle, Elsie received the rank of general, and Stuart was promoted to colonel. Soon he earned a reputation as a lover of discipline and a supporter of tough control measures. They said that he personally checked the vigilance of his sentries, sneaking past their posts. These measures soon affected the combat effectiveness and morale of his regiment. Major Goldsboro, who served in his regiment near Gettysburg, later wrote: “It was not just a love for the cleanliness of the camp, but also a real desire for a healthy and comfortable existence for his people. He was persistent in his sanitary requirements, and you could object to him in anything, but not in that. ” George Wilson Booth, who served in a regiment near Harpers Ferry, later wrote in his memoirs: "In his capable hands, this regiment soon became the pride of the army and glorified Maryland in the whole South."

Shenandoah Campaign and First Winchester

On March 6, 1862, Stuart was promoted to brigadier general and received a brigade in the division of Major General Richard Ewell , with whom he took part in the campaign in the Shenandoah Valley . On May 24, Jackson gave Stuart two cavalry regiments - the 2nd and 6th Virgin Cavalry. In the First Battle of Winchester on May 25, 1862, the federal army was defeated and began to retreat. There were all conditions for the persecution, but Jackson could not find his cavalry. Jackson sent lieutenant Pendleton in search of Stuart, and he finally gave Stuart orders to pursue Banks' retreating infantry, but Stuart refused to obey orders and began to wait for orders from his immediate superior, General Ewell . Pendleton eventually found Ewell, who, surprised, gave the same order of persecution. Still, Stuart overtook the enemy and took many prisoners.

The reasons for Stuart's slowness are still not very clear. Jackson did not condemn his actions in any way, despite the fact that he was generally a supporter of strict discipline. Perhaps his gentleness is due to the fact that Stuart was a kind of “face of Maryland,” and in the south they tried not to spoil relations with the Maryland, hoping to lure them to their side.

On June 2, shortly after the battle, an unpleasant incident occurred: the 2nd Virginia Cavalry Regiment was mistakenly fired upon by the 27th Virginia Infantry Regiment. Colonels Thomas Flornow and Thomas Manford came to General Ewell and asked to transfer the regiments under the control of Turner Ashby , who had just been promoted to Brigadier General. Ewell agreed and turned to Jackson for confirmation. Jackson gave his consent and Stewart served in the infantry until the end of the war.

Cross Case Battle

At the Battle of Cross Case (June 8, 1862), Stewart commanded the 1st Maryland Regiment, which was attacked by superior enemy forces, but resisted. However, Stuart was badly wounded in the shoulder with shrapnel and carried out of the battlefield. His collarbone was damaged, the treatment was unsuccessful, and only in August was it possible to extract a piece of shrapnel. As a result, Stuart could not participate in the battles until May 1863. Thus, ironically, he did not participate in the Maryland campaign .

Gettysburg Campaign

After recovering and returning to the army, Stewart was appointed commander of the 3rd Brigade (numbering 2,200 people) in the division of Edward Johnson . The former division commander, General Rayleigh Colston , was removed from command by General Lee, who was disappointed by his actions at the Battle of Chancellorsville . The brigade consisted of six regiments:

• 1st Maryland Battalion: Sub. James Herbert
• 1st North Carolina Regiment : Sub. Hamilton Brown
• 3rd North Carolina Regiment : May. William Parsley
• 10th Virgin Regiment : Regiment. Edward warren
• 23rd Virgin Regiment : Sub. Simon Walton
• 37th Virgin Regiment : May. Henry Wood

Competition between the regiments of different states was becoming a problem, and Lee hoped that Stuart would be able to restore order to the divisions. In addition, at this stage of the war, General Lee experienced an acute shortage of experienced commanders. Stewart had commanded a regiment only a month before the Gettysburg campaign began .

In June 1863, Lee's army entered Maryland and transferred the war to the Union for the second time. Stewart is said to have jumped off a horse and kissed the ground. One of his officers wrote: “We loved Maryland, we felt that he was being held in the Union against his will, and we were eager to free him.” The offensive at first went well. In the second battle of Winchester (June 13-15), Stuart fought in Johnson’s division and did a lot for the victory of the Confederation, capturing about 1,000 enemy soldiers captured, with relatively small losses - 9 killed and 34 wounded.

Gettysburg

At the Battle of Gettysburg, Stuart had to storm Culps Hill . His men arrived on the battlefield in the evening of July 1st, they had just made a transition 210 kilometers from Sharpsberg itself, many of whom were barefoot. The brigade was thrown into battle at night, they attacked the height of Small Culps Hill, but were able to occupy only part of the federal fortifications. On the morning of July 3rd, federal artillery opened heavy fire at the positions of the Stuart brigade from a distance of 500 meters. The brigade had to withstand many hours of enemy attacks, it almost used up ammunition, but kept its position. In the afternoon, General Johnson ordered a frontal bayonet attack on enemy positions. Stuart strongly opposed, but was forced to obey. With the help of several regiments, he attacked the positions of three federal brigades. The losses were huge. Johnson's entire division lost about 2,000 people, of which about 700 belonged to the Stewart brigade. Later, on July 8, there were 1,200 people in the brigade - out of 2,200 of its original composition. In ten hours of battle, the 2nd Maryland and 3rd North Carolina regiments lost about half or even two-thirds of their composition.

Although the brigade bravely fought under difficult conditions, not one of its officers was mentioned by Johnson in his report.

Mine Run

Wilderness and Spotsilvaini

In the summer of 1864, Stuart participated in the Battle of the Wilderness , where his brother, Lieutenant William James Stuart (1832-1864), died from wounds. Stewart again fought in the Johnson division, which held the center of the defensive line of General Ewell's corps. Stuart led his North Carolian infantry regiment to attack the New Yorkers, inflicting damage to them in about 600 people.

A few days later, during the Battle of Spotsilvaini (May 8-21), Stuart was captured along with most of his brigade when he defended a position known as the “horseshoe mule”. This site was located in the center of the defense line of General Lee's army, strategically important, but open to attacks from three sides. On the night of May 11, the command withdrew artillery from this section, suggesting that Grant would not repeat the attack on this section. Stewart noticed the enemy’s preparations and asked Johnson to return the artillery. However, shortly before dawn on May 12, federal forces in three divisions (from Hancock’s corps) launched an attack on the “horseshoe mule” in dense fog, taking the enemy by surprise. The defenders were exhausted, suffering from poor food, the artillery did not support them and the gunpowder was wet during the night rain, so the attack of superior enemy forces was successful and the Virginia brigade ceased to exist. After hand-to-hand fighting, Stuart was forced to surrender to the colonel of the 148th Pennsylvania regiment, James Bever. Bever asked Stuart, “Where is your sword, sir?” To which the general replied: “You woke us up so early, sir, that I did not have time to put it on.” Stuart was taken to General Hancock , who met in Washington Mary, Stuart's wife, and wanted to tell her the news about her husband. Hancock held out his hand, asking, "How are you, Stuart?", But Stuart refused to shake his hand, despite the fact that they were friends before the war. He replied: "Given all the circumstances, General, I refuse to take your hand," to which Hancock is believed to have answered: "And under all other circumstances, General, I will not offer it to you." After this scene, the insulted Hancock sent Stuart to the rear along with the rest of the prisoners.

After the battle, Stuart was sent to Charleston and ended up in jail on Hilton Head Island , where he and other officers were bombarded by confederate artillery. Spotsilweini was the end of his brigade. Johnson's division, which before the battle totaled 6,800, has now been reduced to one brigade. On May 14, the Walker, Jones, and Stuart brigades were brought together into one small brigade under the command of Colonel Terry from the 4th Virgin Regiment.

Petersburg and Appomatox

Stuart was released on an exchange in late summer 1864 and again began to command the brigade of the North Virginia Army - in the division of General Pickett . Now his brigade consisted of the 9th, 14th, 38th, 53rd and 57th Virgin Regiments. During the siege of Petersberg, they defended trenches north of the James River.

He commanded a brigade in the same division during the Appomatox Campaign , at the Battle of Live Fox and at the Battle of Cylers Creek . Under Fire Fox, General Pickett was distracted by fishing, leaving Stuart as commander - just at the time of the major federal attack, when Sheridan threw nearly 30,000 people against 10,000 Pickett’s division. The consequences were worse than with Spotsilvaini - almost 5,000 people were captured.

Stuart continued to fight until the very end, until he was surrounded with General Lee at Appomatox on April 9, 1865. His brigade was among the last 22 brigades of General Lee - all that remained of the original 146 brigades.

After the war, Stuart returned to Maryland, swore allegiance to the Union and began farming on Mount Stewart's farm near Edgewater. He also served as commander of the Maryland Division in the Confederation Veterans Union (UCV). He died at the age of 75 on the South River after a long illness. He is buried in the Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore with his wife Maria, who died three years later, in 1906. He left two daughters - Maria and Anna. Since Maryland basically remained loyal to the Union, it is not surprising that the monument to Stuart was never erected in his home state.

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