Banks nathaniel

From 1849 to 1853, Banks served as a representative of the Democratic Party in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and was speaker in 1851 and in 1852. In 1853 he was president of the state constitutional council, and in the same year he was elected to the US House of Representatives as a general candidate from the Democrats and from the Free Land Party . In 1854 he was re-elected as a representative from the party " Know Nothing ".

When the civil war broke out, President Lincoln was one of the first to make Banks a major general of volunteers, conferring on him this rank on May 16, 1861. At that time there was a conviction that the Massachusetts militia was the best organized and equipped, and this influenced its purpose. This caused dissatisfaction with many generals - graduates of the military academy, but Banks quickly showed himself from a good side, managing to quickly recruit recruits and raise funds for the war. Initially, Banks was sent to Annapolis, in the slave-owning state of Maryland , where he had to crush supporters of the Confederation and keep him in the Union, and then he was sent to Potomac, where it was at this time that General Robert Patterson failed the offensive in the Shenandoah Valley.

Shenandoa Valley Campaign

In the spring of 1862, the federal commander-in-chief was planning an invasion of the Virginia Peninsula. To this end, five army corps were formed in March, and the fifth corps, consisting of Williams and Shields divisions, was entrusted to Banks and sent to the Shenandoah Valley to bind General Jackson’s army and prevent Richmond from coming to help. March 12, Banks took Winchester, but soon it was decided to send his division to the Virginia peninsula. Jackson attacked the retreating army of Banks. The first battle ( at Kernstown ) was unsuccessful for Jackson, but his maneuvers disturbed the federal command and Banks was ordered to remain in the valley. On May 8, Jackson defeated two Banks subordinates in the Battle of Buckhuell , and this forced Banks to begin a retreat. Jackson caught up and defeated his squad in the first battle of Winchester . Jason's rapid maneuvers thwarted the plans of the federal command and made him the most famous general of the South.

On August 9, Banks met Jackson again at the Cedar River in Culpeper County. Banks attacked the enemy but, despite initial success, was forced to retreat.

In the Gulf Army

After the defeat in the second battle of Bul-Rane, the federal army retreated to the fortifications of Washington. September 7, Banks was appointed commander of the Washington district and until October 27, led the defense of Washington. In November, he was asked to organize the recruitment of 30,000 new recruits in New York and New England . Banks had good connections with the governors of these states, so the set was successful. In December, he sailed from New York to the Gulf of Mexico to replace General Benjamin Butler, Department of the Gulf in New Orleans

• Banks, Nathaniel-Prentice // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : 86 tons (82 tons and 4 extras). - SPb. , 1890-1907.

• Brief biography of Banks (Eng.)
• Reports Banks May-June 1862 (English)