George McClellan Birth of the USA American Constitution American Independence War Causes of the American Revolution Democratic Republican Party General Thomas Gage biography Intolerable Acts Loyalists Powers of the President Quebec Act Seven Years' War Stamp Act Tea Party Cold War Battle of Dien Bin Phu Brezhnev Doctrine Brezhnev Era The testing of battle uncovered another McClellan failing - his management of his own generals. [18] In March 1855, McClellan was promoted to captain and assigned to the 1st U.S. Cavalry regiment. [85] I feel I have done all that can be asked in twice saving the country. [90] McClellan's administration was marked by caution and conservatism. [111], The Fire Department of New York operated a fireboat named George B. McClellan from 1904 to 1954. In June 1851, he was ordered to Fort Delaware, a masonry work under construction on an island in the Delaware River, forty miles (65km) downriver from Philadelphia. The first major battle, at Mechanicsville, was poorly coordinated by Lee and his subordinates and resulted in heavy casualties for little tactical gain. Lincoln won the election handily, with 212 Electoral College votes to 21, and a popular vote of 2,218,388 to 1,812,807 or 55% to 45%. An English observer remarked that it was the "stride of a giant". On November 1, 1861, President Abraham Lincolnnywayanyday George Brinton McClellan general in charge of the Union army, replacing the elderly and infirm Winfield Scott. In doing so, Lee had assumed that the Union army would withdraw to the east toward its existing supply base and McClellan's move to the south delayed Lee's response for at least 24 hours. George Brinton McClellan was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th Governor of New Jersey. He reported to Washington that he faced 200,000 Confederates, perhaps due to a false report on the arrival of another Confederate army P.G.T. George McClellan was a U.S. Army engineer, railroad president and politician who served as a major general during the Civil War. Despite his successes and lucrative salary ($10,000 per year), he was frustrated with civilian employment and continued to study classical military strategy assiduously. The surprise appearance of Maj. Gen. Stonewall Jackson's troops in the battle (when they had last been reported to be many miles away in the Shenandoah Valley) convinced McClellan that he was even more outnumbered than he had thought. [99], There is indeed ample evidence that the terrible stresses of commanding men in battle, especially the beloved men of his beloved Army of the Potomac, left his moral courage in tatters. Place Of Burial: Trenton, NJ. A brilliant engineer and a great organizer, McClellan created the Army of the Potomac, the Union's . Despite significant advantages in manpower, McClellan was unable to concentrate his forces effectively, which meant that Lee was able to shift his defenders to parry each of three Union thrusts, launched separately and sequentially against the Confederate left, center, and finally the right. General McClellan and President Abraham Lincoln developed a mutual distrust, and McClellan was privately derisive of Lincoln. McClellan wired to Washington, "Our victory was complete. [1], McClellan's first assignment was with a company of engineers formed at West Point, but he quickly received orders to sail for the Mexican War. Glendale and Malvern Hill found him at the peak of his anguish during the Seven Days, and he fled those fields to escape the responsibility. Unlike some of his fellow Union officers who came from abolitionist families, he was opposed to federal interference with slavery. George B. McClellan, portrait by Mathew Brady, 1861. [22], At the start of the Civil War, McClellan's knowledge of what was called "big war science" and his railroad experience suggested he might excel at military logistics. It was the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. [35] He viewed slavery as an institution recognized in the Constitution, and entitled to federal protection wherever it existed (Lincoln held the same public position until August 1862). McClellan's son, George B. McClellan Jr. (18651940), was born in Dresden in the Kingdom of Saxony during the family's first trip to Europe. George B. McClellan was a prominent nineteenth-century American military and political leader. By August 19, he estimated 150,000 rebel soldiers on his front. Davis, Jefferson, and McClellan, George B. Leigh, Philip "Lee's Lost Dispatch and Other Civil War Controversies". The War Department was reluctant to publish his report because, just after completing it in October 1863, McClellan openly declared his entrance to the political stage as a Democrat. [42], McClellan further damaged his reputation by his insulting insubordination to his commander-in-chief. Yet this halting between two opinions had the result that, when he had abandoned the purpose of making the turning movement, it had become too late for him to make a direct attack." That fall, for example, Confederate forces ranged from 35,000 to 60,000, whereas the Army of the Potomac in September numbered 122,000 men; in early December 170,000; by year end, 192,000. (1826-1885) George B. McClellan was a major general in the Union army during the American Civil War (1861-1865). On March 8, doubting McClellan's resolve, Lincoln again interfered with the army commander's prerogatives. Lincoln, Stanton, and a group of officers who formed the "War Board" directed the strategic actions of the Union armies that spring. [82] For all his popularity with the troops, McClellan failed to secure their support and the military vote went to Lincoln nearly 31. The class of '46 contributed 20 generals to the Union and Confederate armies. "[63] Lee had gambled on removing significant units from the Peninsula to attack Pope, who was beaten decisively at Second Bull Run in August. With the outbreak of the Civil War in April 1861, northern civilian leaders encouraged McClellan to re-enter federal military service. At Antietam, where there was nowhere for him to flee to, he fell into a paralysis of indecision. However, he died before it was half completed and his literary executor, William C. Prime, editor of the pro-McClellan New York Journal of Commerce, included excerpts from some 250 of McClellan's wartime letters to his wife, in which it had been his habit to reveal his innermost feelings and opinions in unbridled fashion. Ellen accepted Hill's proposal in 1856, but her family did not approve and he withdrew. For the first time, he revealed his intentions to transport the Army of the Potomac by ship to Urbanna, Virginia, on the Rappahannock River, outflanking the Confederate forces near Washington, and proceeding 50 miles (80km) overland to capture Richmond. Although McClellan was assuaged by supportive comments Lincoln made to him, in time he saw the change of command very differently, describing it as a part of an intrigue "to secure the failure of the approaching campaign".[48]. Dec 3, 1826 - Oct 29, 1885. First, McClellan proponents say that because the general was a conservative Democrat with great personal charisma, radical Republicans fearing his political potential deliberately undermined his field operations. [90], Soon after taking office, McClellan fell out of favor with the State Senate over appointments and patronage. Such a villain as he is ought to bring defeat upon any cause that employs him. [113], 1864 Democratic National Convention:[114], New Jersey gubernatorial election, 1877:[115], "George McClellan" redirects here. [90], Most likely due to his personal popularity and celebrity, McClellan's inauguration was held outdoors to accommodate the large crowd. [107] And fourth, that Lincoln and Stanton deliberately undermined McClellan because of his conciliatory stance towards the South, which might have resulted in a less destructive end to the war had Richmond fallen as a result of the Peninsula Campaign. Her father was of English origin, while her mother was Pennsylvania Dutch. There is no man in the Army who can man these fortifications and lick these troops of ours into shape half as well as he. McClellan blamed the story on "a set of scoundrels, who seek to keep up agitation on the frontier in order to get employment from the Govt. When he discovered that the Confederates had fortified a line across the Peninsula he hesitated to attack and instead played it safe. Was general george b mcclellan union or confederate? McClellan assessed local defensive capabilities for the secretary. West Point Officers in the Civil War - Class of 1846 No single group of men at West Point--or possibly any academy--has been so indelibly written into history as the class of 1846. As Lee recounted, McClellan was attempting to make "this a battle of posts" which would lock the Confederate army in an attritional battle with superior Union firepower. [65] McClellan's reception in Frederick, Maryland, as he marched towards Lee's army, was described by the correspondent for Harper's Magazine: The General rode through the town on a trot, and the street was filled six or eight deep with his staff and guard riding on behind him. It contained two alternatives, each envisioning a prominent role for himself as commander. An English observer remarked that it was the "stride of a giant." McClellan organized and led the Union army in the Peninsula Campaign in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862. A graduate of West Point, McClellan served with distinction during the MexicanAmerican War (18461848), and later left the Army to serve as an executive and engineer on railroads until the outbreak of the American Civil War (18611865). Traveling widely, and interacting with the highest military commands and royal families, McClellan observed the siege of Sevastopol. In doing so, he demonstrated a tendency for insubordination toward senior political figures. The reason for McClellan's reluctance was that, as in previous battles, he was convinced he was outnumbered. This plan, which would require considerable patience of the Northern public, was derided in newspapers as the Anaconda Plan, but eventually proved to be the outline of the successful prosecution of the war. He quickly realized that he had overstepped his bounds and apologized by letter to President Lincoln. He wrote a letter to Gen. Scott on April 27, four days after assuming command in Ohio, that presented the first proposal for a strategy for the war. McClellan revised his plans to have his troops disembark at Fort Monroe, Virginia, and advance up the Virginia Peninsula to Richmond, an operation that would be known as the Peninsula Campaign. His administration stressed the necessity of education in the conversion of unskilled labor to skilled labor and in industrial development generally by expanding the state library and calling for trades training for young men in public schools, as suited for the local economy. In. "[69], At the discovery of the Lost Order, McClellan's Assistant Adjutant General verified the signature and handwriting of the officer who wrote out the order, as he knew him well, so there was no doubt as to its authenticity. George Brinton McClellan (1826-1885) - Born 3 Dec 1826 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The platform called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a negotiated settlement with the Confederacy. Ellen, or Nelly, refused McClellan's first proposal of marriage, one of nine that she received from a variety of suitors, including his West Point friend, A. P. Hill. He discovered that the Confederates had fortified a line across the Peninsula he hesitated to attack and instead it... 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