Hilliard's Legion or Hilliard's Alabama Legion was a Confederate unit which fought in the American Civil War. Unlike most Civil War formations, it was a combined arms force, with infantry, cavalry and artillery components.
On April 24, 1862, Henry Washington Hilliard was made a colonel and authorized to raise a legion, consisting of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Battalions (infantry), 4th Battalion (artillery) and 5th Battalion (cavalry).[1] It was organized in Montgomery, Alabama, on June 25 of that year, with a strength of almost 3000 men.[2] The cavalry battalion eventually was detached and assigned to the 10th Confederate Cavalry Regiment; and Company C, 4th Artillery Battalion, was separated as the Barbour Light Artillery.[3]
The Legion was sent to eastern Tennessee to participate in the ultimately successful siege of Cumberland Gap.[2][4] Hilliard resigned on December 1, 1862.[1] Lieutenant Colonel Jack Thorington, commander of the 1st Battalion, was promoted to colonel and placed in charge.[1] In April 1863, the unit was attached to General Gracie's Brigade and fought in the Battle of Chickamauga, where it suffered heavy losses: 45% of its 902 men.[2] In the 1st Battalion alone, 169 of 239 soldiers were either killed or wounded.[4]
On November 25, the Legion was disbanded at Charleston, Tennessee, and the remaining men reassigned to the 59th and 60th Alabama Regiments.[4] The 2nd Battalion and the 4th Artillery Battalion became the 59th Alabama. Four companies of the 1st Battalion and the 3rd Battalion became the 60th Alabama, and the remaining three companies of the 1st Battalion became the 23rd Alabama Battalion Sharpshooters.[5]
hilliard, legion, hilliard, alabama, legion, confederate, unit, which, fought, american, civil, unlike, most, civil, formations, combined, arms, force, with, infantry, cavalry, artillery, components, hilliard, alabama, legion, flagactivejune, 1862, november, 1. Hilliard s Legion or Hilliard s Alabama Legion was a Confederate unit which fought in the American Civil War Unlike most Civil War formations it was a combined arms force with infantry cavalry and artillery components Hilliard s Alabama LegionHilliard s Legion FlagActiveJune 25 1862 to November 25 1863Country Confederate States of AmericaAllegiance AlabamaBranch Confederate States ArmyTypeCombinedEngagementsCumberland GapBattle of ChickamaugaSiege of ChattanoogaCommandersColonelHenry W HilliardColonelA H BradfordColonelJack Thorington Charles Horton Morgan who enlisted as a private in Co A 1st Battalion Hilliard s Legion Contents 1 History 2 See also 3 Further reading 4 ReferencesHistory editOn April 24 1862 Henry Washington Hilliard was made a colonel and authorized to raise a legion consisting of the 1st 2nd and 3rd Battalions infantry 4th Battalion artillery and 5th Battalion cavalry 1 It was organized in Montgomery Alabama on June 25 of that year with a strength of almost 3000 men 2 The cavalry battalion eventually was detached and assigned to the 10th Confederate Cavalry Regiment and Company C 4th Artillery Battalion was separated as the Barbour Light Artillery 3 The Legion was sent to eastern Tennessee to participate in the ultimately successful siege of Cumberland Gap 2 4 Hilliard resigned on December 1 1862 1 Lieutenant Colonel Jack Thorington commander of the 1st Battalion was promoted to colonel and placed in charge 1 In April 1863 the unit was attached to General Gracie s Brigade and fought in the Battle of Chickamauga where it suffered heavy losses 45 of its 902 men 2 In the 1st Battalion alone 169 of 239 soldiers were either killed or wounded 4 On November 25 the Legion was disbanded at Charleston Tennessee and the remaining men reassigned to the 59th and 60th Alabama Regiments 4 The 2nd Battalion and the 4th Artillery Battalion became the 59th Alabama Four companies of the 1st Battalion and the 3rd Battalion became the 60th Alabama and the remaining three companies of the 1st Battalion became the 23rd Alabama Battalion Sharpshooters 5 See also editList of Alabama Civil War Confederate units List of American Civil War legionsFurther reading editShaver Lewellyn Adolphus A history of the Sixtieth Alabama regiment Gracie s Alabama brigade Montgomery Barrett amp Brown 1867 Sifakis Stewart Compendium of the Confederate Armies Alabama New York Facts on File 1992 ISBN 0 8160 2287 9References edit a b c Hilliard s Legion 1862 1863 Ohio State University Retrieved August 24 2015 a b c Hilliard s Legion Alabama Volunteers National Park Service Retrieved August 24 2015 Sifakis Stewart Compendium of the Confederate Armies Alabama New York Facts on File 1992 p 12 a b c Dedmondt Glenn 31 March 2001 The Flags of Civil War Alabama Pelican Publishing p 110 ISBN 9781455604319 Sifakis Stewart Compendium of the Confederate Armies Alabama New York Facts on File 1992 pp 89 90 129 130 nbsp nbsp This article about a specific military unit of the American Civil War is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Hilliard 27s Legion amp oldid 1143706687, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
