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William J. Hardee

William Joseph Hardee (October 12, 1815 – November 6, 1873) was a career U.S. Army and Confederate States Army officer. For the U.S. Army, he served in the Second Seminole War and in the Mexican–American War, where he was captured and exchanged. In the American Civil War, he sided with the South and became a general. Hardee served in the Western Theater and quarreled sharply with two of his commanding officers, Braxton Bragg and John Bell Hood. He served in the Atlanta Campaign of 1864 and the Carolinas Campaign of 1865, where he surrendered to General Joseph E. Johnston to William Tecumseh Sherman in April. Hardee's writings about military tactics were widely used on both sides in the conflict.


William Joseph Hardee
Nickname(s)"Old Reliable"
Born(1815-10-12)October 12, 1815
Camden County, Georgia
DiedNovember 6, 1873(1873-11-06) (aged 58)
Wytheville, Virginia
Allegiance United States of America
 Confederate States of America
Service/branch United States Army
 Confederate States Army
Years of service1838–61 (U.S.A)
1861–65 (C.S.A)
Rank Lieutenant Colonel (USA)
Lieutenant General (CSA)
Commands heldFirst Corps, Army of Tennessee
Battles/wars
Signature

Early life and career edit

Hardee was born to Sarah Ellis and Major John Hais Hardee Jr. at the Rural Felicity Plantation in Camden County, Georgia.[1] One of his brothers was noted Savannah merchant Noble Hardee.[2] He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1838 (26th in a class of 45) and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Dragoons.[3] During the Seminole Wars (1835–42), he was stricken with illness, and while hospitalized he met and married Elizabeth Dummett. After he recovered, the Army sent him to France to study military tactics in 1840.[4] He was promoted to first lieutenant in 1839 and to captain in 1844.

In the Mexican–American War, Hardee served in the Army of Occupation under Zachary Taylor and won two brevet promotions (to brevet major for Medelin and Vera Cruz, and to lieutenant colonel for St. Augustin). He served with the 2nd U.S. Dragoons, and was second in command to Seth Thornton, when they were ambushed and surrounded by Mexican troops and subsequently captured on April 25, 1846, at Carricitos Ranch, Texas, during the "Thornton Affair". He was exchanged on May 11.[3] Now serving under Winfield Scott, Hardee was wounded in a skirmish at La Rosia, Mexico (about 30 miles (48 km) above Matamoros) in 1847.[4] After the war, he led units of Texas Rangers and soldiers in Texas.

After his wife died in 1853, he returned to West Point as a tactics instructor and served as commandant of cadets from 1856 to 1860. He served as the senior major in the 2nd U.S. Cavalry (later renumbered as the 5th U.S. Cavalry) when that regiment was formed in 1855 and then as the lieutenant colonel of the 1st U.S. Cavalry in 1860.[3] In 1855 at the behest of Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, Hardee published Rifle and Light Infantry Tactics for the Exercise and Manoeuvres of Troops When Acting as Light Infantry or Riflemen, popularly known as Hardee's Tactics, which became the best-known drill manual of the Civil War.[5] He is also said to have designed the so-called Hardee hat about this time.

Civil War edit

 
The Noble Hardee Mansion, 1860–1869, 3 West Gordon Street, Savannah

Hardee resigned his U.S. Army commission on January 31, 1861,[3] after his home state of Georgia seceded from the Union. He joined the Confederate States Army as a colonel on March 7 and was given command of Forts Morgan and Gaines in Alabama. He was subsequently promoted to brigadier general (June 17) and major general (October 7). By October 10, 1862, he was one of the first Confederate lieutenant generals.[3]

His initial assignment as a general was to organize a brigade of Arkansas regiments and he impressed his men and fellow officers by solving difficult supply problems and for the thorough training he gave his brigade. He received his nickname, "Old Reliable", while with this command. Hardee operated in Arkansas until he was called to join General Albert Sidney Johnston's Army of Central Kentucky as a corps commander. Johnston would withdraw from Kentucky and Tennessee, into Mississippi, before launching a surprise attack at the Battle of Shiloh in the spring of 1862. Hardee was wounded in the arm on April 6, 1862, during the first day of the battle.[3]

Johnston was killed at Shiloh and Hardee's corps joined General Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee prior to the Siege of Corinth, Mississippi, until Department Commander P.G.T. Beauregard evacuated the town and withdrew to Tupelo. Beauregard was replaced by Bragg, who subsequently moved his army to Chattanooga before embarking on his Confederate Heartland Offensive into Kentucky. That campaign concluded with the Battle of Perryville in October 1862, where Hardee commanded the Left Wing of Bragg's army.

 
Portrait of William J. Hardee, held at Fort McAllister state park in Georgia[6]

In arguably his most successful battle, at the Battle of Stones River that December, his Second Corps launched a massive surprise assault upon the right flank of Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans's army, driving it almost to defeat, but again, as had happened at Perryville, Bragg failed to follow up his tactical success, opting instead to withdraw before the arrival of Union reinforcements.

After the Tullahoma Campaign, Hardee lost patience with the irascible Bragg and briefly commanded the Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana under General Joseph E. Johnston. During this period, he met Mary Foreman Lewis, an Alabama plantation owner, whom he would later marry in January 1864.

Hardee returned to Bragg's army after the Battle of Chickamauga, taking over the corps of Leonidas Polk at Chattanooga, Tennessee, besieging the Union Army there. During the Chattanooga Campaign in November 1863, Hardee's Corps of the Army of Tennessee was defeated when Union troops under Maj. Gen. George Henry Thomas assaulted their seemingly impregnable defensive lines at the Battle of Missionary Ridge.

 
One of Hardee's white disc on blue pattern battle flags, the flag of the 6th and 7th Arkansas Infantry Regiments, bearing the battle honors "Shiloh", "Chickamauga", "Murfreesboro", "Perryville", "Liberty Gap", "Ringgold Gap", and "Tunnel Hill"

Hardee renewed his opposition to serving under Bragg and joined a group of officers who finally convinced Confederate President Jefferson Davis to relieve Bragg. Hardee was given temporary command of the Army of Tennessee before Joseph E. Johnston took over command at Dalton, Georgia. In February 1864, Johnston was ordered by the President to dispatch Hardee to Alabama, to reinforce General Polk against General Sherman's Meridian Campaign.

Following Sherman's withdrawal to Vicksburg, Hardee was once again sent back to Georgia, where he joined Johnston's army for the Atlanta Campaign. As Johnston fought a war of maneuver and retreat against Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman, the Confederacy eventually lost patience with him and replaced him with the much more aggressive Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood. Hardee could not abide Hood's reckless assaults and heavy casualties. After the Battle of Jonesboro that August and September, he requested a transfer and was sent to command the Department of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. He opposed Sherman's March to the Sea as best he could with inadequate forces, eventually evacuating Savannah, Georgia on December 20.[4]

As Sherman turned north in the Carolinas Campaign, Hardee took part in the Battle of Bentonville, North Carolina, in March 1865, where his only son, 16-year-old Willie, was mortally wounded in a cavalry charge.[7] Johnston's plan for Bentonville was for Hardee to engage one of Sherman's wings at Averasborough so that Johnston could deal with one wing piecemeal. The plan was unsuccessful. He surrendered along with Johnston to Sherman on April 26 at Durham Station.

Postbellum life edit

After the war, Hardee settled at his wife's Alabama plantation. After returning it to working condition, the family moved to Selma, Alabama, where Hardee worked in the warehousing and insurance businesses. He eventually became president of the Selma and Meridian Railroad. Hardee was the co-author of The Irish in America, published in 1868. He fell ill at his family's summer retreat at White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, and died in Wytheville, Virginia on November 6, 1873. He is buried in Live Oak Cemetery, Selma, Alabama.[3]

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ Mesch, Allen H. (2018). Preparing for Disunion: West Point Commandants and the Training of Civil War Leaders. McFarland Publishers. p. 122. ISBN 9781476674254.
  2. ^ Parker, James (July 30, 1975). "The Life of Noble Andrew Hardee". Savannah Biographies.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Eicher, p. 279.
  4. ^ a b c Dupuy, p. 315.
  5. ^ Dupuy, p. 315: "...his tactical manual was used extensively by both armies in the Civil War."
  6. ^ "Hal Jespersen's 2013 Civil War Travelogues, Charleston and Savannah".
  7. ^ Bradley, pp. 382–83.

References edit

Further reading edit

  • Hughes, Nathaniel Cheairs Jr. General Willam J. Hardee: Old Reliable. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1992. ISBN 0-8071-1802-8. First published 1965.

External links edit

william, hardee, william, hardee, redirects, here, american, football, player, billy, hardee, william, joseph, hardee, october, 1815, november, 1873, career, army, confederate, states, army, officer, army, served, second, seminole, mexican, american, where, ca. William Hardee redirects here For American football player see Billy Hardee William Joseph Hardee October 12 1815 November 6 1873 was a career U S Army and Confederate States Army officer For the U S Army he served in the Second Seminole War and in the Mexican American War where he was captured and exchanged In the American Civil War he sided with the South and became a general Hardee served in the Western Theater and quarreled sharply with two of his commanding officers Braxton Bragg and John Bell Hood He served in the Atlanta Campaign of 1864 and the Carolinas Campaign of 1865 where he surrendered to General Joseph E Johnston to William Tecumseh Sherman in April Hardee s writings about military tactics were widely used on both sides in the conflict Lieutenant GeneralWilliam Joseph HardeeNickname s Old Reliable Born 1815 10 12 October 12 1815Camden County GeorgiaDiedNovember 6 1873 1873 11 06 aged 58 Wytheville VirginiaAllegiance United States of America Confederate States of AmericaService wbr branch United States Army Confederate States ArmyYears of service1838 61 U S A 1861 65 C S A RankLieutenant Colonel USA Lieutenant General CSA Commands heldFirst Corps Army of TennesseeBattles warsSecond Seminole War Mexican American War Thornton Affair Battle of Monterrey Siege of Veracruz Battle for Mexico City American Civil War Battle of Shiloh Battle of Perryville Battle of Stones River Third Battle of Chattanooga Battle of Peachtree Creek Battle of Atlanta Battle of Averasborough Battle of BentonvilleSignature Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Civil War 3 Postbellum life 4 See also 5 Notes 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksEarly life and career editHardee was born to Sarah Ellis and Major John Hais Hardee Jr at the Rural Felicity Plantation in Camden County Georgia 1 One of his brothers was noted Savannah merchant Noble Hardee 2 He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1838 26th in a class of 45 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 2nd U S Dragoons 3 During the Seminole Wars 1835 42 he was stricken with illness and while hospitalized he met and married Elizabeth Dummett After he recovered the Army sent him to France to study military tactics in 1840 4 He was promoted to first lieutenant in 1839 and to captain in 1844 In the Mexican American War Hardee served in the Army of Occupation under Zachary Taylor and won two brevet promotions to brevet major for Medelin and Vera Cruz and to lieutenant colonel for St Augustin He served with the 2nd U S Dragoons and was second in command to Seth Thornton when they were ambushed and surrounded by Mexican troops and subsequently captured on April 25 1846 at Carricitos Ranch Texas during the Thornton Affair He was exchanged on May 11 3 Now serving under Winfield Scott Hardee was wounded in a skirmish at La Rosia Mexico about 30 miles 48 km above Matamoros in 1847 4 After the war he led units of Texas Rangers and soldiers in Texas After his wife died in 1853 he returned to West Point as a tactics instructor and served as commandant of cadets from 1856 to 1860 He served as the senior major in the 2nd U S Cavalry later renumbered as the 5th U S Cavalry when that regiment was formed in 1855 and then as the lieutenant colonel of the 1st U S Cavalry in 1860 3 In 1855 at the behest of Secretary of War Jefferson Davis Hardee published Rifle and Light Infantry Tactics for the Exercise and Manoeuvres of Troops When Acting as Light Infantry or Riflemen popularly known as Hardee s Tactics which became the best known drill manual of the Civil War 5 He is also said to have designed the so called Hardee hat about this time Civil War editThis section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources William J Hardee news newspapers books scholar JSTOR July 2023 Learn how and when to remove this template message nbsp The Noble Hardee Mansion 1860 1869 3 West Gordon Street SavannahHardee resigned his U S Army commission on January 31 1861 3 after his home state of Georgia seceded from the Union He joined the Confederate States Army as a colonel on March 7 and was given command of Forts Morgan and Gaines in Alabama He was subsequently promoted to brigadier general June 17 and major general October 7 By October 10 1862 he was one of the first Confederate lieutenant generals 3 His initial assignment as a general was to organize a brigade of Arkansas regiments and he impressed his men and fellow officers by solving difficult supply problems and for the thorough training he gave his brigade He received his nickname Old Reliable while with this command Hardee operated in Arkansas until he was called to join General Albert Sidney Johnston s Army of Central Kentucky as a corps commander Johnston would withdraw from Kentucky and Tennessee into Mississippi before launching a surprise attack at the Battle of Shiloh in the spring of 1862 Hardee was wounded in the arm on April 6 1862 during the first day of the battle 3 Johnston was killed at Shiloh and Hardee s corps joined General Braxton Bragg s Army of Tennessee prior to the Siege of Corinth Mississippi until Department Commander P G T Beauregard evacuated the town and withdrew to Tupelo Beauregard was replaced by Bragg who subsequently moved his army to Chattanooga before embarking on his Confederate Heartland Offensive into Kentucky That campaign concluded with the Battle of Perryville in October 1862 where Hardee commanded the Left Wing of Bragg s army nbsp Portrait of William J Hardee held at Fort McAllister state park in Georgia 6 In arguably his most successful battle at the Battle of Stones River that December his Second Corps launched a massive surprise assault upon the right flank of Maj Gen William Rosecrans s army driving it almost to defeat but again as had happened at Perryville Bragg failed to follow up his tactical success opting instead to withdraw before the arrival of Union reinforcements After the Tullahoma Campaign Hardee lost patience with the irascible Bragg and briefly commanded the Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana under General Joseph E Johnston During this period he met Mary Foreman Lewis an Alabama plantation owner whom he would later marry in January 1864 Hardee returned to Bragg s army after the Battle of Chickamauga taking over the corps of Leonidas Polk at Chattanooga Tennessee besieging the Union Army there During the Chattanooga Campaign in November 1863 Hardee s Corps of the Army of Tennessee was defeated when Union troops under Maj Gen George Henry Thomas assaulted their seemingly impregnable defensive lines at the Battle of Missionary Ridge nbsp One of Hardee s white disc on blue pattern battle flags the flag of the 6th and 7th Arkansas Infantry Regiments bearing the battle honors Shiloh Chickamauga Murfreesboro Perryville Liberty Gap Ringgold Gap and Tunnel Hill Hardee renewed his opposition to serving under Bragg and joined a group of officers who finally convinced Confederate President Jefferson Davis to relieve Bragg Hardee was given temporary command of the Army of Tennessee before Joseph E Johnston took over command at Dalton Georgia In February 1864 Johnston was ordered by the President to dispatch Hardee to Alabama to reinforce General Polk against General Sherman s Meridian Campaign Following Sherman s withdrawal to Vicksburg Hardee was once again sent back to Georgia where he joined Johnston s army for the Atlanta Campaign As Johnston fought a war of maneuver and retreat against Maj Gen William T Sherman the Confederacy eventually lost patience with him and replaced him with the much more aggressive Lt Gen John Bell Hood Hardee could not abide Hood s reckless assaults and heavy casualties After the Battle of Jonesboro that August and September he requested a transfer and was sent to command the Department of South Carolina Georgia and Florida He opposed Sherman s March to the Sea as best he could with inadequate forces eventually evacuating Savannah Georgia on December 20 4 As Sherman turned north in the Carolinas Campaign Hardee took part in the Battle of Bentonville North Carolina in March 1865 where his only son 16 year old Willie was mortally wounded in a cavalry charge 7 Johnston s plan for Bentonville was for Hardee to engage one of Sherman s wings at Averasborough so that Johnston could deal with one wing piecemeal The plan was unsuccessful He surrendered along with Johnston to Sherman on April 26 at Durham Station Postbellum life editAfter the war Hardee settled at his wife s Alabama plantation After returning it to working condition the family moved to Selma Alabama where Hardee worked in the warehousing and insurance businesses He eventually became president of the Selma and Meridian Railroad Hardee was the co author of The Irish in America published in 1868 He fell ill at his family s summer retreat at White Sulphur Springs West Virginia and died in Wytheville Virginia on November 6 1873 He is buried in Live Oak Cemetery Selma Alabama 3 nbsp American Civil War portal nbsp Biography portalSee also editList of American Civil War generals Confederate Lucius Augustus HardeeNotes edit Mesch Allen H 2018 Preparing for Disunion West Point Commandants and the Training of Civil War Leaders McFarland Publishers p 122 ISBN 9781476674254 Parker James July 30 1975 The Life of Noble Andrew Hardee Savannah Biographies a b c d e f g Eicher p 279 a b c Dupuy p 315 Dupuy p 315 his tactical manual was used extensively by both armies in the Civil War Hal Jespersen s 2013 Civil War Travelogues Charleston and Savannah Bradley pp 382 83 References editBradley Mark L Last Stand in the Carolinas The Battle of Bentonville Campbell CA Savas Publishing Co 1995 ISBN 1 882810 02 3 Dupuy Trevor N Curt Johnson and David L Bongard Harper Encyclopedia of Military Biography New York HarperCollins 1992 ISBN 978 0 06 270015 5 Eicher John H and David J Eicher Civil War High Commands Stanford CA Stanford University Press 2001 ISBN 0 8047 3641 3 Warner Ezra J Generals in Gray Lives of the Confederate Commanders Baton Rouge Louisiana State University Press 1959 ISBN 0 8071 0823 5 New Georgia Encyclopedia biography Archived December 4 2008 at the Wayback MachineFurther reading editHughes Nathaniel Cheairs Jr General Willam J Hardee Old Reliable Baton Rouge Louisiana State University Press 1992 ISBN 0 8071 1802 8 First published 1965 External links editMilitary biography of William J Hardee from the Cullum biographies Hardee William Joseph Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 12 11th ed 1911 p 941 Hardee William Joseph Encyclopedia Americana 1920 Hardee Hall historical marker William J Hardee at Find a Grave Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William J Hardee amp oldid 1209949659, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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