Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 1.djvu/743

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CONFEDERATE MILITARY HISTORY.
693

enemy. On May 31, 1864, he was promoted lieutenant-general. He fought at the center at Cold Harbor, in the fall reinforced Early in the Shenandoah valley, commanded the attacks on Fort Harrison before Richmond, and in command of the Fourth corps of the army of Northern Virginia, was engaged for the last time in battle at Sailor s Creek. After the close of hostilities he retired to private life, and died at Beaufort, S. C. , June 26, 1879.

Lieutenant-General Alexander P. Stewart, called by his soldiers "Old Straight," a title in which the straight forward simplicity of his character was briefly epitomized, was born at Rogersville, East Tennessee, October 2, 1824. He was appointed to the United States military academy in 1838, and was graduated in the famous class of 1842. In the last two years of his cadetship he was the room-mate of Generals John Pope and J. E. B. Stuart. He was promoted on graduation second-lieutenant, Third artillery, and in the following year he became assistant professor of mathematics at West Point. Resigning in 1845, he held the professorship of mental and moral philosophy in Cumberland and Nashville universities until 1860, in this period wedding Miss Hattie B. Chase, of Ohio. In the military organization of Tennessee, previous to the ordinance of "separation," he held the rank he was engaged in establishing camps in Middle Tennessee, subsequently drilled troops and constructed batteries at Randolph on the Mississippi, and was the first to occupy Island No. 10 and New Madrid, Mo. He was in command of the heavy artillery and water batteries at Columbus, Ky., at the battle of Belmont, and by the fire of his artillery cleared the field for the moving of troops across the river for Grant s repulse. He was immediate ly after this promoted brigadier-general, and given command of a brigade of Tennesseeans in Polk s command. At Shiloh he led his men in repeated desperate assaults