GOVERNORS OF THE STATE
57
1844 became minister to Brazil, where he re-
mained until 1847. In 1850 he was elected
to the state convention; in 1855, nominated
for governor as a Democrat, defeating the
American (or know-nothing) candidate
when that party seemed irresistible. He
was governor from January i, 1856, till
January i, i860, and in 1859 suppressed the
John Brown outbreak, ending in the execu-
tion of Brown. In i860 he was prominently
mentioned as a presidential candidate. In
1861 he was a member of the secession con-
vention, and advocated '*fighting in the
Union" for redress. When the decision was
forced, he voted for secession. At the out-
break of the war he was made brigadier-
general, and sent to Western Virginia,
where he won the battle of Scary Creek, but
a misunderstanding with General Floyd led
to his recall. Ordered to Roanoke Island,
he remained until Burnside's assault, in
which his eldest son fell — Captain O. Jen-
nings Wise; he himself was ill at Nag's
Head, and escaped. He was later in the de-
fenses of Chaffin's Farm, then transferred
to South Carolina ; in May, 1864, he reached
Petersburg with his command, just in time
to resist the first attack on the city, which
he held, at great odds; he remained here
until the final movements of General Lee,
and his was the last command engaged at
Appomattox. After the war he resumed
law practice in Richmond, and beyond brief
service as commissioner to fix the Virginia-
Maryland boundary lines, he took no part in
public aflFairs. He was author of "Seven
Decades of the Union," a most valuable
work. "He possessed a remarkable and
marked individuality, being one of the most
eloquent public speakers of a period when
oratory was a most common weapon." He
died in Richmond. September 12, 1878.
Digitized by
Google
