J. E. B. Stuart: Difference between revisions

| caption = Portrait by [[George S. Cook]], 1863

'''James Ewell Brown''' "'''Jeb'''" '''Stuart''' (February 6, 1833{{spaced ndash}}May 12, 1864) was a [[UnitedConfederate States Army|Confederate]] officerarmy fromgeneral Virginiaand whocavalry became a [[Confederate States Army]] generalofficer during the [[American Civil War]]. He was known to his friends as "Jeb,” from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a [[cavalry]] commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use of cavalry in support of offensive operations. While he cultivated a cavalier image (red-lined gray cape, the yellow waist sash of a regular cavalry officer, hat cocked to the side with an ostrich plume, red flower in his lapel, often sporting cologne), his serious work made him the trusted eyes and ears of [[Robert E. Lee]]'s army and inspired Southern morale.<ref>Donald R. Jermann, ''Civil War Battlefield Orders Gone Awry: The Written Word and Its Consequences in 13 Engagements'' (McFarland, 2012) p. 129.</ref>

Stuart graduated from [[United States Military Academy|West Point]] in 1854, and served in Texas and Kansas with the U.S. Army. Stuart was a veteran of the frontier conflicts with [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] and the violence of [[Bleeding Kansas]], and he participated in the capture of [[John Brown (abolitionist)|John Brown]] at [[Harpers Ferry, West Virginia|Harpers Ferry]]. He resigned his commission when his home state of Virginia seceded, to serve in the Confederate Army, first under [[Stonewall Jackson]] in the [[Shenandoah Valley]], but then in increasingly important cavalry commands of the [[Army of Northern Virginia]], playing a role in all of that army's campaigns until his death.

Stuart was born at [[Laurel Hill Farm]], a plantation in [[Patrick County, Virginia|Patrick County]], [[Virginia]], near the border with [[North Carolina]]. He was the eighth of eleven children and the youngest of the five sons to survive past early age.<ref>Wert, pp. 5–6, lists the children as Nancy Anne Dabney, born in 1818, Bethenia Pannill in 1819, Mary Tucker in 1821, David Pannill in 1823, William Alexander in 1826, John Dabney in 1828, Columbia Lafayette in 1830, James in 1833, an unnamed son who died at the age of three months in 1834, Virginia Josephine in 1836, and Victoria Augusta in 1838. Thomas, p. 7, claims that James was the youngest son of ten [unnamed] children.</ref> His father, [[Archibald Stuart]], was a [[War of 1812]] veteran, slaveholder, attorney, and [[History of the Democratic Party (United States)#Jacksonian Democracyascendancy: 1828-18541829–1840|Democratic]] politician who represented Patrick County in both houses of the [[Virginia General Assembly]], and also served one term in the [[United States House of Representatives]].<ref>Wert, p. 5.</ref> His mother Elizabeth Letcher Pannill Stuart ran the family farm, and was known as a strict religious woman with a good sense for business.<ref name=Thomas5/>

He was of [[Scottish American|Scottish]] descent (including some [[Scots-Irish American|Scots-Irish]]).<ref>Life of Jeb Stuart by Mary Williamson. Christian Liberty Press, JanJanuary 1, 1997, page 1</ref> His great-grandfather, Major Alexander Stuart, commanded a regiment at the [[Battle of Guilford Court House]] during the [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]].<ref name=Thomas5>Thomas, p. 5.</ref> His father Archibald was a cousin of attorney [[Alexander Hugh Holmes Stuart]].<ref name=Thomas5/>

Also in 1855, Stuart met Flora Cooke, the daughter of the commander of the [[2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment|2nd U.S. Dragoon Regiment]]'s commander, [[Lieutenant colonel (United States)|Lieutenant Colonel]] [[Philip St. George Cooke]]. Burke Davis described Flora as "an accomplished horsewoman, and though not pretty, an effective charmer," to whom "Stuart succumbed with hardly a struggle."<ref>Davis, p. 36.</ref> They became engaged in September, less than two months after meeting. Stuart humorously wrote of his rapid courtship in [[Latin]], "''[[Veni, vidi, vici|Veni, Vidi, Victus sum]]''" (I came, I saw, I was conquered). Although a gala wedding had been planned for [[Fort Riley]], [[Kansas]], the death of Stuart's father on September 20 caused a change of plans and the marriage on November 14 was small and limited to family witnesses.<ref>Thomas, pp. 41–43; Davis, p. 37; Wert, pp. 26–29.</ref> Their first child, a girl, was born in 1856 but died the same day. On November 14, 1857, Flora gave birth to another daughter, whom the parents named Flora after her mother. The family relocated in early 1858 to Fort Riley, where they remained for three years.<ref>Wert, p. 35.</ref> The couple owned two slaves until 1859, one inherited from his father's estate, the other purchased.<ref>Wert, pp. 30–31.</ref>

Stuart's leadership capabilities were soon recognized. He was a veteran of the frontier conflicts with Native Americans and the antebellum violence of [[Bleeding Kansas]]. He was wounded on July 2829, 1857, while fighting at [[Solomon River]], [[Kansas]], against the [[Cheyenne]]. Col.Colonel Sumner ordered a charge with drawn sabers against a wave of Native American arrows. Scattering the under-armed warriors, Stuart and three other lieutenants chased one down, whom Stuart wounded in the thigh with his pistol. The Cheyenne turned and fired at Stuart with ana old-fashioned.36 caliber Allen & Thurber pepperbox pistol, striking him in the chest with a bullet, which did little more damage than to pierce the skin.<ref>Davis, p. 40; Wert, pp. 33–35.</ref> Stuart returned in September to Fort Leavenworth and was reunited with his wife.

In 1859, Stuart developed a new piece of cavalry equipment, for which he received [[United States patent law|patent]] number 25,684 on October 4—a saber hook, or an "improved method of attaching sabers to belts." The U.S. government paid Stuart $5,000 for a "right to use" license and Stuart contracted with Knorr, Nece and Co. of [[Philadelphia]] to manufacture his hook. While in [[Washington, D.C.]], to discuss government contracts, and in conjunction with his application for an appointment into the quartermaster department, Stuart heard about [[John Brown (abolitionist)|John Brown]]'s raid on the U.S. Arsenal at [[Harpers Ferry, West Virginia|Harpers Ferry]]. Stuart volunteered to be [[aide-de-camp]] to Col. Robert E. Lee and accompanied Lee with a company of [[United States Marine Corps|U.S. Marines]] from the [[Marine Barracks, Washington, D.C.|Marine Barracks, 8th & I, Washington, DC]].<ref>Hoffman, Colonel Jon T., ''USMC: A Complete History'', Marine Corps Association, Quantico, VA, (2002), p. 84.</ref> and four companies of Maryland militia. While delivering Lee's written surrender ultimatum to the leader of the group, who had been calling himself Isaac Smith, Stuart recognized "Old Osawatomie Brown" from his days in Kansas.<ref>Wert, pp. 37–39.</ref>

Stuart was promoted to [[Captain (U.S. Army)|captain]] on April 22, 1861, but resigned from the U.S. Army on May 3, 1861, to join the [[Confederate States Army]], following the [[secession]] of Virginia.{{efn|His letter of resignation, sent from [[Cairo, Illinois]], was accepted by the [[United States Department of War|War Department]] on May 14.<ref>Wert, pp. 45, 52; Davis, pp. 47–40.</ref>}} On June 26, 1860, Flora gave birth to a son, Philip St. George Cooke Stuart, but his fatherStuart changed the name to James Ewell Brown Stuart, Jr. ("Jimmie"), in late 1861 out of disgust with his father-in-law.<ref>Wert, pp. 42, 76.</ref> Upon learning that his father-in-law, Col. Cooke, would remain in the U.S. Army during the coming war, Stuart wrote to his brother-in-law (future Confederate Brig. Gen. [[John Rogers Cooke]]), "He will regret it but once, and that will be continuously." When he learned that [[George H. Thomas]], a fellow Virginian, had also decided to stay with the Union, Stuart wrote "I would like to hang, hang Thomas as a traitor to his native state."<ref>Thomas, p. 95.</ref>

Stuart was commissioned as a [[lieutenant colonel]] of Virginia Infantry in the Confederate Army on May 10, 1861.<ref name=Eicher/> [[Major General (CSA)|Maj.Major Gen.General]] Robert E. Lee, now commanding the [[Provisional Army of Virginia|armed forces of Virginia]], ordered him to report to [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]] [[Stonewall Jackson|Thomas J. Jackson]] at Harper's Ferry. Jackson chose to ignore Stuart's infantry designation and assigned him on July 4 to command all the cavalry companies of the [[Confederate Army of the Shenandoah|Army of the Shenandoah]], organized as the [[1st Virginia Cavalry|1st Virginia Cavalry Regiment]].<ref>Wert, p. 49; Davis, pp. 51–52.</ref> He was promoted to colonel on July 16.<ref name=Eicher/>

After early service in the [[Shenandoah Valley]], Stuart led his regiment in the [[First Battle of Bull Run]] (where Jackson got his nickname, "Stonewall"), and participated in the pursuit of the retreating Federals, leading to sensationalist reports in the Northern press about the dreaded Confederate "black horse" cavalry. He then commanded the Army's outposts along the upper [[Potomac River]] until given command of the cavalry brigade for the army then known as the [[Confederate Army of the Potomac|Army of the Potomac]] (later named the [[Army of Northern Virginia]]). He was promoted to [[Brig. Gen. (CSA)|brigadier general]] on September 24, 1861.<ref name=Eicher/>

In 1862, the Union [[Army of the Potomac]] began its [[Peninsula Campaign]] against [[Richmond, Virginia]], and Stuart's cavalry brigade assisted Gen.General [[Joseph E. Johnston]]'s army as it withdrew up the [[Virginia Peninsula]] in the face of superior numbers. Stuart fought at the [[Battle of Williamsburg]], but in general the terrain and weather on the Peninsula did not lend themselves to cavalry operations.

|source= —[[James I. Robertson, Jr.]], ''Stonewall Jackson''<ref>Robertson, p. 235.</ref>

However, when Gen.General Robert E. Lee became commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, he requested that Stuart perform reconnaissance to determine whether the right flank of the Union army was vulnerable. Stuart set out with 1,200 troopers on the morning of June 12 and, having determined that the flank was indeed vulnerable, took his men on a complete circumnavigation of the Union army, returning after 150 miles on June 15 with 165 captured Union soldiers, 260 horses and mules, and various quartermaster and ordnance supplies. His men met no serious opposition from the more decentralized Union cavalry, coincidentally commanded by his father-in-law, Col. Cooke, and their total casualties amounted to one man killed. The maneuver was a public relations sensation, and Stuart was greeted with flower petals thrown in his path at Richmond. He had become as famous as Stonewall Jackson in the eyes of the Confederacy.<ref>Wert, pp. 93–101; Davis, pp. 111–30.</ref>

Early in the [[Northern Virginia Campaign]], Stuart was promoted to [[Maj. Gen. (CSA)|major general]] on July 25, 1862, and his command was upgraded to the Cavalry DivisionDivision—the fact that the Army of Northern Virginia's cavalry had been brigaded and were now a full division made for an important organizational advantage over the Army of the Potomac's mounted arm, which was ineffectually organized as regiments attached to infantry brigades and treated as an extension of the army signal corps.<ref name="Wert pp. 125">Wert, pp. 125–29; Davis, pp. 167–72.</ref> He was nearly captured and lost his signature plumed hat and cloak to pursuing Federals during a raid in August, but in a retaliatory raid at Catlett's Station the following day, managed to overrun Union army commander Maj.Major Gen.General [[John Pope (military officer)|John Pope's]] headquarters, and not only captured Pope's full uniform, but also intercepted orders that provided Lee with valuable intelligence concerning reinforcements for Pope's army.<ref name="Wert pp. 125"/>

At the [[Second Battle of Bull Run]] (Second Manassas), Stuart's cavalry followed the massive assault by Longstreet's infantry against Pope's army, protecting its flank with artillery batteries. Stuart ordered Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Beverly Robertson]]'s brigade to pursue the Federals and in a sharp fight against Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[John Buford]]'s brigade, Col.Colonel [[Thomas T. Munford]]'s [[2nd Virginia Cavalry]] was overwhelmed until Stuart sent in two more regiments as reinforcements. Buford's men, many of whom were new to combat, retreated across Lewis's Ford and Stuart's troopers captured over 300 of them. Stuart's men harassed the retreating Union columns until the campaign ended at the [[Battle of Chantilly]].<ref>Wert, pp. 136–37; Davis, pp. 183–84.</ref>

During the [[Maryland Campaign]] ofin September 1862, Stuart's cavalry screened the army's movement north. He bears some responsibility for Robert E. Lee's lack of knowledge of the position and celerity of the pursuing Army of the Potomac under George B. McClellan. For a five-day period, Stuart rested his men and entertained local civilians at a gala ball at [[Urbana, Maryland]]. His reports make no reference to intelligence gathering by his scouts or patrols.<ref>Wert, p. 144.</ref> As the Union Army drew near to Lee's divided army, Stuart's men skirmished at various points on the approach to [[Frederick, Maryland|Frederick]] and Stuart was not able to keep his brigades concentrated enough to resist the oncoming tide. He misjudged the Union routes of advance, ignorant of the Union force threatening Turner's Gap, and required assistance from the infantry of Maj.Major Gen.General [[Daniel Harvey Hill|D. H. Hill]] to defend the [[South Mountain (Maryland and Pennsylvania)|South Mountain]] passes in the [[Battle of South Mountain]].<ref>Wert, pp. 147–50.</ref> His horse artillery bombarded the flank of the Union army as it opened its attack in the [[Battle of Antietam]]. By mid-afternoon, Stonewall Jackson ordered Stuart to command a turning movement with his cavalry against the Union right flank and rear, which if successful would be followed up by an infantry attack from the West Woods. Stuart began probing the Union lines with more artillery barrages, which were answered with "murderous" counterbattery fire and the cavalry movement intended by Jackson was never launched.<ref>Wert, pp. 156–58; Davis, pp. 205–06.</ref>

McClellan pushed his army slowly south, urged by President Lincoln to pursue Lee, crossing the Potomac starting on October 26. As Lee began moving to counter this, Stuart screened Longstreet's Corpscorps and skirmished numerous times in early November against Union cavalry and infantry around [[Mountville, Virginia|Mountville]], [[Aldie, Virginia|Aldie]], and [[Upperville, Virginia|Upperville]]. On November 6, Stuart receivedwas sad newsnotified by telegram that his daughter Flora had died just before her fifth birthday of [[typhoid fever]] on November 3.<ref>Wert, pp. 179–83.</ref>

On March 17, 1863, Stuart's cavalry clashed with a Union raiding party at [[Battle of Kelly's Ford|Kelly's Ford]]. The minor victory was marred by the death of Major Pelham, which caused Stuart profound grief, as he thought of him as close as a younger brother. He wrote to a Confederate Congressmancongressman, "The noble, the chivalric, the gallant Pelham is no more. ... Let the tears of agony we have shed, and the gloom of mourning throughout my command bear witness." Flora was pregnant at the time and Stuart told her that if it were a boy, he wanted him to be named John Pelham Stuart. (Virginia Pelham Stuart was born October 9.)<ref>Longacre, ''Lee's Cavalrymen'', pp. 169–74; Wert, pp. 207–10, 321; Davis, pp. 267–76; Thomas, p. 270.</ref>

[[File:Chancellorsville May3a.png|thumb|alt=A map showing Stuart's attack on General Daniel Sickles's position inon the western outskirts of Chancellorsville.|Chancellorsville, May 3, 1863{{legend|#ff0000|Confederate/Rebels}} {{legend|#0000ff|Union/Federals}}

At the [[Battle of Chancellorsville]], Stuart accompanied Stonewall Jackson on his famous flanking march of May 2, 1863, and started to pursue the retreating soldiers of the Union [[XI Corps (Union Army)|XI Corps]] when he received word that both Jackson and his senior division commander, Maj.Major Gen.General [[A. P. Hill]], had been wounded. Hill, bypassing the next most senior infantry general in the corps, Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Robert E. Rodes]], sent a message ordering Stuart to take command of the [[Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia|Second Corps]]. Although the delays associated with this change of command effectively ended the flanking attack the night of May 2, Stuart, who had no prior experience leading infantry, performed creditably as an infantry corps commander the following day, launching a strong and well-coordinated attack against the Union right flank at Chancellorsville. When Union troops abandoned Hazel Grove, Stuart had the presence of mind to quickly occupy it and bombard the Union positions with artillery. Stuart relinquished his infantry command on May 6 when Hill returned to duty.<ref>Wert, pp. 222–31; Davis, pp. 290–98.</ref> [[Stephen W. Sears]] wrote:

Returning to the cavalry for the [[Gettysburg Campaign]], Stuart endured the two low points in his career, starting with the [[Battle of Brandy Station]], the largest predominantly cavalry engagement of the war. By June 5, two of Lee's infantry corps were camped in and around Culpeper. Six miles northeast, holding the line of the Rappahannock River, Stuart bivouacked his cavalry troopers, mostly near Brandy Station, screening the Confederate Army against surprise by the enemy. Stuart requested a full field review of his troops by Gen.General Lee. This grand review on June 5 included nearly 9,000 mounted troopers and four batteries of horse artillery, charging in simulated battle at Inlet Station, about two miles (three&nbsp;km) southwest of Brandy Station.<ref>Longacre, ''Cavalry at Gettysburg'', pp. 39–40; Sears, ''Gettysburg'', pp. 62–64; Wert, pp. 238–39.</ref>

Army of the Potomac commander Maj.Major Gen.General [[Joseph Hooker]] interpreted Stuart's presence around Culpeper to be indicative of preparations for a raid on his army's supply lines. In reaction, he ordered his cavalry commander, Maj.Major Gen.General [[Alfred Pleasonton]], to take a [[combined arms]] force of 8,000 cavalrymen and 3,000 infantry on a "spoiling raid" to "disperse and destroy" the 9,500 Confederates.<ref>Salmon, p. 198; Wert, p. 240.</ref> Pleasonton's force crossed the Rappahannock in two columns on June 9, 1863, the first crossing at Beverly's Ford (Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[John Buford]]'s division) catching Stuart by surprise, waking him and his staff to the sound of gunfire. The second crossing, at Kelly's Ford, surprised Stuart again, and the Confederates found themselves assaulted from front and rear in a spirited melee of mounted combat. A series of confusing charges and countercharges swept back and forth across Fleetwood Hill, which had been Stuart's headquarters the previous night. After ten hours of fighting, Pleasonton ordered his men to withdraw across the Rappahannock.<ref>Salmon, pp. 199–203; Wert, pp. 241–48; Davis, pp. 305–12.</ref>

Following a series of small cavalry battles in June as Lee's army began marching north through the Shenandoah Valley, Stuart may have had in mind the glory of circumnavigating the enemy army once again, desiring to erase the stain on his reputation of the surprise at Brandy Station. General Lee gave orders to Stuart on June 22 on how he was to participate in the march north. The exact nature of those orders has been argued by the participants and historians ever since, but the essence was that Stuart was instructed to guard the mountain passes with part of his force while the Army of Northern Virginia was still south of the Potomac, and that he was to cross the river with the remainder of the army and screen the right flank of Ewell's Second Corps. Instead of taking a direct route north near the Blue Ridge Mountains, however, Stuart chose to reach Ewell's flank by taking his three best brigades (those of Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Wade Hampton III|Wade Hampton]], Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Fitzhugh Lee]], and Col.Colonel [[John R. Chambliss]], the latter replacing the wounded Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[William Henry Fitzhugh Lee|W. H. F. "Rooney" Lee]]) between the Union armyArmy and Washington, moving north through [[Rockville, Maryland|Rockville]] to [[Westminster, Maryland|Westminster]] and on into Pennsylvania, hoping to capture supplies along the way and cause havoc near the enemy capital. Stuart and his three brigades departed [[Marshall, Virginia|Salem Depot]] at 1 a.m. on June 25.<ref>Sears, ''Gettysburg'', pp. 104–06; Longacre, pp. 148–52; Gottfried, p. 28; Coddington, p. 108.</ref>

In Westminster on June 29, his men clashed briefly with and overwhelmed two companies of Union cavalry, chasing them a long distance on the Baltimore road, which Stuart claimed caused a "great panic" in the city of [[Baltimore]].<ref>Coddington, pp. 199–200; Longacre, pp. 156–58; Wittenberg and Petruzzi, pp. 47–64.</ref> The head of Stuart's column encountered Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Hugh Judson Kilpatrick|Judson Kilpatrick]]'s cavalry as it passed through [[Hanover, Pennsylvania|Hanover]] and scattered it on June 30; the [[Battle of Hanover]] ended after Kilpatrick's men regrouped and drove the Confederates out of town. Stuart's brigades had been better positioned to guard their captured wagon train than to take advantage of the encounter with Kilpatrick. After a 20-mile trek in the dark, his exhausted men reached [[Dover, Pennsylvania|Dover]] on the morning of July 1, as the [[Battle of Gettysburg]] was commencing without them.<ref>Coddington, pp. 200–01; Wittenberg and Petruzzi, pp. 65–117; Longacre, pp. 161, 172–79.</ref>

Stuart headed next for [[Carlisle, Pennsylvania|Carlisle]], hoping to find Ewell. He lobbed a few shells into town during the early evening of July 1 and burned the [[Carlisle Barracks]] before withdrawing to the south towards Gettysburg. He and the bulk of his command reached Lee at Gettysburg the afternoon of July 2. He ordered Wade Hampton to cover the left rear of the Confederate battle lines, and Hampton fought withagainst Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[George Armstrong Custer]] at the [[Battle of Hunterstown]] before joining Stuart at Gettysburg.<ref>Wittenberg and Petruzzi, pp. 139–78; Longacre, pp. 193–202.</ref>

When Stuart arrived at Gettysburg on the afternoon of July 2—bringing with him the caravan of captured Union supply wagons—he received a rare rebuke from Lee. No one witnessed the private meeting between Lee and Stuart, but reports circulated at headquarters that Lee's greeting was "abrupt and frosty." Colonel [[Edward Porter Alexander]] wrote, "Although Lee said only, 'Well, General, you are here at last,' his manner implied rebuke, and it was so understood by Stuart."<ref>Sears, ''Gettysburg'', pp. 257–58. Longacre, pp. 215–16, argues that a bitter confrontation never took place.</ref> On the final day of the battle, Stuart was ordered to move into the enemy's rear and disrupt its line of communications at the same time [[Pickett's Charge]] was sent against the Union positions on [[Cemetery Ridge]], but his attack on [[Battle of Gettysburg, Third Day cavalry battles#East Cavalry Field|East Cavalry Field]] was repelled by Union cavalry under Brig.Brigadier Gens.Generals [[David McMurtrie Gregg|David Gregg]] and [[George Armstrong Custer|George Custer]].<ref>Longacre, ''Cavalry at Gettysburg'', pp. 220–31.</ref>

The Gettysburg Campaign was the most controversial of Stuart's career. He became one of the [[scapegoats]] (along with James Longstreet) blamed for Lee's loss at Gettysburg by proponents of the postbellum [[Lost Cause of the Confederacy|Lost Cause movement]], such as [[Jubal Anderson Early|Jubal Early]].<ref>Coddington, p. 207.</ref> This was fueled in part by opinions of less partisan writers, such as Stuart's subordinate, [[Thomas L. Rosser]], who stated after the war that Stuart did, "on this campaign, ''undoubtedly'', make the fatal blunder which lost us the battle of Gettysburg." In General Lee's report on the campaign, he wrote:

One of the most forceful postbellum defenses of Stuart was by Col.Colonel [[John S. Mosby]], who had served under him during the campaign and was fiercely loyal to the late general, writing, "He made me all that I was in the war. ... But for his friendship I would never have been heard of." He wrote numerous articles for popular publications and published a book length treatise in 1908, a work that relied on his skills as a lawyer to refute categorically all of the claims laid against Stuart.<ref>Wittenberg and Petruzzi, pp. 219–28.</ref>

Historians remain divided on how much the defeat at Gettysburg was due to Stuart’sStuart's failure to keep Lee informed. Edward G. Longacre argues that Lee deliberately gave Stuart wide discretion in his orders. Edwin B. Coddington refers to the "tragedy" of Stuart in the Gettysburg Campaign and judges that when Fitzhugh Lee raised the question of "whether Stuart exercised the discretion ''undoubtedly given to him, judiciously''," the answer is no. Agreeing that Stuart's absence permitted Lee to be surprised at Gettysburg, Coddington points out that the Union commander was just as surprised. Eric J. Wittenberg and J. David Petruzzi have concluded that there was "plenty of blame to go around" and the fault should be divided between Stuart, the lack of specificity in Lee's orders, and Richard S. Ewell, who might have tried harder to link up with Stuart northeast of Gettysburg. [[Jeffry D. Wert]] acknowledges that Lee, his officers, and fighting by the Army of the Potomac bear the responsibility for the Confederate loss at Gettysburg, but states that "Stuart failed Lee and the army in the reckoning at Gettysburg. ... Lee trusted him and gave him discretion, but Stuart acted injudiciously."<ref>Longacre, ''Lee's Cavalrymen'', pp. 215–16; Longacre, ''Cavalry at Gettysburg'', p. 271; Coddington, pp. 205–08; Wittenberg and Petruzzi, pp. 263–98; Wert, pp. 299–302.</ref>

Although Stuart was not reprimandedrebuked or disciplined in any official way for his role in the Gettysburg campaign, it is noteworthy that his appointment to corps command on September 9, 1863, did not carry with it a promotion to [[Lieutenant General (CSA)|lieutenant general]]. Edward Bonekemper wrote that since all other corps commanders in the Army of Northern Virginia carried this rank, Lee's decision to keep Stuart at major general rank, while at the same time promoting Stuart's subordinates [[Wade Hampton III|Wade Hampton]] and [[Fitzhugh Lee]] to major generals, could be considered an implied rebuke.<ref>Bonekemper, p. 139.</ref> Wert wrote that there is no evidence Lee considered Stuart's performance during the Gettysburg Campaign and that it is "more likely that Lee thought the responsibilities in command of a cavalry corps did not equal those of an infantry corps."<ref>Wert, pp. 308–09.</ref>

}} Ewell's corps was sent to rescue him, but Stuart hid his troopers in a wooded ravine until the unsuspecting III Corps moved on, and the assistance was not necessary. As Meade withdrew towards Manassas Junction, brigades from the Union [[II Corps (Union Army)|II Corps]] fought a rearguard action against Stuart's cavalry and the infantry of Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Harry T. Hays|Harry Hays]]'s division near Auburn on October 14. Stuart's cavalry boldly bluffed Warren's infantry and escaped disaster. After the Confederate repulse at [[Battle of Bristoe Station|Bristoe Station]] and an aborted advance on Centreville, Stuart's cavalry shielded the withdrawal of Lee's army from the vicinity of Manassas Junction. Judson Kilpatrick's Union cavalry pursued Stuart's cavalry along the [[U.S. Route 29|Warrenton Turnpike]], but were lured into an ambush near Chestnut Hill and routed. The Federal troopers were scattered and chased five miles (eight&nbsp;km) in an affair that came to be known as the [[Battle of Buckland Mills|"Buckland Races"]]. The Southern press began to mute its criticism of Stuart following his successful performance during the fall campaign.<ref>Wert, pp. 313–21; Davis, pp. 360–67.</ref>

The [[Overland Campaign]], [[Lieutenant general (United States)|Lt.Lieutenant Gen.General]] [[Ulysses S. Grant]]'s offensive against Lee in the spring of 1864, began at the [[Battle of the Wilderness]], where Stuart aggressively pushed Thomas L. Rosser's Laurel Brigade into a fight against George Custer's better-armed Michigan Brigade, resulting in significant losses. General Lee sent a message to Stuart: "It is very important to save your Cavalry & not wear it out. ... You must use your good judgment to make any attack which may offer advantages." As the armies maneuvered toward their next confrontation at [[Battle of Spotsylvania Court House|Spotsylvania Court House]], Stuart's cavalry fought delaying actions against the Union cavalry. His defense at Laurel Hill, also directing the infantry of Brig.Brigadier Gen.General [[Joseph B. Kershaw]], skillfully delayed the advance of the Federal army for nearly 5five critical hours.<ref>Wert, pp. 338–46; Davis, pp. 378–84.</ref>

The commander of the Army of the Potomac, Maj.Major Gen.General [[George Meade]], and his cavalry commander, Maj.Major Gen.General [[Philip Sheridan]], quarreled about the Union cavalry's performance in the first two engagements of the Overland Campaign. Sheridan heatedly asserted that he wanted to "concentrate all of cavalry, move out in force against Stuart's command, and whip it." Meade reported the comments to Grant, who replied, "Did Sheridan say that? Well, he generally knows what he is talking about. Let him start right out and do it." Sheridan immediately organized a raid against Confederate supply and railroad lines close to Richmond, which he knew would bring Stuart to battle.<ref>Wert, p. 346; Davis, p. 384.</ref>

Sheridan moved aggressively to the southeast, crossing the [[North Anna River]] and seizing Beaver Dam Station on the [[Virginia Central Railroad]], where his men captured a train, liberating 3,000 Union prisoners and destroying more than one million rations and medical supplies destined for Lee's army. Stuart dispatched a force of about 3,000 cavalrymen to intercept Sheridan's cavalry, which was more than three times their numbers. As he rode in pursuit, accompanied by his aide, Maj.Major Andrew R. Venable, they were able to stop briefly along the way to be greeted by Stuart's wife, Flora, and his children, Jimmie and Virginia. Venable wrote of Stuart, "He told me he never expected to live through the war, and that if we were conquered, that he did not want to live."<ref>Wert, pp. 346–49.</ref>

The [[Battle of Yellow Tavern]] occurredtook place on May 11, at an abandoned inn located {{convert|6|mi|km|spell=in}} north of Richmond. The Confederate troops resisted from the low ridgeline bordering the road to Richmond, fighting for over three hours. After receiving a scouting report from [[Texas Jack Omohundro]], Stuart led a countercharge and pushed the advancing Union troopers back from the hilltop. Stuart, on horseback, shouted encouragement from in front of Company K of the [[1st Virginia Cavalry]] while firing his revolver at the Union troopers.

[[File:GWDorseyGus W. Dorsey.jpg|thumb|left|165px|Lieutenant Colonel [[Gus W. Dorsey]]]]

As the [[5th Michigan Cavalry]] streamed in retreat past Stuart, a dismounted Union private, 44-year-old John A. Huff, turned and shot Stuart with his .44-caliber revolver from a distance of 10–30 yards.<ref>Smith, p. 242; Salmon, p. 283; Starr, p. 107; Rhea, pp. 209, 390; Thomas, p. 292; Edward G. Longacre, writing in a June 2004 [http://www.historynet.com/wars_conflicts/american_civil_war/3027331.html?page=3&c=y ''Civil War Times'' article], claims that Huff's shot was from {{convert|400|yd}} away, an arguably impressive feat with a pistol; in his book, ''Lincoln's Cavalrymen'' (p. 268), Longacre states that Huff was able to advance "close enough" to Stuart to shoot him in the abdomen, although he was not aware at the time that his victim was Stuart. Private Huff was killed a month later at the [[Battle of Haw's Shop]]. Wert, pp. 347–58, disputes the possibility that Huff fired the mortal shot, stating that the evidence points to an unnamed trooper in either the 1st or 7th Michigan.</ref> Huff'sThe bulletlarge struckcaliber Stuartround in the left side. It then slicedcut through hisStuart's stomachabdomen and exited his back, onean inch to the right of his spine.<ref>Smith, p. 357.</ref> Stuart fell into the arms of Company K's commander, [[Gus W. Dorsey]]. Dorsey caught him and took him from his horse. Stuart told him: "Dorsey...save your men." Dorsey refused to leave him and brought Stuart to the rear.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wYk_AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA236|title=Southern Historical Society Papers|first=Robert Alonzo|last=Brock|date=June 16 June, 2019|publisher=Virginia Historical Society|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0RdRAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA256|title=Glorious War: The Civil War Adventures of George Armstrong Custer|first=Thom|last=Hatch|date=10 December 10, 2013|publisher=Macmillan|isbn=9781250028501|via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D5U3AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA76|title=Confederate Veteran|date=August 8, 1909|publisher=S.A. Cunningham|via=Google Books}}</ref>

HeStuart suffered great pain as an ambulance took him to Richmond to await his wife's arrival at the home of Dr. Charles Brewer, his brother-in-law. As he was being driven from the field in an ambulance wagon, Stuart noticed disorganized ranks of retreating men and called out to them his last words on the battlefield: "Go back, go back, and do your duty, as I have done mine, and our country will be safe. Go back, go back! I had rather die than be whipped."<ref name="McClellan, Henry B 1994">McClellan, Henry B. I Rode with Jeb Stuart: The Life and Campaigns of Maj. Gen. Jeb Stuart. Edited by Burke Davis. New York: Da Capo Press, 1994. {{ISBN|978-0-306-80605-6}}. First published 1958 by Indiana University Press.</ref>

Stuart ordered his sword and spurs be given to his son. As his aide Major McClellan left his side, Confederate President Jefferson Davis came in, took General Stuart's hand, and asked, "General, how do you feel?" Stuart answered "Easy, but willing to die, if God and my country think I have fulfilled my destiny and done my duty."<ref name="McClellan, Henry B 1994" /> His last whispered words were: "I am resigned; God's will be done." He died at 7:38&nbsp;p.m. on May 12, the following day, before Flora Stuart reached his side. He was 31 years old. Stuart was buried in Richmond's [[Hollywood Cemetery (Richmond, Virginia)|Hollywood Cemetery]]. Upon learning of Stuart's death, General Lee is reported to have said that he could hardly keep from weeping at the mere mention of Stuart's name and that Stuart had never given him a bad piece of information.<ref>Smith, p. 244; Wert, pp. 357–62.</ref> John Huff, the private who had fatally wounded Stuart, was killed in action just a few weeks later at the [[Battle of Haw's Shop]].

He died at 7:38&nbsp;p.m. on May 12, the following day, before Flora Stuart reached his side. He was 31 years old. Stuart was buried in Richmond's [[Hollywood Cemetery (Richmond, Virginia)|Hollywood Cemetery]]. Upon learning of Stuart's death, General Lee is reported to have said that he could hardly keep from weeping at the mere mention of Stuart's name and that Stuart had never given him a bad piece of information.<ref>Smith, p. 244; Wert, pp. 357–62.</ref> John Huff, the private who had fatally wounded Stuart, was killed in action just a few weeks later at the [[Battle of Haw's Shop]].

Flora wore the black of mourning for the remainder of her life, and never remarried. She lived in [[Saltville, Virginia]], for 15 years after the war, where she opened and taught at a school in a log cabin. She worked from 1880 to 1898 as principal of the Virginia Female Institute in [[Staunton, Virginia]], a position for which Robert E. Lee had recommended her before his death ten years earlier.<ref>Lee had been a member of the board of visitors of the school in 1865–18701865–70 when he was president of Washington College in nearby Lexington, Virginia. He also had sent two daughters to the school for their educations. Wert, p. 368 for recommendation.</ref> In 1907, the institute was renamed [[Stuart Hall School]] in her honor. Upon the death of her daughter Virginia, from complications in childbirth in 1898, Flora resigned from the institute and moved to [[Norfolk, Virginia]], where she helped Virginia's widower, Robert Page Waller, in raising her grandchildren.

She died in Norfolk on May 10, 1923, after striking her head in a fall on a city sidewalk. She is buried alongside her husband and their daughter, Little Flora, in [[Hollywood Cemetery (Richmond, Virginia)|Hollywood Cemetery]] in Richmond.<ref>Wert, pp. 368–69.</ref>

Like his intimate friend, [[Stonewall Jackson]], General J. E. B. Stuart was a legendary figure and is considered one of the greatest cavalry commanders in American history. His friend from his federal army days, Union Maj.Major Gen.General [[John Sedgwick]], said that Stuart was "the greatest cavalry officer ever foaled in America."<ref>Wert, pp. 371–72.</ref> Jackson and Stuart, both of whom were killed in battle, had colorful public images, although the latter's seems to have been more deliberately crafted. Wert wrote about Stuart:

Stuart's birthplace, Laurel Hill, located in [[Patrick County, Virginia]], was purchased by the J.E.B. Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust, Inc., in 1992 to preserve and interpret it.<ref>[http://www.freestateofpatrick.com/Laurelhill Laurel Hill website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090923232809/http://www.freestateofpatrick.com/Laurelhill |date=2009-09-September 23, 2009 }}.</ref> In December 2006, a personal Confederate battle flag, sewn by Flora Stuart, was sold in a [[Heritage Auctions|Heritage]] Auction for $956,000 (including buyer's premium), a world-record price for any Confederate flag, for $956,000 (including buyer's premium).<ref>''Antique Trader'', December 27, 2006, p1, p. 15 ([https://archive.today/20120527055749/http://americana.heritageauctions.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=642&Lot_No=25448&type= online auction site])</ref> The 34-inch by 34-inch flag was hand-sewn for Stuart by Flora in 1862, and Stuart carried it into some of his most famous battles.

AThe [[J. E. B. Stuart Monument|]], a statue of Stuart]], by sculptor [[Frederick Moynihan]], used to occupy a space on Richmond's [[Monument Avenue]] at Stuart Circle. Originally dedicated in 1907, the statueit was removed on July 7, 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Richmond removes statue of Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/richmond-removing-statue-confederate-gen-jeb-stuart-71646648|access-date=2021-10-October 25, 2021|website=ABC News|language=en}}</ref>

[[File:M3 Stuart 001.jpg|thumb|left|[[M3 Stuart|M3A1 Stuart tank]]|alt=]]

A middle school in [[Jacksonville, Florida]], is named for him.<ref>Peterson, p. 353.</ref> A [[J.E.B. Stuart High School|high school]] named after him on [[Munson's Hill]] in [[Falls Church, Virginia]], opened in 1959.<ref name="WTOP 201707">{{cite news|url=http://wtop.com/fairfax-county/2017/07/stuart-high-school-name-change/slide/1/|title=Fairfax high school boots Confederate name after years of debate|last=Basch|first=Michelle|date=July 27, 2017|access-date=2017-08-August 17, 2017|publisher=WTOP|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170817214833/http://wtop.com/fairfax-county/2017/07/stuart-high-school-name-change/slide/1/|archive-date=August 17, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> In early 2017, Fairfax County Public Schools established an Ad Hoc Working Committee to assist the Fairfax County School Board in determining whether to rename the Stuart High School in Virginia, in response to suggestions from students and local community members that FCPS should not continue to honor a Confederate general who fought in support of a cause dedicated to maintaining the institution of slavery in Virginia and other states. The creation of the committee followed the circulation of a petition started by actress [[Julianne Moore]] and [[Bruce Cohen]] in 2016, which garnered over 35,000 signatures in support of changing the school's name to one honoring the late [[United States Supreme Court Justice]] [[Thurgood Marshall]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/24/us/julianne-moore-petition-j-e-b-stuart-school-feat/index.html|title=Julianne Moore: Rename my high school|author=Brandon Griggs|website=CNN|date=24 August 24, 2015 }}</ref>

On June 18, 2018, the school board for [[Richmond Public Schools]] in Richmond, Virginia, voted 6–1 to rename J. E. B. Stuart Elementary School to Barack Obama Elementary School. On June 12, 2018, students of the school were given the opportunity to narrow down the choices for renaming the school from seven to three. Northside Elementary received 190 votes, Barack Obama Elementary earned 166 votes, and Wishtree Elementary received 127 votes. From there, the administration of Richmond Public Schools recommended to the school board that it rename the school after [[Barack Obama]]. [[Jason Kamras|Superintendent Jason Kamras]] said, "It's incredibly powerful that in the capital of the Confederacy, where we had a school named for an individual who fought to maintain slavery, that now we're renaming that school after the first black president. A lot of our kids, and our kids at J. E. B. Stuart, see themselves in Barack Obama." The student population of the newly named Barack Obama Elementary School is made up of more than 90 percent African-American children.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.richmond.com/news/local/education/richmond-s-j-e-b-stuart-elementary-school-honoring-a/article_aceff88e-9404-5b31-8434-bb5b960421e2.html|title=Richmond's J.E.B. Stuart Elementary School — honoring a Confederate — will be renamed for Barack Obama|last=Times-Dispatch|first=JUSTIN MATTINGLY Richmond|work=Richmond Times-Dispatch|access-date=2018-08-August 18, 2018|language=en}}</ref>

[[Stuart Hall School]] is a [[Staunton, Virginia]], co-educational school for students from pre-kindergarten to Grade 12, and it offers a boarding program from Grades 8 to 12. It was renamed in 1907 in honor of its most famous headmistress, Mrs. Gen. Flora Cooke Stuart, the widow of Confederate cavalry leader Maj. Gen. J. E. B. Stuart.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stuart Hall School - Stuart Hall School|url=https://www.stuarthallschool.org/|access-date=January 2, 2021-01-02|website=www.stuarthallschool.org|language=en-US}}</ref>

*[[Errol Flynn]] played Stuart in the movie ''[[Santa Fe Trail (film)|Santa Fe Trail]]'', depicting his antebellum life, confronting John Brown in Kansas and at Harper's Ferry.<ref>{{Cite Thenews|last=Schallert movie has become infamous for its many historical inaccuracies|first=Edwin|title=Howard, oneDrew ofto whichShare wasSpotlight that Stuart,in 'Rangers'|work=[[GeorgeLos ArmstrongAngeles CusterTimes]]|date=April (portrayed by [[Ronald Reagan]] in the film)13, and [[Philip Sheridan]] were firm friends and all attended West Point together in 1854.1940|page=14}}</ref>

* Longacre, Edward G. ''The Cavalry at Gettysburg: A Tactical Study of Mounted Operations during the Civil War's Pivotal Campaign, 9 June 9&ndash;14 July 14, 1863''. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1986. {{ISBN|978-0-8032-7941-4}}.

* [[James I. Robertson, Jr.|Robertson, James I., Jr.]] ''Stonewall Jackson: The Man, The Soldier, The Legend''. New York: Simon & Schuster Macmillan, 1997. {{ISBN|978-0-02-864685-5}}.

{{Wikisource1911EncEB1911 poster|Stuart, James Ewell Brown}} <!-- See Erasmus Darwin Wikipedia entry -->

[[Category:WitnessesAmerican toslave John Brown's executionowners]]