The 1st Texas Infantry Regiment, nicknamed the "Ragged Old First," was an infantry regiment raised in Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

 for service in the Confederate States Army

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 during the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...

.

The 1st Texas Infantry Regiment was assembled at Richmond, Virginia

Richmond, Virginia

Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...

, in August, 1861, with ten companies from Marion

Marion County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 10,941 people, 4,610 households, and 3,120 families residing in the county. The population density was 29 people per square mile . There were 6,384 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile...

, Cass

Cass County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 30,438 people, 12,190 households, and 8,654 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile . There were 13,890 housing units at an average density of 15 per square mile...

, Polk, Houston

Houston County, Texas

Houston County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2000, the population was 23,185. Its county seat is Crockett. Houston County is named for Samuel Houston, a president of the Republic of Texas and Governor of Texas...

, Harrison

Harrison County, Texas

Harrison County is a county of the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 62,110. It is named for Jonas Harrison, a lawyer and Texas revolutionary. It is located in the Ark-La-Tex region...

, Tyler, Anderson

Anderson County, Texas

Anderson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of 2000, the population was 55,109. Its county seat is Palestine. Anderson county was organized in 1846, and is named in honor of Kenneth L. Anderson who had been Vice President of the Republic of Texas.-Geography:According to the...

, Cherokee

Cherokee County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 46,659 people, 16,651 households, and 12,105 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile . There were 19,173 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile...

, Sabine, San Augustine

San Augustine County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 8,946 people, 3,575 households, and 2,520 families residing in the county. The population density was 17 people per square mile . There were 5,356 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile...

, Newton

Newton County, Texas

Newton County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of Texas. In of 2000, its population was 15,072. Its county seat is Newton. Newton county is named for John Newton, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War...

, and Nacogdoches

Nacogdoches County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 59,203 people, 22,006 households, and 14,039 families residing in the county. The population density was 62 people per square mile . There were 25,051 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...

 counties. Later two companies from Galveston

Galveston County, Texas

Galveston County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population was 291,309. Its county seat is Galveston. League City is the largest city in Galveston County in terms of population; between...

 and Trinity County were added to the command. Part of Hood's Texas Brigade

Texas Brigade

The Texas Brigade, also often referred to as Hood's Brigade, was an infantry brigade in the Confederate States Army that distinguished itself for its fierce tenacity and fighting capability during the American Civil War.-Organization:...

, it served under Generals Hood

John Bell Hood

John Bell Hood was a Confederate general during the American Civil War. Hood had a reputation for bravery and aggressiveness that sometimes bordered on recklessness...

, J.B. Robertson

Jerome B. Robertson

Jerome Bonaparte Robertson was a doctor, Indian fighter, Texas politician, and a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...

, and John Gregg

John Gregg (CSA)

John Gregg was an American judge, politician, and general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action during the Siege of Petersburg.-Early life and career:...

. The regiment fought with the Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...

 from Seven Pines

Battle of Seven Pines

The Battle of Seven Pines, also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks or Fair Oaks Station, took place on May 31 and June 1, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of an offensive up the Virginia Peninsula by Union Maj. Gen....

 to Cold Harbor

Battle of Cold Harbor

The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought from May 31 to June 12, 1864 . It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign during the American Civil War, and is remembered as one of American history's bloodiest, most lopsided battles...

 except when it was detached with Longstreet

James Longstreet

James Longstreet was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse." He served under Lee as a corps commander for many of the famous battles fought by the Army of Northern Virginia in the...

 at Suffolk

Suffolk, Virginia

Suffolk is the largest city by area in Virginia, United States, and is located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 84,585. Its median household income was $57,546.-History:...

, Chickamauga

Battle of Chickamauga

The Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19–20, 1863, marked the end of a Union offensive in southeastern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia called the Chickamauga Campaign...

, and Knoxville

Knoxville Campaign

The Knoxville Campaign was a series of American Civil War battles and maneuvers in East Tennessee during the fall of 1863. Union forces under Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside occupied Knoxville, Tennessee, and Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. James Longstreet were detached from Gen...

. It was involved in the Petersburg

Siege of Petersburg

The Richmond–Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War...

 siege north and south of the James River

James River

The James River may refer to:Rivers in the United States and their namesakes* James River * James River , North Dakota, South Dakota* James River * James River * James River...

 and later the Appomattox Campaign

Appomattox Campaign

The Appomattox Campaign was a series of battles fought March 29 – April 9, 1865, in Virginia that culminated in the surrender of Confederate General Robert E...

. This unit had 477 effectives in April, 1862 and lost 186 of the 226 engaged at Sharpsburg

Battle of Antietam

The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with about 23,000...

, a casualty rate of 82.3% percent. This staggering casualty rate was the highest suffered by any regiment, North or South,on a single day, during the entire war. In incurring these losses during ferocious fighting in Miller's cornfield it was the only time in the entire war that one of the Texas Brigade regiments lost a battle flag which was picked up by federal troops when they re-occupied the cornfield, the First Texas having previously withdrawn without noticing the loss of their flag.

The highest number of caualties, on the other hand, was suffered by the 26th North Carolina Infantry at the battle of Gettysburg

Battle of Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...

. They suffered 72% casualties out of the 820 engaged. The 1st Texas suffered more than twenty percent of the 426 during the same engagement. It surrendered with 16 officers and 133 men. The field officers were Colonels Frederick S. Bass, Hugh McLeod, Alexis T. Rainey, and Louis T. Wigfall

Louis Wigfall

Louis Trezevant Wigfall was an American politician from Texas who served as a member of the Texas Legislature, United States Senate, and Confederate Senate. Wigfall was among a group of leading secessionists known as Fire-Eaters, advocating the preservation and expansion of an aristocratic...

; Lieutenant Colonels Harvey H. Black, Albert G. Clopton, R.J. Harding, and P.A. Work; and Majors Matt. Dale and John R. Woodward.