Pierce M. B. Young
Encyclopedia
Pierce Manning Butler Young (November 15, 1836 – July 6, 1896) was a major general in the Confederate States Army
during the American Civil War
and a post-war politician, diplomat, and four-term United States Congressman from Georgia
.
. His father, Dr. R. M. Young, was a son of Capt. William Young, a soldier in the American Revolution
under George Washington
. When Pierce was a small boy, his father moved to Bartow County, Georgia
, and enlisted private tutors for his children. At the age of thirteen, Young entered the Georgia Military Institute in Marietta
, and graduated in 1856. He subsequently briefly studied law. In 1857, he was appointed to the United States Military Academy
, but resigned only two months before graduation due to Georgia's secession
.
regiment, but declined that commission for the same rank in the artillery
. In July, he was promoted to first lieutenant and was attached to the staff of General Braxton Bragg
at Pensacola, Florida
. He was at the same time aide-de-camp
to Gen. W. H. T. Walker. In July, Young was appointed adjutant of the Georgia Legion, better known as Cobb's Legion
, and was promoted to major
in September and to lieutenant colonel
in November, commanding the cavalry
portion of the legion.
Young's cavalry was attached to Wade Hampton's
's brigade
of J.E.B. Stuart
's cavalry division in the Army of Northern Virginia
in 1862. He was distinguished for "remarkable gallantry," as Stuart expressed it, in the Maryland Campaign
. Promoted to colonel
, he rendered brilliant service at the Battle of Brandy Station
and participated in the cavalry operations of the Gettysburg Campaign
. In early August, he was wounded in another fight near Brandy Station. In October, he was promoted to brigadier general and assigned command of Hampton's old brigade, consisting of the 1st and 2nd South Carolina cavalry regiments, the Cobb Legion, Jeff Davis Legion and Phillips Legion. He was actively engaged during the Bristoe
and Mine Run Campaigns, where on October 12, 1863, by adroit maneuvering, he compelled an enemy division to recross the Rappahannock River
. An admiring Stuart reported, "The defeat of an expedition which might have proved so embarrassing entitles the officers who effected it to the award of distinguished skill and generalship."
In 1864, Young played a prominent part in the Overland Campaign
in Virginia
, and when Hampton assumed command of the cavalry after Stuart's death at Yellow Tavern, he temporarily took Hampton's place as division commander. In November, Young was sent to Augusta
to gather reinforcements and aid in the defense of that city, threatened by William T. Sherman. Promoted to major general in December, he was actively engaged in the defense of Savannah and the 1865 campaign in the Carolinas under General Hampton until the close of the war.
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...
and a post-war politician, diplomat, and four-term United States Congressman from Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
.
Early life and career
Young was born at Spartanburg, South CarolinaSpartanburg, South Carolina
thgSpartanburg is the largest city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region of South Carolina, and is located northwest of Columbia, west of Charlotte, and about northeast of...
. His father, Dr. R. M. Young, was a son of Capt. William Young, a soldier in the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
under George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
. When Pierce was a small boy, his father moved to Bartow County, Georgia
Bartow County, Georgia
Bartow County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 100,157. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's July 1, 2009 estimate, the county's explosive growth resulted in a population of 96,217, a 26.5% increase in less than ten years...
, and enlisted private tutors for his children. At the age of thirteen, Young entered the Georgia Military Institute in Marietta
Marietta, Georgia
Marietta is a city located in central Cobb County, Georgia, United States, and is its county seat.As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 56,579, making it one of metro Atlanta's largest suburbs...
, and graduated in 1856. He subsequently briefly studied law. In 1857, he was appointed to the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
, but resigned only two months before graduation due to Georgia's secession
Secession
Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...
.
Civil War
Returning home in early 1861, he was appointed second lieutenant in the 1st Georgia Infantry1st Georgia Infantry
The 1st Georgia Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.-History:The regiment was first organized May 1, 1862, with men recruited from Fulton and other counties. The companies first named were twelve months' troops , a majority re-enlisting for...
regiment, but declined that commission for the same rank in the artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
. In July, he was promoted to first lieutenant and was attached to the staff of General Braxton Bragg
Braxton Bragg
Braxton Bragg was a career United States Army officer, and then a general in the Confederate States Army—a principal commander in the Western Theater of the American Civil War and later the military adviser to Confederate President Jefferson Davis.Bragg, a native of North Carolina, was...
at Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
. He was at the same time aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
to Gen. W. H. T. Walker. In July, Young was appointed adjutant of the Georgia Legion, better known as Cobb's Legion
Cobb's Legion
Cobb's Legion was an American Civil War unit that was raised on the Confederate side from the State of Georgia by Thomas Reade Rootes Cobb during the summer of 1861. A "legion" consisted of a single integrated command, with individual components from the infantry, cavalry, and artillery...
, and was promoted to major
Major (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
in September and to lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
in November, commanding the cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
portion of the legion.
Young's cavalry was attached to Wade Hampton's
Wade Hampton III
Wade Hampton III was a Confederate cavalry leader during the American Civil War and afterward a politician from South Carolina, serving as its 77th Governor and as a U.S...
's brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
of J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general 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...
's cavalry division in 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...
in 1862. He was distinguished for "remarkable gallantry," as Stuart expressed it, in the Maryland Campaign
Maryland Campaign
The Maryland Campaign, or the Antietam Campaign is widely considered one of the major turning points of the American Civil War. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North was repulsed by Maj. Gen. George B...
. Promoted to colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
, he rendered brilliant service at the Battle of Brandy Station
Battle of Brandy Station
The Battle of Brandy Station, also called the Battle of Fleetwood Hill, was the largest predominantly cavalry engagement of the American Civil War, as well as the largest to take place ever on American soil. It was fought at the beginning of the Gettysburg Campaign by the Union cavalry under Maj....
and participated in the cavalry operations of the Gettysburg Campaign
Gettysburg Campaign
The Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for offensive operations in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...
. In early August, he was wounded in another fight near Brandy Station. In October, he was promoted to brigadier general and assigned command of Hampton's old brigade, consisting of the 1st and 2nd South Carolina cavalry regiments, the Cobb Legion, Jeff Davis Legion and Phillips Legion. He was actively engaged during the Bristoe
Bristoe Campaign
The Bristoe Campaign was a series of minor battles fought in Virginia during October and November 1863, in the American Civil War. Maj. Gen. George G. Meade, commanding the Union Army of the Potomac, began to maneuver in an unsuccessful attempt to defeat Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern...
and Mine Run Campaigns, where on October 12, 1863, by adroit maneuvering, he compelled an enemy division to recross the Rappahannock River
Rappahannock River
The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...
. An admiring Stuart reported, "The defeat of an expedition which might have proved so embarrassing entitles the officers who effected it to the award of distinguished skill and generalship."
In 1864, Young played a prominent part in the Overland Campaign
Overland Campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union armies, directed the actions of the Army of the...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, and when Hampton assumed command of the cavalry after Stuart's death at Yellow Tavern, he temporarily took Hampton's place as division commander. In November, Young was sent to Augusta
Augusta, Georgia
Augusta is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. As of the 2010 census, the Augusta–Richmond County population was 195,844 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.Augusta is the principal city of the Augusta-Richmond County...
to gather reinforcements and aid in the defense of that city, threatened by William T. Sherman. Promoted to major general in December, he was actively engaged in the defense of Savannah and the 1865 campaign in the Carolinas under General Hampton until the close of the war.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals