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ML_rosecrans_bkp.htm
Maj. Gen. William Starke Rosecrans
Old Resentments And A Tactical Blunder Eclipsed A Brilliant Military Career
By Bethanne Kelly Patrick
Military.com Columnist
The bow-legged, hard-drinking, micro-managing William Starke Rosecrans had just been given command of the Union’s XIV Corps and promoted to major general. He had won significant battles in Mississippi at Iuka and Corinth, and his promotion was backdated to March 1862 so that he would outrank Maj. Gen. George Thomas. One of the top graduates in the U.S. Military Academy class of 1842 (he roomed with future foe James Longstreet), in late 1862 Rosecrans seemed destined for greatness.
However, Rosecrans harbored resentments that would affect the rest of his career. Gen. George McClellan, then commanding the Army of the Potomac, won credit for the victory at Rich Mountain -- a battle that Rosecrans had planned, developed, and carried out. Requesting a transfer to the west, Rosecrans found himself at odds with the General-in-Chief of the Union Armies, Ulysses S. Grant, over the Battle of Corinth. Rosecrans blamed Grant for not sending reinforcements, and Grant blamed his subordinate for not pursuing the Confederates.
Still, Grant saw to “Old Rosy’s” promotion, and the new major general lost no time in securing another victory. On Dec. 27, 1862, Rosecrans took the first steps in what would become a major Union win over Gen. Braxton Bragg’s Army of Tennessee at Stones River (Murfreesboro). He then lost no time in reorganizing XIV Corps into the Army of the Cumberland and embarked upon the Tullahoma campaign, succeeding in his mission to drive Bragg out of Tennessee.
Unfortunately, once Bragg was forced out of his base at Chattanooga, he turned. By the time he and Rosecrans met at Chickamauga creek in 1863, he had gained reinforcements from Longstreet and Gen. John Bell Hood. Rosecrans blundered by issuing Gen. Thomas Wood the order "to close in and support his left," creating a hole in the Union line. While Thomas's forces held part of the line, Rosecrans mounted his horse and became part of his army's retreat.
Now the bad feelings his fellow officers had for Rosecrans came into play. He was shown no mercy for his tactical error. Relieved of command after the battle, Rosecrans remained on active duty until 1867, nominally part of the Department of Missouri and officially on "sick leave." He had had real success earlier in life as a geological engineer and inventor, and on retirement, he resumed a business career. He later became U.S. minister to Mexico, served as a congressman from California, and became register of the U.S. Treasury. Rosecrans died in 1898 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. |
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