William Barksdale | |
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| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMississippi's3rd district | |
| In office March 4, 1855 – January 21, 1861 | |
| Preceded by | Otho R. Singleton |
| Succeeded by | Henry Barry |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromMississippi'sat-large district | |
| In office March 4, 1853 – March 3, 1855 | |
| Preceded by | no at-large seats |
| Succeeded by | 3rd Congressional District established |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1821-08-21)August 21, 1821 |
| Died | July 3, 1863(1863-07-03) (aged 41) |
| Resting place | Greenwood Cemetery Jackson,Mississippi |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Profession | Newspaper editor, soldier |
| Nickname | "Old Barks"[1] |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America Confederate States of America |
| Branch/service |  United States Army Confederate States Army |
| Years of service | 1847–1848 (USA) 1861–1863 (CSA) |
| Rank |  Captain (USA) Brigadier General (CSA) |
| Unit | 2nd Mississippi Infantry (USA) |
| Commands | 13th Mississippi Infantry (CSA) Barksdale's Mississippi Brigade |
| Battles/wars | Mexican–American War American Civil War |
William Barksdale (August 21, 1821 – July 3, 1863) was an American lawyer, newspaper editor,U.S. Representative, andConfederategeneral in theAmerican Civil War. He served four terms as Mississippi's 3rd district's member of theU.S. House of Representatives, from 1853 to 1861.
A staunchsecessionist, he was mortally wounded during theBattle of Gettysburg during an attack onU.S. Army forces nearCemetery Ridge.
William Barksdale was born inSmyrna, Tennessee, the son of William Barksdale and Nancy Hervey Lester Barksdale. Barksdale was the older brother ofEthelbert Barksdale, who would serve in both theantebellum U.S. Congress representing Mississippi's 7th district and then join theConfederate States Congress during the American Civil War. The Barksdales were of English ancestry and came to America during the 1600s.[2]
Barksdale graduated from theUniversity of Nashville and practiced law inMississippi from the age of 21, but gave up his practice to become the editor of theColumbus [Mississippi] Democrat, a pro-slavery newspaper.[3]
Barksdale enlisted in the2nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment and served in theMexican–American War as acaptain andquartermaster, but often participated in theinfantry fighting as well.[citation needed]
After the war, Barksdale became active in politics, advocating for theCompromise of 1850. His political visibility and recent military service gave him a strong profile as a political candidate. In 1852, he successfully ran for a seat in theU.S. House of Representatives. Barksdale would win re-election, serving four terms from 1853 to 1861.[3]
Representing Mississippi, Barksdale quickly immersed himself in the national debates over slavery, representing the pro-white position. Barksdale was also a strong supporter of low tariffs, another hotly debated issue of the day.<[3]
Barksdale was considered to be one of the most ardent of all the "Fire-Eaters" in the House and became known as one who would quickly resort to fisticuffs when the temperature of the debate grew hotter.[3] Barksdale allegedly stood by the side of RepresentativePreston S. Brooks as BrooksattackedMassachusettsabolitionistSenatorCharles Sumner in the Senate chamber with a cane, although he was not one of the members that the House tried to censure after the incident.
Before the American Civil War, Barksdale inadvertently helped stop one of the most notorious incidents of violence in U.S. legislative history. On February 5, 1858, a brawl between pro- and anti-slavery legislators started on the House floor. During the melee, Barksdale swung at Illinois congressmanElihu Washburne. Washburne's brotherCadwallader, a Wisconsin congressman, grabbed at Barksdale such that it knocked his wig off. An embarrassed Barksdale put it back on backward, causing both sides to break out laughing and stopping the fight.[4]
Barksdale was a slave owner. His legal and newspaper work and marriage to a wealthy family made Barksdale relatively wealthy. Contemporary reports indicate that by 1860, he owned 36 slaves and a large plantation.[3]
After Mississippi declaredsecession, Barksdale resigned from Congress to becomeadjutant general, and then quartermaster general, of theMississippi Militia, at the rank ofbrigadier general, with a March 1, 1861, date of rank. On May 1, Barksdale was appointedcolonel in theConfederate States Army of the13th Mississippi Infantry Regiment, leading it in theFirst Battle of Bull Run that summer and theBattle of Ball's Bluff in October. The following spring, Barksdale took the regiment to theVirginia Peninsula and fought in thePeninsula Campaign and theSeven Days Battles. The brigade commander, Brig. Gen.Richard Griffith, was mortally wounded at theBattle of Savage's Station on June 29, 1862. Barksdale assumed command of the brigade and led it in a bloody and futile charge at theBattle of Malvern Hill. The brigade became known as "Barksdale's Mississippi Brigade." He was promoted to brigadier general on August 12, 1862.
In theNorthern Virginia Campaign, Barksdale's brigade was stationed atHarpers Ferry and thus did not participate in theSecond Battle of Bull Run. In theMaryland Campaign, the brigade was assigned to the division ofMaj. Gen.Lafayette McLaws inLt. Gen.James Longstreet's First Corps of theArmy of Northern Virginia. It was one of the brigades that attacked Maryland Heights, leading to the surrender of theU.S. Army garrison atHarpers Ferry. At the subsequentBattle of Antietam, McLaws's Division defended the West Woods against the assault by Maj. Gen.John Sedgwick's division, defending the Confederate left flank. At theBattle of Fredericksburg, Barksdale's brigade defended the waterfront of the city from U.S. soldiers attempting to cross theRappahannock River, sniping at infantry and engineers from buildings that had been turned into rubble by U.S. artillery.[5]
At theBattle of Chancellorsville in May 1863, Barksdale's brigade was one of the few units in James Longstreet's Corps that was present at the battle; most of the corps was detached for duty inSuffolk, Virginia. Once again, Barksdale's brigade defended the heights above Fredericksburg, this time against his previous adversary, Sedgwick, whoseVI Corps was over ten times the size of the brigade. Sedgwick's assault was successful, and Barksdale pulled back after delaying the U.S. forces, but he rallied the brigade and retook the lost ground the next day.
At the Battle of Gettysburg, Barksdale's brigade arrived with McLaws's Division after the first day of battle, July 1, 1863. The plan from GeneralRobert E. Lee was for Longstreet's Corps to maneuver into position and attack northeast, up the Emmitsburg Road, to roll up the U.S. left flank on July 2. Barksdale's sector of the attack placed him directly at the tip of the salient in the U.S. line anchored at thePeach Orchard, defended by the U.S.III Corps. At about 5:30 p.m., Barksdale's brigade burst from the woods and assaulted the line, described as one of the most breathtaking spectacles of the war. A U.S. Army colonel said, "It was the grandest charge that was ever made by mortal man."[6] Although Barksdale ordered subordinate commanders to walk during the charge, he rode on horseback "in front, leading the way, hat off, his wispy hair shining so that it reminded [a Confederate staff officer] of 'the white plume ofNavarre'."[7]
On July 2, 1863, the Confederates attacked the U.S. Army brigade defending the Peach Orchard line, wounding and capturing the brigade commander himself. Some of Barksdale's regiments turned to the north and shattered Maj. Gen.Andrew A. Humphreys's division. Others of Barksdale's regiments went straight ahead. By the time the Confederates had gone as far as Plum Run, a mile into the assault, a brigade under U.S. ColonelGeorge L. Willard counterattacked. Barksdale was wounded in his left knee, followed by a cannonball to his left foot, and finally was hit by another bullet to his chest, knocking him off his horse. Surprisingly, the two bullet wounds he suffered were from members of a New York brigade which his brigade had captured atHarpers Ferry in 1862. Barksdale told an aide, W.R. Boyd, "I am killed! Tell my wife and children that I died fighting at my post."[8] Barksdale's troops left him for dead on the field, and he died the next morning, on July 3, in a U.S. field hospital (the Joseph Hummelbaugh farmhouse). He was initially buried under a tree in the yard of the farmhouse. His wooden headstone had the words “Brigadier General Barksdale of Mississippi McLaw’s Division, Longstreet’s Corps Died on the morning of 3rd July, 1863 Eight years a representative in United States Congress. Shot through the left breast, and leg broken below the knee.”[1]
After the war, in January 1867, Barksdale's remains were exhumed and sent to South Carolina;[1] then, later interred in the Barksdale family plot ofGreenwood Cemetery,Jackson, Mississippi, with no marker, but he hascenotaphs in both Greenwood Cemetery and inFriendship Cemetery,Columbus, Mississippi.[8][1]
Barksdale is portrayed in the filmGettysburg and in theprequel,Gods and Generals, byLester Kinsolving, who is a relative of Barksdale.
Barksdale is also featured in the 2011 History Channel filmGettysburg.
The streets in the Potomac Crossing subdivision in Leesburg, Virginia, are named (in part) after the regimental commanders of theBattle of Ball's Bluff (October 21, 1861). Barksdale Drive, named for Barksdale, is the primary east-west conduit in the development, running just short of a mile to either end of the neighborhood.
Media related toWilliam Barksdale at Wikimedia Commons| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by Vacant | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMississippi's at-large congressional district 1853–1855 | Succeeded by District established |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMississippi's 3rd congressional district 1855–1859 | Succeeded by |
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