USA > Virginia > History of the German element in Virginia, Vol. II > Part 7
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D. Klein
E. Crehen
A. Krezmarcz
H. Demler
Wilh. Loeffler
C. W. Dow
B. Momonthy
O. Ericson
J. D. Nauk
- Feldner
H. Rodenkirchen
G. Freitenstein
- Robert
Emil Fischer
Henry Schott
J. Fritz
D. Schoenfeldt
E. A. Flemhardt
C. Schulze
L. Gallmeyer
Julius Schultz
.J. C. Ganter
J. Grom
John J. Spilling Chs. Spott
217.) From a "muster-roll" in possession of the author.
L. Binda
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M. Stoll C. W. Thilow
F. Verspohl F. Warnicke
H. Wenton John Werner J. Wittman
Capt. J. Herbig, formerly a Lieutenant in the Bavarian army, recruited a German "Infirmary or Sanitary Company," but the muster-roll of this troop is lost.
Several German-Virginians occupied very prominent posi- tions in the Confederate army, as :
James L. Kemper, Brig. General of Pickett's Division.
Louis A. Armistead, do
D. C. Kemper, Brig. General Confederate Artillery.
J. N. Adenbousch, Col. of 2nd Virginia Infantry, Stonewall Brigade.
D. A. Weisiger, Col. of 12th Va. Inf. Regiment, Mahon's Brigade.
John S. Hoffman, Col. of 31st Va. Inf. Regiment, Smith's Brigade.
- Neff, Col. of 33d Va. Inf. Regiment.
- Harper, and later J. H. S. Funk, Col. of 5th Va. Inf. Regiment, Stonewall Brigade.
Capt. Buckner, commanding 44th Va. Inf. Regiment, Jones' Brigade.
Col. Harman, of 52nd Va. Inf. Regmt., Gen. Stonewall Jackson's Corps.
Col. Rust, of Gen. Stonewall Jackson's Corps.
V. D. Groner, Col. of 61st Va. Inf. Regmt., Mahone's Brigade.
Maj. John Harman, Chief Quartermaster of Stonewall Brigade.
- Sheetz, Capt. of Independent Troop of Horse, Gen. Jack- son's Corps.
Capts. Schumaker and Carpenter, commanding batteries, Gen. Stonewall Jackson's Corps.
Heros von Borke, Col. and Chief of Staff of Gen. Stuart's Cavalry Corps.
Captain - Schubert, Engineer Officer in General Rob't E. Lee's staff.
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Gustav Adolph Schwarzmann, Colonel and Adjutant-Gen- eral of Gen. Albert Pike.
G. A. Peple, Major and Professor at Conf. Navy School. E. von Buchholz, Captain of Ordinance, Wise Legion.
Dr. Max Roemer, Major of Wise Legion.
- Tucker. Captain and Aide-de-Camp of Gen. Fitzhugh Lee.
- von Massow, Aide-de-Camp of Gen. Mosby ; and although not a native of Germany or Virginia, but of German descent.
Carl Friedrich Henningsen, Brig. General and second in command of Wise Legion.
The following biographies of these officers include all reli- able information that could be procured.
James Lawson Kemper, whose family history has been given in Vol. I, Chapter 4, studied law. In the year 1847 President Polk appointed him Captain of Volunteers, and he took part with honor in the Mexican War. After his return he repre- sented his native county in the Legislature, and the Virginia Convention appointed him Colonel of the 7th Virginia Infantry Regmt. after the secession of the State. He was commissioned Brig. General after the battle of Williamsburg, May 5th, 1862, and fought with distinction in many bloody engagements. On the second day of the battle of Gettysburg Pickett's division had its grand day of honor and death, and Gen. Kemper was one of the victims of the struggle ; he was carried from the field badly wounded. On May 1st, 1864, he was appointed Major- General and placed in command of the forces for the defence of Richmond. The army of Northern Virginia having surren- dered at Appomattox Court House, General Kemper returned to his law office in Madison county and issued a farewell address to his old brigade. "It is the most painful duty of my life," he said in that paper, "to sever the relations which for three years have harmoniously united us; which have carried us together through memorable and fiery trials, and have bound you to my heart with ties stronger than hooks of steel." From 1873-'78 Gen. Kemper was Governor of the State, and then he retired with his family to Orange Court House, honored and loved by his fellow citizens. He died in 1895.
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Gen. David A. Weisiger, a veteran of two wars, the hero of the battle of the Crater and a successful business man, was born Dec. 23d, 1818, at "The Grove," the ancestral home in Chesterfield county. His paternal grandfather was Samuel Weisiger, who came from Germany of a family prominent for military achievements; he was a relative of Colonel Willian Smith, of Revolutionary fame, and of the ancient Mayo family of Richmond. He was partner in the firm Rowlett, Weisiger & Tanner, at Petersburg, when the Mexican War began, and soon became second lieutenant of Company E, First Regiment of Virginia Volunteers. While in Mexico Weisiger was appointed adjutant of his regiment, and he made a proud record during the war. On his return home he connected himself again with the commission business, and when the Civil War commenced · he enlisted at once, was elected Major of the Fourth Virginia Battalion organized at Petersburg, and promoted Colonel of the Twelfth Virginia. After the battle. of the Crater, July 30th, 1864, in which he commanded Mahone's Brigade, of which the Twelfth Regiment was a part, he was commissioned Brigadier- General. Gen. Weisiger was one of the most gallant officers of the Confederate army, of great dash and approved courage. He commanded his regiment and also his brigade in many of the leading battles and was wounded several times. After the war he entered in Richmond in business and died there Feb- ruary 22nd, 1899.
General Louis A. Armistead was born at Newbern, N. C., on the 18th of February, 1817. In 1839 he was commissioned all officer in the U. S. Army. Ile distinguished himself in the Mexican War, and at the time Virginia seceded he entered the Confederate service. Gen. Armistead commanded a brigade of Pickett's famous division, was mortally wounded at Gettysburg and died a prisoner of war. His personal courage was of the truest temper. He descended of a German family, which has previously been mentioned with distinction, and has always enjoyed high esteem in Virginia.
General D. C. Kemper, a cousin of Gov. Kemper, was in charge of artillery. He resides now at Alexandria, Va.
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Col. J. N. Adenbousch commanded the second regiment of Virginia Volunteers from September 16th, 1862, accredited to the immortal "Stonewall Brigade." He was a descendant of a German settler in the Shenandoah valley.
Capt. - Sheetz was only a comely youth, says Gen. Dabney in his "Life of Lieut .- General Jackson," when he left his father's farm to join the army. However, very soon he showed himself a man of no common mark. Collecting a company of youths like himself in the valleys of Hampshire, he had armed them wholly from the spoils of the enemy, and without any other military knowledge than the intuitions of his own good sense, had drilled and organized then into an efficient body. He speedily became a famous partisan and scout, the terror of the invaders and the right hand of Colonel Ashby. Sheetz was ever next the enemy ; if pursuing, in command of the advanced guard; or if retreating, closing the rear; and Gen. Stonewall Jackson had learned to rely implicitly upon his intelligence ; for his courage, enterprise, sobriety of mind and honesty as- sured the authenticity of all his reports. He was killed May 23d, 1862, in a skirmish near Buckton, between Front Royal and Strasbourg.
Col. Heros von Borke, born in Silesia, was a Prussian cav- alry officer. At the beginning of the Civil War he took fur- lough, came to America, offered his services to the Confederate Government and was attached to Gen. J. E. B. Stuart's staff. He was a thorough soldier, and as a model officer soon became the friend and advisor of his brave General. The position of Chief of Staff of Gen. Stuart, with rank of Lieut .- Colonel was conferred on him. In an engagement near Upperville, Fauquier county, Aug. 19th, 1863, v. Borke was shot through the wind- pipe, and while still convalescent his friend and general was mortally wounded at Yellow Tavern, Hannover county. General Stuart on his death bed wished the promotion of v. Borke to his successorship, but the Confederate Government did not comply to the desire of the dying hero. The Congress of the Confederate States however voted resolutions of thanks for Col. v. Borke's services, acknowledging his military talents and bravery.
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The author met von Borke at that time in the Spottswood Hotel in Richmond, and he received the impression that the wounded Colonel was not yet qualified to endure the exposures, hardships and excitement incident to the position as Commander of the Cavalry Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia. Von Borke returned to Germany and served as Major of Dragoons (die Schwed'schen Dragoner) in the war of 1866, but his old wound forced him soon after to retire. In 1886 he revisited Virginia and was received with due honors. "His once robust constitution appeared much affected by the ball he still carried in his right lung, but his jovial, impulsive, warm-hearted nature. had not forsaken him" During his stay at Rich- mond his sword, which he had brought from his Fatherland to Virginia, and worn when a Confederate officer, was returned to him. Von Borke presented this relic to the State and the Leg- islature accepted it with the following resolution :
" Resolved by the General Assembly: That the State of Virginia, appreciating the high manly qualities and virtues of Lieut .- Colonel Heros von Borke, accept the sword, and hereby directs the Secretary of the Com- monwealth to place it among the relics preserved in the Public Library."
Von Borke published in German and English a book : "Zwei Jahre im Sattel," a description of his military life as a Confederate officer, and lately he wrote in conjunction with Major Scheibert: "The Great Cavalry Battle near Brandy Station."
Captain - Scheibert 219), of the Prussian Engineers, de- tailed by his government as an observer, but taking an active part as a combatant, was attached to Gen. Robert E. Lee's head- quarters. His interest in the southern cause did not end with the war; on returning to Germany, where he was appointed Major in the Prussian Engineers, he corresponded with the editor of the "Southern Historical Society's Papers," and he wrote a book :
218.) "Southern Bivouac Magazine," p. 515. Louisville, Ky., February 1386.
219.) "The German Soldier in the Wars of the United States," by J. G. Rosengar- ten, pp. 179 and 130. Philadelphia, Pa., 1890,
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· Sieben Monate in den Rebellen-Staaten," published in Stettin. in 1868, characterized by its southern tone. In 1883 Major Scheibert published a German translation of Allan's : "History of the Valley Campaign;" and in a letter of October 13th, 1881, dated Hirschberg, Silesia, Prussia, he says that he has translated and printed in German : Early's "Gettysburg," Stuart's and Lee's "Report," Hubbard's "Chancellorville," Patton's "Jackson," Mcclellan's "Jeb Stuart," Stuart's " Get- tysburg," and biographies of Lee, Jackson, Stuart and Mosby. His "Buergerkrieg in den Vereinigten Staaten " has been trans- lated into the French and Spanish.
Colonel Gustav Adolph Schwarzmann220) was born at Stutt- gart, Wuertemberg, March 17th, 1815, and received a thorough and complete education. A young man of eighteen he came to Baltimore and received a situation as clerk in a commercial house. At the time of the Seminole War, 1835-'42, he enlisted in the U. S. Army and owing to his superior education he was soon promoted to a lieutenantship of the 4th Artillery Regi- ment. Schwarzmann was wounded several times and after the close of the war he was appointed superintendent of the U. S. Arsenal at Fayetteville, N. C., and later on to a position in the General Postoffice at Washington city. Sympathizing with the South he went to Richmond at the beginning of the Civil War, and he was at once appointed to the General Postoffice of the Confederacy ; but this civil service was not what he longed for, and he soon joined the Confederate army. He was commis- sioned Colonel and Adjutant-General to Gen. Albert Pike ; par- ticipated in numerous engagements and battles and again distinguished himself by his bravery. After the termination of the war Colonel Schwarzmann went to Baltimore and established himself as notary-public. His many friends in Richmond tried in vain to induce him to take up his abode there. A serious disease of the eyes, a result of exposures during the war, darkened the remainder of his life, and after twelve years of suffering he died on the 20th of February, 1882.
Col. David Lewis Ruffner, son of Dr. Henry Ruffner, was
220.) From "Der Deutsche Correspondent," February 22nd, 1882.
Baltimore, Md.
born in Lexington, Va., and was a graduate of Washington College, now the Washington and Lee University. He was in the Confederate army as Captain of "Kanawha Riflemen " until he received an injury and was placed in the Quartermaster's department of Gen. Williams' Brigade, and later on staff duty in the field. He was commissioned Colonel Aide de Camp by Gov. Jackson of West Virginia in 1881.
G. A. Peple was born at Henry-Chapelle, in the " Rhine- provinz," Kingdom of Prussia, in 1828, and received a normal school education to fit him for the profession of teacher. After his graduation a predilection for the mechanic arts induced him to visit the polytechnical schools at Geneva and Vevay in Switzerland. About 1850 he emigrated to America, where he for years engaged in educational pursuits and was favorably known as a successful teacher. In 1859 he came to Richmond, Va., and during the Civil War he acted at first as topographical engineer, later as Commissary Sergeant at Buchanan, Botetourt county, and finally he received the appointment as professor of history and modern languages at the Confederate Marine School on board the school-ship "Patrick Henry," stationed in the harbor at Rockets, Richmond, Va. In this position he ranked as "acting master " or "Major of the army." Towards the close of the war he also edited for some time the " Richmond Anzeiger," which the Confederate government had purchased, and after the conclusion of peace he took charge of the " Cotton and Woolen Mills" at Manchester, opposite Richmond, Va. Thus he turned his pedagogical and technical education to good account. G. A. Peple was up to his death, October 24th, 1895, the superintendent of the above named mills. He took an active part in the political and German social life of Rich- mond, and for a long time he was the stirring spirit among his countrymen. He composed a pretty comedy entitled : "Frau Lipps," which was enacted on the stage of the Virginia Gesang- verein at Richmond, and upon several occasions he delivered the official festive oration. As a member of the Board of Edu- cation at Manchester he gained general admiration for his talents as an organizer and by his pedagogical experience.
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Captain E. con Buchholz, a native of the Kingdom of Wuertemberg, was the son of the chief ranger von Buchholz and served as cavalry and artillery officer in the Royal army. Abont 1850 he emigrated with his family to America, located first in Washington, D. C., and afterwards removed to Rich- mond, Va. Gov. Henry A. Wise, recognizing his capacity, engaged him to survey the State and to draw an accurate topo- graphical map of the same. In the fall of 1859 a hostile invasion of Virginia, known as "John Brown's Raid," occurred at Harper's Ferry, and Capt. von Buchholz accompanied Gov. Wise to Jefferson county as a member of his staff. At the breaking out of the Civil War Ex-Governor Gen. Henry A. Wise was ordered to Kanawha valley in West Virginia and von Buchholz was commissioned to organize the artillery of his brigade. Soon after he was placed in charge of the Ordinance stores of the brigade and in the spring of 1862 was again transferred to the Virginia Ordinance Department at Richmond. After the end of the war there were no funds in the State treasury for the completion of the survey of Virginia and its map, and Capt. Buchholz went to San Francisco as superin- tendent of a factory for the manufacture of explosives. There he died in 1892.
Major Mac Roemer, who claimed to be a German-Hunga- rian, belonged to the Wise Legion during its western campaign. After the war he settled in St. Louis, Mo., where he is prac- ticing as a well-to-do physician.
Capt. - Tucker was born in Holstein, the son of Jewish parents. Some months before the war broke out he came from Memphis, Tenn., to Richmond, and when hostilities commenced he joined Capt. Caskey's Cavalry Company, which was attached to the Wise Legion. At Gauley Bridge Sergt. Tucker was de- tailed as messenger to headquarters and shared the tent with the writer. The opinion of all his superiors and companions in arms was an unanimous approval of his ability and courage. Ile was a splendid horseman and very ambitious. For some time Capt. Tucker was in command of a company of cavalry, and during the Pennsylvania campaign in 1863 he was one of Gen. Fitzhugh Lee's aides. At a very lively engagement at
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Shepperdstown, Va., the author met Capt. Tucker for the last time and admired his boldness and sangfroid in the midst of the fight.
Von Massow was a Prussian cavalry officer and came to Richmond in 1861 to enter the Confederate service from eager desire for war. Not successful in securing a commission he . joined Gen. Mosly's independent troop and acted as one of his aides. At a skirmish near Upperville, Va., he was shot through the breast and left on the field for dead. Von Massow recov- ered, returned to Germany and in 1866 fought. as Lieut. of Dragoons under Gen. Vogel von Falkenstein.
Carl Friedrich Henningson, one of the most picturesque fig- ures, an excellent soldier and well-known military author, was born in England, of German parents (from Hanover) in 1816. He received a superior German education, spoke several lan- guages and was a highly gifted man and amiable companion. But he was inclined to seek adventures and for that reason never enjoyed a quiet and prosperous life. A lad of hardly sixteen years of age he volunteered in the army of the Carlists in Spain. For his gallantry he was appointed Captain of the . body-guard of Don Carlos. Afterwards he rose to the position of Colonel of cavalry and received the decoration of the order of St. Ferdinand. After his return home he wrote a "History of the Spanish War," which secured him the favor and pro- tection of Wellington and Soult. , In 1842 he went to Russia and took part in the Circassian War, and his publication : " Recollections of Russia," created quite a sensation. In 1849 he joined the Hungarian army. He delineated the plan of campaign, which was confirmed by Gen. Guyon, and he re- ceived the appointment of military governor of Komorn. After the downfall of the Hungarian Revolution Col. Henningson embarked for America, where he worked jointly with Kossuth for the Hungarian cause and also engaged in literary work. Some of his publications of this period are: "The Twelve Months Campaign under Zamalacarregen ;" " The White Slave," a novel, "Eastern Europe Sixty Years Ago," a novel, and " Analogies and Contrasts." At the beginning of the " Fili- buster War" in Nicaragua he took command of the invading
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force and defended "Granada" heroically with about 300 against 4,000 men. He repulsed the besieging army several times, and on the 24th of November, 1859, cut his way to the sea-coast through the overwhelming forces of his enemies. He burnt Granada before evacuating it and erected a spear on its ruins to which he nailed a placard bearing the inscrip- tion : " Aqui fue Granada," that is: "here stood Granada." At the outbreak of the Civil War he accepted the position of military adviser to Gen. Henry A. Wise, and was appointed second in command of the Wise Legion. After the battle on Roanoke island Gen. Henningson commanded at Currituc bridge the fragments of the legion and there the author acted for a few days as his adjutant. Gen. Henningson did not find proper opportunity to display his military genius during the War of Secession. The cause was that Gen. Wise was no favorite of President Davis and his legion was constantly ordered to untenable or lost positions. Referring to Mr. Davis' partiality Ed. A. Pollard says : "No man was ever more sovereign in his likes and dislikes "221).
General V. D. Groner, of Norfolk, and Gen. A. L. Long, of Charlottsville, who are said to be descendants of German families, are also named with distinction. There was another officer in the Confederate army who must be numbered with the German element: Count B. Estran; but the German-Vir- ginians would gladly disclaim all relation to him. The so- called "Count" came to Richmond some years before the Confederate episode. Estván lived there upon the earnings of his two ladies, his wife and his sister-in-law, who gave lessons and were acknowledged to be very highly educated. He himself was a very good-looking jovial man and knew how to perform the part of an upright Austrian country nobleman to perfection. When the Civil War commenced he pretended to have recruited in North Carolina a regiment of Lancers and was authorized to draw from the Ordinance Department the necessary equipage. He took all accoutrements received : sad- dles, bridles, blankets, etc., to North Carolina, sold the articles
221.) "The Second Year of the War," by Edw. A. Pollard, p. 302. Rielmond, Va., 1863.
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at any price and disappeared. Estvan went to Washington city in full uniform of a Confederate Colonel and claimed to have deserted in sympathy with the Union. He was received with distinction, introduced to President Lincoln and the best soci- ety of the Union capital. From Washington he went to Eng- land and Germany, and assisted by his ladies, wrote a book : " Kriegsbilder ans Amerika," first published in English at London and later in German by F. A. Brockhaus, Leipzig, 1864. Finally Estván ventured to revisit his old Fatherland, Austria, and at Vienna he was arrested and prosecuted as a criminal.
In the Union army were many Germans and also some Ger- man-Virginians. Gen. Robert E. Lee gave these German soldiers in the Union army a very brilliant testimonial. At the time when the southern cause was rapidly falling away he angrily exclaimed : "Take out the Dutch and we will whip the Yankees easily."
Gen. Jacob _Immen222), distinguished during the rebellion, was a native of Virginia, a graduate of West Point in 1831, had resigned to engage in teaching and engineering, and when the war broke out he re-entered the service as Colonel of the 24th Ohio; later as Brigadier-General he served with great bravery in the West.
Gen. Hugo Dilger, born in Baden, enjoyed the reputation of one of the boldest officers of the Northern army. During the war he learned to know and admire the Shenandoah valley and its German population, and after the close of the hostilities he concluded to live among the "Sesesh." He purchased a farm near Front Royal and is a very popular man among his Virginian neighbors.
Gen. Lewis Ruffner, of Charleston, Kanawha county, before mentioned, participated in the establishment of the separation of West Virginia. Against the wishes of most of his relatives 223) and many of his warmest personal friends he declared for
222.) "The German Soldier in the Wars of the U. S ," by J. G. Rosengarten, p. 166. Philadelphia, 1800.
223.) "Historical Papers, No. 5, 1895, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Va.," pp. 21-23.
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the Union and stood for it with the courage of inflexible conviction. He was twice elected as a member of the Legis- lature of West Virginia. In 1863 he was one of the delegates to the Wheeling Convention, which framed a constitution for the new State, and in the same year he was appointed by the Legislature a Major-General of militia for the State. He was also about that time tendered the position of Colonel of a regi- ment in the Federal army, which he declined on account of the large business interests he represented and which were continually in peril. His public life closed with the war and he died in 1833 at his home.
The contents of these biographies have run in advance of the historical reports given and we return to the events in the first year of the war.
On May 20th, 1861, the seat of the Confederate Govern- ment was transferred from Montgomery, Alabama, to Rich- mond, and on the 29th of the same month President Jefferson Davis was received in the new capital. The face of the city at once became altered, - it was overrun by wild fanatics, speculative adventurers, office seekers, gamblers and discredi- table women,-the respectable inhabitants soon retired, alarmed and disgusted, from publicity. In the beginning of the war the Confederate armies had been victorious, but victory was followed by disaster ; the enthusiasm and valor of the people cooled down and the volunteer soldiers felt desirous to return home. The exigency was very critical and the government was forced to resort to conscription. In April and again in September, 1862, acts of conscription were passed by Congress and generally cheerfully acquiesced in. New disasters on the Mississippi frontier, the evacuation of Norfolk, Va., and the destruction of the " Virginia" or "Merrimac," ,caused great distress and public alarm in the old mother State. The de- struction of the "Merrimac" left the James river and Rich- moud almost unprotected, and there appeared unmistakable signs of the intention of the Confederate Government to remove to some safer place than the capital of the Old Dominion. The sound of the guns of the Federal gunboats at Drewry's Bluff and the thunder of the cannons during the battles around
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