Benjamin M. Prentiss
| Benjamin Mayberry Prentiss | |
|---|---|
Benjamin Mayberry Prentiss
|
|
| Born |
November 23, 1819 Belleville, Virginia |
| Died | February 8, 1901 (aged 81) Bethany, Missouri |
| Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
| Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1846–1848, 1861–1863 |
| Rank |
 Major General
|
| Battles/wars | |
Benjamin Mayberry Prentiss (November 23, 1819 – February 8, 1901) was an American soldier and politician. He fought in the Mexican-American War and on the Union side of the American Civil War, rising to the rank of major general. He commanded a division at the Battle of Shiloh, which suffered heavy casualties while defending what became known as the Hornet's Nest from continued Confederate assaults. He was criticized by some for his conduct, and eventually had to surrender his division. After his exchange, he continued to serve in the army until his resignation in 1863. He spent much of his remaining life practicing as a lawyer and as a politician in the Republican Party.
Benjamin M. Prentiss was born in Belleville, Virginia. He was a direct descendant of Valentine Prentice, who immigrated from England in 1631. His early childhood was spent in Virginia until his family joined the migration and moved near Hannibal, Missouri. They then moved to Quincy, Illinois, where Prentiss made his home until 1879. He then moved to Missouri.
In his early life, Benjamin Prentiss was a rope-maker and served as an auctioneer. On March 29, 1838, he married Margaret Ann Sodowsky; they had seven children before she died in 1860. In 1862, he married Mary Worthington Whitney, who bore him five more children.
Prentiss ran unsuccessfully for United States Congress in 1860. At the beginning of the American Civil War he defended railroad lines in Missouri until ordered to command a division under Ulysses S. Grant. His division was the first one attacked at the Battle of Shiloh and suffered greatly during the opening hours of that battle. BG Prentiss reformed his command and put up a spirited fight in the "Hornet's Nest".
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