Charles Devens
| Charles Devens Jr. | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 35th United States Attorney General | |
|
In office March 12, 1877 – March 4, 1881 |
|
| President | Rutherford B. Hayes |
| Preceded by | Alphonso Taft |
| Succeeded by | Wayne MacVeagh |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 4, 1820 Charlestown, Massachusetts |
| Died | January 7, 1891 (aged 70) Cambridge, Massachusetts |
| Political party | Whig, Republican |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
| Profession | Lawyer, Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
| Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1866 |
| Rank |
 Brigadier General Brevet Major General
|
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Charles Devens Jr. (April 4, 1820 – January 7, 1891) was an American lawyer, jurist and statesman. He also served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, Devens graduated from Boston Latin School and eventually Harvard College in 1838, and from the Harvard Law School in 1840. He was admitted to the bar in Franklin County, Massachusetts, where he practiced from 1841 to 1849.
In 1848, he was a Whig member of the Massachusetts Senate. From 1849 to 1853, Devens was United States Marshal for Massachusetts, in which capacity he was called upon in 1851 to remand the fugitive slave, Thomas Sims, to slavery. This he felt constrained to do, much against his personal desire; subsequently, he attempted in vain to purchase Sims' freedom, and many years later appointed him to a position in the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C..
Devens practiced law at Worcester, Massachusetts, from 1853 until 1861.
On April 16, 1861, Devens gave an impassioned speech at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, MA. To a large crowd he called upon the young men of Worcester to "rise and go with" him to the "rescue of Washington".
April 19, 1861, his federal military career as a major in the 3rd Battalion, Massachusetts Rifle, began. Devens held the rank of brevet major general in 1866 when it was over.
He was appointed as colonel of the 15th Massachusetts Infantry in July 1861. He was wounded in action at the Battle of Ball's Bluff in Virginia in October 1861 and nearly killed by a rifle ball.
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