James J. Archer

James Jay Archer
James Jay Archer
Born	(1817-12-19)December 19, 1817 Stafford, near Havre de Grace, Maryland
Died	October 24, 1864(1864-10-24) (aged 46) Richmond, Virginia
Place of burial	Hollywood Cemetery Richmond, Virginia
Allegiance	United States of America Confederate States of America
Service/branch	United States Army Confederate States Army
Years of service	1847–48, 1855–61 (USA) 1861–64 (CSA)
Rank	Captain (USA) Brevet Major (USA) Brigadier General (CSA)
Unit	Regiment of Voltigeurs 9th U.S. Infantry
Commands held	5th Texas Infantry Archer's Bde, Heth's Div, Hill's Corps
Battles/wars	Mexican-American War Battle of Chapultepec American Civil War Peninsula Campaign Battle of Eltham's Landing Battle of Seven Pines Seven Days Battles Battle of Beaver Dam Creek Battle of Gaines Mill Battle of Cedar Mountain Second Battle of Manassas Maryland Campaign Battle of Harper's Ferry Battle of Sharpsburg Battle of Shepherdstown Battle of Fredericksburg Battle of Chancellorsville Battle of Gettysburg Richmond-Petersburg Campaign Battle of Peebles' Farm

James Jay Archer (December 19, 1817 – October 24, 1864) was a lawyer and an officer in the United States Army during the Mexican-American War. He later served as a Brigadier General in the Confederate States Army (CSA) during the American Civil War.

Taken as a prisoner of war on the first morning of the Battle of Gettysburg, Archer was the first general officer captured from Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Archer was born at Stafford, near Havre de Grace, Maryland, to John and Ann Stump Archer, a wealthy military family. He graduated from Princeton University in 1835 before attending Bacone College in Georgetown, Kentucky. Nicknamed "Sally" at Princeton for his frail and slight physique, he studied law at the University of Maryland and passed the bar exam. He subsequently established a successful law practice. In 1847, during the Mexican-American War, he was commissioned as a captain and served with the Regiment of Voltigeurs in numerous battles, being cited for bravery at Chapultepec and brevetted to the rank of major.