John C. Caldwell
| John Curtis Caldwell | |
|---|---|
John C. Caldwell
|
|
| Born |
April 17, 1833 Lowell, Vermont |
| Died | August 31, 1912 (aged 79) Calais, Maine |
| Place of burial | St. Stephen Rural Cemetery, St. Stephen, New Brunswick, Canada |
| Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
| Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1866 |
| Rank |
 Brevet Major General
|
| Commands held |
11th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment II Corps |
| Battles/wars | |
| Other work | Lawyer, Diplomat |
John Curtis Caldwell (April 17, 1833 – August 31, 1912) was a teacher, a Union general in the American Civil War, and an American diplomat.
Caldwell was born in Lowell, Vermont. He graduated from Amherst College in 1855 and moved to Maine, where he was the principal of the Washington Academy in East Machias.
At the beginning of the Civil War, Caldwell was 28 years old and had no military experience. However, his bearing as an academic principal seems to have impressed others because he was elected colonel of the 11th Maine Infantry regiment on November 12, 1861. Early in the Peninsula Campaign (April 28, 1862), he was promoted to brigadier general and assumed command of the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division of II Corps of the Army of the Potomac after the brigade commander, Brigadier General Oliver O. Howard, was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines. At the Battle of Glendale, he displayed "personal gallantry" in coming to the aid of the beleaguered Union division led by Philip Kearny.
At the Battle of Antietam, on September 17, 1862, he briefly led his division when its commander, major general Israel B. Richardson, was wounded. Caldwell himself was wounded in the battle and he received criticism that he handled his brigade poorly in the assault on the sunken road in the center of the Confederate line (the sunken road, or "Bloody Lane"). There were also rumors spread that he had hidden in the rear to avoid direct contact with the enemy. He was wounded again, twice, at the Battle of Fredericksburg that December, while preparing his brigade to assault the stone wall on Marye's Heights; one of his regiments broke and ran during the assault, further tarnishing his reputation. At the Battle of Chancellorsville the following May, his brigade performed well under difficult circumstances, covering the retreat of the army from the crossroads at the Chancellor House.
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