Leonidas Polk
|
Lieutenant-General Leonidas Polk |
|
|---|---|
Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk 1862-1864
|
|
| Nickname(s) | Sewanee's Fighting Bishop |
| Born |
April 10, 1806 Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Died | June 14, 1864 (aged 58) Cobb County, Georgia |
| Place of burial | Christ Church Cathedral New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Allegiance |
 United States of America Confederate States of America
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Army Confederate States Army
|
| Years of service | 1827 (USA) 1861–1864 (CSA) |
| Rank |
 Brevet Second Lieutenant (USA) Lieutenant General (CSA)
|
| Commands held |
First Corps, Army of Tennessee Army of Mississippi Third Corps, Army of Tennessee |
| Battles/wars | |
Leonidas Polk (April 10, 1806 – June 14, 1864) was a Confederate general in Western Theater the American Civil War who was once a planter in Maury County, Tennessee, and a second cousin of President James K. Polk. He also served as bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana and was for that reason known as Sewanee's Fighting Bishop.
He is often erroneously named "Leonidas K. Polk." He had no middle name and never signed any documents as such. The errant "K" was derived from his listing in the post-bellum New Orleans press as "Polk, Leon. (k)" for killed in action.
Polk was one of the more notable, yet controversial, political generals of the war. Recognizing his indispensable familiarity with the Mississippi Valley, Confederate President Jefferson Davis commissioned his elevation to a high military position regardless of his lack of prior combat experience. He commanded troops in the Battle of Shiloh, the Battle of Perryville, the Battle of Stones River, the Tullahoma Campaign, the Battle of Chickamauga, the Chattanooga Campaign, and the Atlanta Campaign. He is remembered for his bitter disagreements with his immediate superior, the likewise-controversial General Braxton Bragg of the Army of Tennessee, and for his general lack of success in combat. While serving under the command of General Joseph E. Johnston, he was killed in action in 1864 during the Atlanta Campaign.
...
Wikipedia