Theophilus H. Holmes
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Lieutenant-General Theophilus Hunter Holmes |
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|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
November 13, 1804 Sampson County, North Carolina |
| Died | June 21, 1880 (aged 75) Fayetteville, North Carolina |
| Place of burial | MacPherson Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Fayetteville |
| Allegiance |
 United States of America Confederate States of America
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Army Confederate States Army
|
| Years of service | 1829–61 (USA) 1861–65 (CSA) |
| Rank |
 Major (USA) Brigadier General (NC Militia) Lieutenant General (CSA)
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| Unit | 7th U.S. Infantry 8th U.S. Infantry |
| Commands held |
Reserve Brigade-Army of the Potomac District of Fredericksburg Department of North Carolina District of Aquia Trans-Mississippi Department District of Arkansas North Carolina Reserve Forces |
| Battles/wars | |
American Indian Wars
Mexican-American War
Theophilus Hunter Holmes (November 13, 1804 – June 21, 1880) was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate Lieutenant General in the American Civil War. A friend and protégé of the Confederate President, Jefferson Davis, he was appointed commander of the Trans-Mississippi Department, but failed in his key task, which was to defend the Confederacy's hold on the Mississippi.
Holmes was born in Sampson County, North Carolina, in 1804. His father, Gabriel Holmes, was a former Governor of North Carolina and U.S. Congressman. After a failed attempt at plantation managing, Holmes asked his father for an appointment to the United States Military Academy, from which he graduated in 1829. He was ranked 44 out of 46, in his class. Holmes was apparently quite deaf, and was almost never aware of loud gunfire.
I, who knew [Holmes] from his school-boy days, who served with him in garrison and in field, and with pride watched him as he gallantly led a storming party up a rocky height at Monterey, and was intimately acquainted with his whole career during our sectional war, bear willing testimony to the purity, self-abnegation, generosity, fidelity and gallantry, which characterized him as a man and a soldier.
After graduating, Holmes was commissioned a brevet second lieutenant in the 7th U.S. Infantry. In 1838, Holmes attained the rank of Captain. During his early services, Holmes served in Florida, the Indian Territory, and Texas. Holmes also served in the Second Seminole War, with distinction. In 1841, he married Laura Whetmore, with whom he would have eight children. During the Mexican-American War, he was brevetted to major for the Battle of Monterrey in September 1846. This promotion was due to Jefferson Davis witnessing his courageous actions there. He received a full promotion to major of the 8th U.S. Infantry in 1855.
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