Henry Livermore Abbott
Encyclopedia
Henry Livermore Abbott was a major
in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
(Civil War). Abbott was posthumously awarded the grade of brevet
brigadier general
, United States Volunteers
, to rank from August 1, 1864, and the grades of brevet lieutenant colonel
, brevet colonel
and brevet brigadier general
, United States Army
, all to rank from March 13, 1865 for gallant and meritorious services at the Battle of the Wilderness
, where he was killed in action. Abbott was engaged at the center of several key Civil War battles and was widely known and admired for his leadership, courage and composure under fire.
on January 21, 1842, the son of Josiah Gardner Abbott
, a successful lawyer and judge. In 1876, Josiah Gardner Abbott was elected to the United States House of Representatives
. He was a prominent member of the Democratic Party
. Henry's mother, Caroline, was the daughter of U.S. Congressman Edward St. Loe Livermore
. Both of Henry's parents were descended from officers who served in the Continental Army
during the American Revolutionary War
.
Henry was a prodigy and in 1856 he enrolled in Harvard University
at age 14 with his older brother Edward ("Ned"). The brothers roomed together at a fashionable private boarding house near campus. The young Henry found the rigid atmosphere at Harvard "irksome" and was frequently admonished for "indecorum at prayers," "neglect of mathematics," and "tardiness at recitation." Nonetheless, Henry graduated from Harvard in the middle of the class in 1860. He was reading law in his father's law office when the Civil War broke out.
attacked Fort Sumter
. Henry declined this appointment and, in May 1861, he joined the Fourth Battalion Massachusetts Volunteer Militia
along with several of his friends, including his best friend, future United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
After Holmes and several other friends left to join the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment
, Abbott joined that regiment on July 10, 1861. At the end of August 1861, Abbott was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 20th Massachusetts Infantry, which became known as the "Harvard Regiment" because so many of its officers were Harvard graduates.
Abbott initially was more reluctant that his older brother, Ned, and his younger brother, Fletcher, to enlist. He wrote to his father that he was more literary and domestic than his brothers but that he would be ashamed of himself forever if he did not do anything in the time of crisis. Many of the soldiers in Abbott's company were sailors and fishermen from Nantucket. The first commander of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was Colonel William Raymond Lee, a United States Military Academy
graduate and professional soldier.
from their camp at Poolesville, Maryland
and with other Union Army units to make a demonstration towards Leesburg, Virginia
. This foray resulted in the comparatively minor Battle of Ball's Bluff
, Virginia. The small battle had large consequences as the poorly scouted and coordinated movement of Union Army forces led to the rout of the Union force and the death of Colonel
and U.S. Senator Edward Dickinson Baker
, a close friend of President
Abraham Lincoln
. The U.S. Congress thereafter established the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, which bedeviled generals and others for the rest of the war. The consequences were severe for the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment as well. The regiment suffered casualties of 30 per cent killed and wounded and 37 per cent captured. The Confederates routed the Union forces just after they had crossed the Potomac River from Maryland into Loudon County, Virginia, scaled steep bluffs, crossed a field and run into the Confederate States Army
forces hidden in the woods on the other side. Abbott ordered the men of his company to fight lying down but he continued to direct them from a standing and walking position. Despite Abbott's brave attempt to hold the line, the 20th Massachusetts Infantry and other Union troops were steadily forced back. The line finally broke and many men leaped over the bluffs and some tried to swim across the Potomac River and drowned. Others drowned when the overloaded boats in which they tried to recross the river capsized. Abbott and Lieutenant William F. Bartlett led survivors of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry up the river to Smart's Mill where they found a rowboat and got everyone across the river into Maryland under cover of darkness. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment held up well compared to most other Union regiments at Ball's Bluff but lost 87 of 300 men as killed and wounded and 111 as prisoners, including Colonel Lee, in its efforts to hold the Union line.
Abbott was promoted to first lieutenant on November 8, 1861. After rebuilding its strength for four and one-half months at Poolesville, Maryland, the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment took part in the Peninsula Campaign
. They were engaged especially at the Battle of Fair Oaks, Virginia where the regiment lost 28 men killed and wounded out of about 350. Later the 20th Massachusetts Infantry helped cover Major General
George B. McClellan's
retreat during the Seven Days' Battles. On June 30, 1862, Abbott was wounded in the right arm at the Battle of Glendale
, Virginia, which compelled him to leave the regiment temporarily in order to recuperate at home. He refused to leave the field, however, until after the Battle of Malvern Hill
the next day. On August 9, 1862, Abbott's brother Ned was killed in action at the Battle of Cedar Mountain
.
after the Second Battle of Manassas or Bull Run. Weeks of hard duty took their toll on Abbott, who was not fully recovered from the wound he suffered at the Battle of Glendale. Abbott missed the Battle of Antietam
because he was hospitalized with typhoid fever and grief over the death of his brother at Cedar Mountain. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry again suffered heavy losses at Antietam. Soon after the battle, Abbott's brother Fletcher, who was suffering from dysentery, joined him in the hospital. Abbott recovered by November 1862 and returned to the regiment camped at Falmouth, Virginia
across the Rappahannock River
from Fredericksburg, Virginia
. He was accompanied on his return by Holmes, who was returning after recovery from a wound suffered at the battle of Antietam.
Abbott next courageously led his men at the Battle of Fredericksburg
. Due to the absence of Colonel Lee, Captain George Macy was acting colonel and Abbott was acting major of the regiment. In preliminary street fighting on the eve of the battle, Abbott was one of the few officers in the 20th Massachusetts Infantry not to be killed or wounded, when he and his men engaged in fierce combat the 21st Mississippi Infantry Regiment commanded by Abbott's Harvard classmate and friend, Lieutenant Lane Brandon. Abbott's men drove Confederate forces away from the river so Union Army engineers could complete pontoon bridges for a crossing in force. Thirty of the 60 men that Abbott had led into combat had been killed or wounded. Overall, 113 of the 335 men in the regiment became casualties that day. The next day, Abbott participated with his regiment in the disastrous Union Army assault on Marye's Heights where waves of Union attackers were cut down by Confederate artillery and infantry protected by a stone wall. Abbott survived unscathed, although a bullet did hit his scabbard. Sixty men and three officers were killed in a matter of minutes in the attack on Marye's Heights, bringing the losses of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry in the battle to 168 men and 8 officers of 335 men and officers engaged. Abbott in large part blamed Republican political leadership for the losses because they had removed Major General George McClellan, a fellow Democrat, from command of the Army of the Potomac.
After the infamous "Mud March
" of January 1863, Major General Joseph Hooker
replaced Major General Ambrose Burnside
as commanding general of the Army of the Potomac
. In late March, Henry's 9–year old brother, Arthur, died from "the croup." After two weeks in Boston following Arthur's death, Henry returned to his regiment. On May 3, 1863, Abbott fought with his regiment during the Second Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, which was part of the Chancellorsville
Campaign. Major General John Sedgwick
, commander of the "grand division" of which the 20th Massachusetts Infantry was a part, was ordered to take Fredericksburg and then come to the aid of the bulk of the Union Army which came under heavy attack from Confederate forces at Chancellorsville. The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was on the far right of the line and suffered only 2 dead and 13 wounded, one of whom was Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. who was wounded for the third time. In this battle, the Union troops overwhelmed the more lightly defended Marye's Heights. Sedgwick was stopped from joining Hooker at nearby Chancellorsville by Confederate forces at the Battle of Salem Church
. Brigadier General John Gibbon
's division, including the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, which had been left to hold the line at Fredericksburg, had to retreat across the Rappahannock River
to join Hooker and Sedgwick, who had recrossed the river further upstream.
was moving his army north and began to follow them, keeping the Army of the Potomac between Washington, D.C.
and Lee's forces. President Lincoln accepted Hooker's resignation as commanding general of the Army of the Potomac on June 27, 1863 and appointed Major General George Gordon Meade to replace him. The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, under its new colonel, Paul J. Revere, grandson of the hero of the American Revolution
of the same name, arrived in its position on Cemetery Ridge
at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg
. Although not moved to the front line until later that night, the 20th Massachusetts Infantry came under shelling on the evening of July 2, 1863. Eleven officers or men of the regiment were killed or severely wounded, including Colonel Revere, who was mortally wounded. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry was moved into the center of the line, about 100 yards to the left of a clump of trees. The Confederate bombardment of Union positions on Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg on the afternoon of July 3, 1863 was generally high and beyond the front line although the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment did suffer a few casualties during the shelling. The bombardment was followed by Pickett's Charge
which the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry took a key part in repelling. Abbott was one of three unwounded officers in the regiment during Pickett's Charge and assumed command of the regiment when his superiors were wounded. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry waited until the Confederates were close to the Union line and then unleashed murderous volleys which broke the Confederate Army's advance at that point. Realizing that they had repulsed the Confederate advance at great loss to the attackers, the Massachusetts soldiers began to shout "Fredericksburg, Fredericksburg" as they believed they had avenged their defeat and loss in that terrible battle. Then, Abbott had his men turn to help beat off the Confederate attack on the Union line at the clump of trees, which was at the very heart of the battle (the high water mark of the Confederacy
). Although the battle had been won, over half of the enlisted men and 10 of the 13 officers of the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry had been killed or wounded.
After the battle, Abbott remained in command of the regiment and was promoted to major on October 10, 1863. Four days later, the 20th Massachusetts Infantry fought in the small but sharp action at Bristoe Station
, Virginia. Union forces were surprised by the attack of Confederate Lieutenant General A. P. Hill
's men. The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry took few casualties, however, because they were able to fight from behind a steep railroad grade. After Major General Meade demonstrated against Confederate forces at the battle of Mine Run
Creek, the Army of the Potomac went into winter quarters at Brandy Station, Virginia
. In December 1863, Abbott received a 15-day leave to visit home, which was extended by 20 days due to his suffering from chronic diarrhea. In January, 1864, Abbott left home to rejoin his regiment.
of the Union Armies and Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant
began his drive south into Virginia that became known as the Overland Campaign
. Although two sources state that Abbott remained in command of the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry until his death, another source says that Colonel George N. Macy returned to the regiment just before the Battle of the Wilderness
on May 5–6, 1864, and that Abbott again assumed command of the regiment after Colonel Macy was wounded. At the Battle of the Wilderness, on May 6, 1864, Major Henry Abbott was shot in the abdomen while encouraging his command from an exposed, standing position, after he ordered his men to fight while lying down, as he had done at the Battle of Ball's Bluff. Mortally wounded, Henry Livermore Abbott died at a field hospital on the same day.
On December 12, 1864, President
Abraham Lincoln
nominated Major Abbott for the award of the honorary grade of brevet
brigadier general, United States Volunteers
, to rank from August 1, 1864. The United States Senate
confirmed the award on February 20, 1865. On February 15, 1867, President Andrew Johnson
nominated Major Abbott for the award of the honorary grades of brevet lieutenant colonel, brevet colonel, and brevet brigadier general, United States Army
(Regular Army
), to rank from March 13, 1865. The U. S. Senate confirmed the awards on March 2, 1867.
Abbott has been said to have been the most widely known and admired officer of his grade (or "rank") in the Army of the Potomac. Major General John Sedgwick
said that Abbott was "a wonderfully good soldier" and "a bright, particular star." Major General Winfield Scott Hancock
said "his reputation was built upon a solid foundation, and the closest scrutiny could not diminish it." Abbott's extensive correspondence with his family provides an especially good record of the engagements in which he fought and the generals and other personalities with whom he came into contact. Yet, over 90 percent of it remained unpublished until 1991.
Henry Livermore Abbott's good friend, future United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., who served in the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment with him, deeply admired Abbott for his courage and unruffled calm, and for his determination to do his duty even though he was deeply skeptical of Union war aims (except for preservation of the Union), was politically opposed to President Lincoln
, and did not support the abolition of slavery
because he thought it would die out in the near future. Holmes considered Abbott an ideal soldier, and praised him in a famous 1884 Memorial Day
speech stating that: "In action he was sublime."
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
(Civil War). Abbott was posthumously awarded the grade of brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
, United States Volunteers
United States Volunteers
United States Volunteers also known as U.S. Volunteers, U. S. Vol., or U.S.V.Starting as early as 1861 these regiments were often referred to as the "volunteer army" of the United States but not officially named that until 1898.During the nineteenth century this was the United States federal...
, to rank from August 1, 1864, and the grades of brevet lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
, brevet colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
and brevet brigadier general
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
, United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, all to rank from March 13, 1865 for gallant and meritorious services at the Battle of the Wilderness
Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5–7, 1864, was the first battle of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Both armies suffered heavy casualties, a harbinger of a bloody war of attrition by...
, where he was killed in action. Abbott was engaged at the center of several key Civil War battles and was widely known and admired for his leadership, courage and composure under fire.
Early life
Henry Livermore Abbott, the third of eleven children, was born in Lowell, MassachusettsLowell, Massachusetts
Lowell is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. According to the 2010 census, the city's population was 106,519. It is the fourth largest city in the state. Lowell and Cambridge are the county seats of Middlesex County...
on January 21, 1842, the son of Josiah Gardner Abbott
Josiah Gardner Abbott
Josiah Gardner Abbott was an American politician who served in the Massachusetts General Court and as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts....
, a successful lawyer and judge. In 1876, Josiah Gardner Abbott was elected to the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
. He was a prominent member of the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
. Henry's mother, Caroline, was the daughter of U.S. Congressman Edward St. Loe Livermore
Edward St. Loe Livermore
Edward St. Loe Livermore, son of Samuel Livermore and brother of Arthur Livermore), was a United States Representative from Massachusetts. He was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on April 5, 1762...
. Both of Henry's parents were descended from officers who served in the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
during the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
.
Henry was a prodigy and in 1856 he enrolled in Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
at age 14 with his older brother Edward ("Ned"). The brothers roomed together at a fashionable private boarding house near campus. The young Henry found the rigid atmosphere at Harvard "irksome" and was frequently admonished for "indecorum at prayers," "neglect of mathematics," and "tardiness at recitation." Nonetheless, Henry graduated from Harvard in the middle of the class in 1860. He was reading law in his father's law office when the Civil War broke out.
Initial reluctance to volunteer and enrollment in Union Army
Henry's father obtained an appointment for Henry as a captain in the 2d Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment after the ConfederatesConfederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
attacked Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter is a Third System masonry coastal fortification located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort is best known as the site upon which the shots initiating the American Civil War were fired, at the Battle of Fort Sumter.- Construction :...
. Henry declined this appointment and, in May 1861, he joined the Fourth Battalion Massachusetts Volunteer Militia
Massachusetts militia
Militia of the Colony and later Commonwealth of Massachusetts.-List of Massachusetts militia units of the American Revolution:*Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts *Cogswell's Regiment of Militia...
along with several of his friends, including his best friend, future United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932...
After Holmes and several other friends left to join the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment
20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry
The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, also known as the "Harvard Regiment", was a regiment of infantry in the American Civil War. The regiment was so nicknamed because the officers of the 20th were young Harvard graduates. In addition some, but not all, the private soldiers had attended...
, Abbott joined that regiment on July 10, 1861. At the end of August 1861, Abbott was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 20th Massachusetts Infantry, which became known as the "Harvard Regiment" because so many of its officers were Harvard graduates.
Abbott initially was more reluctant that his older brother, Ned, and his younger brother, Fletcher, to enlist. He wrote to his father that he was more literary and domestic than his brothers but that he would be ashamed of himself forever if he did not do anything in the time of crisis. Many of the soldiers in Abbott's company were sailors and fishermen from Nantucket. The first commander of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was Colonel William Raymond Lee, a United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
graduate and professional soldier.
Ball's Bluff, the Peninsula, Seven Days' Battles
On October 21, 1861, Abbott's 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was ordered to cross the Potomac RiverPotomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
from their camp at Poolesville, Maryland
Poolesville, Maryland
Poolesville is a town in Montgomery County, Maryland United States with a population of approximately 5000 people. It is surrounded by the Montgomery County Agricultural Reserve, and is considered a distant bedroom community for commuters to Washington, DC.The name of the town comes from the...
and with other Union Army units to make a demonstration towards Leesburg, Virginia
Leesburg, Virginia
Leesburg is a historic town in, and county seat of, Loudoun County, Virginia, United States of America. Leesburg is located west-northwest of Washington, D.C. along the base of the Catoctin Mountain and adjacent to the Potomac River. Its population according the 2010 Census is 42,616...
. This foray resulted in the comparatively minor Battle of Ball's Bluff
Battle of Ball's Bluff
The Battle of Ball's Bluff, also known as the Battle of Harrison’s Island or the Battle of Leesburg, was fought on October 21, 1861, in Loudoun County, Virginia, as part of Union Maj. Gen. George B...
, Virginia. The small battle had large consequences as the poorly scouted and coordinated movement of Union Army forces led to the rout of the Union force and the death of Colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
and U.S. Senator Edward Dickinson Baker
Edward Dickinson Baker
Edward Dickinson Baker was an English-born American politician, lawyer, military leader. In his political career, Baker served in the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois and later as a U.S. Senator from Oregon. A long-time close friend of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, Baker served as U.S...
, a close friend of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
. The U.S. Congress thereafter established the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, which bedeviled generals and others for the rest of the war. The consequences were severe for the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment as well. The regiment suffered casualties of 30 per cent killed and wounded and 37 per cent captured. The Confederates routed the Union forces just after they had crossed the Potomac River from Maryland into Loudon County, Virginia, scaled steep bluffs, crossed a field and run into the Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
forces hidden in the woods on the other side. Abbott ordered the men of his company to fight lying down but he continued to direct them from a standing and walking position. Despite Abbott's brave attempt to hold the line, the 20th Massachusetts Infantry and other Union troops were steadily forced back. The line finally broke and many men leaped over the bluffs and some tried to swim across the Potomac River and drowned. Others drowned when the overloaded boats in which they tried to recross the river capsized. Abbott and Lieutenant William F. Bartlett led survivors of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry up the river to Smart's Mill where they found a rowboat and got everyone across the river into Maryland under cover of darkness. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment held up well compared to most other Union regiments at Ball's Bluff but lost 87 of 300 men as killed and wounded and 111 as prisoners, including Colonel Lee, in its efforts to hold the Union line.
Abbott was promoted to first lieutenant on November 8, 1861. After rebuilding its strength for four and one-half months at Poolesville, Maryland, the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment took part in the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
. They were engaged especially at the Battle of Fair Oaks, Virginia where the regiment lost 28 men killed and wounded out of about 350. Later the 20th Massachusetts Infantry helped cover Major General
Major general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
George B. McClellan's
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
retreat during the Seven Days' Battles. On June 30, 1862, Abbott was wounded in the right arm at the Battle of Glendale
Battle of Glendale
The Battle of Glendale, also known as the Battle of Frayser's Farm, Frazier's Farm, Nelson's Farm, Charles City Crossroads, New Market Road, or Riddell's Shop, took place on June 30, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, on the sixth day of the Seven Days Battles of the American Civil War.The...
, Virginia, which compelled him to leave the regiment temporarily in order to recuperate at home. He refused to leave the field, however, until after the Battle of Malvern Hill
Battle of Malvern Hill
The Battle of Malvern Hill, also known as the Battle of Poindexter's Farm, took place on July 1, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, on the seventh and last day of the Seven Days Battles of the American Civil War. Gen. Robert E. Lee launched a series of disjointed assaults on the nearly impregnable...
the next day. On August 9, 1862, Abbott's brother Ned was killed in action at the Battle of Cedar Mountain
Battle of Cedar Mountain
The Battle of Cedar Mountain, also known as Slaughter's Mountain or Cedar Run, took place on August 9, 1862, in Culpeper County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. Union forces under Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks attacked Confederate forces under Maj. Gen. Thomas J...
.
Fredericksburg, Mud March, Second Fredericksburg
On September 2, 1862, Abbott's regiment covered the retreat of the defeated forces of Union Major General John PopeJohn Pope
John Pope is the name of:*John Pope , U.S. soldier, traveler, and author*John Pope , U.S. politician, senator for Kentucky, and governor of Arkansas Territory...
after the Second Battle of Manassas or Bull Run. Weeks of hard duty took their toll on Abbott, who was not fully recovered from the wound he suffered at the Battle of Glendale. Abbott missed the Battle of Antietam
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with about 23,000...
because he was hospitalized with typhoid fever and grief over the death of his brother at Cedar Mountain. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry again suffered heavy losses at Antietam. Soon after the battle, Abbott's brother Fletcher, who was suffering from dysentery, joined him in the hospital. Abbott recovered by November 1862 and returned to the regiment camped at Falmouth, Virginia
Falmouth, Virginia
Falmouth is an unincorporated community in Stafford County, Virginia, United States. Situated on the north bank of the Rappahannock River at the falls, the community is north of and opposite the city of Fredericksburg. Recognized by the U.S...
across the Rappahannock River
Rappahannock River
The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...
from Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...
. He was accompanied on his return by Holmes, who was returning after recovery from a wound suffered at the battle of Antietam.
Abbott next courageously led his men at the Battle of Fredericksburg
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside...
. Due to the absence of Colonel Lee, Captain George Macy was acting colonel and Abbott was acting major of the regiment. In preliminary street fighting on the eve of the battle, Abbott was one of the few officers in the 20th Massachusetts Infantry not to be killed or wounded, when he and his men engaged in fierce combat the 21st Mississippi Infantry Regiment commanded by Abbott's Harvard classmate and friend, Lieutenant Lane Brandon. Abbott's men drove Confederate forces away from the river so Union Army engineers could complete pontoon bridges for a crossing in force. Thirty of the 60 men that Abbott had led into combat had been killed or wounded. Overall, 113 of the 335 men in the regiment became casualties that day. The next day, Abbott participated with his regiment in the disastrous Union Army assault on Marye's Heights where waves of Union attackers were cut down by Confederate artillery and infantry protected by a stone wall. Abbott survived unscathed, although a bullet did hit his scabbard. Sixty men and three officers were killed in a matter of minutes in the attack on Marye's Heights, bringing the losses of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry in the battle to 168 men and 8 officers of 335 men and officers engaged. Abbott in large part blamed Republican political leadership for the losses because they had removed Major General George McClellan, a fellow Democrat, from command of the Army of the Potomac.
After the infamous "Mud March
Mud March
Mud March can refer to:*Mud March — In the American Civil War, an abortive Union attempt at a winter offensive in January 1863....
" of January 1863, Major General Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker was a career United States Army officer, achieving the rank of major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Although he served throughout the war, usually with distinction, Hooker is best remembered for his stunning defeat by Confederate General Robert E...
replaced Major General Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Everett Burnside was an American soldier, railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, and politician from Rhode Island, serving as governor and a U.S. Senator...
as commanding general of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
. In late March, Henry's 9–year old brother, Arthur, died from "the croup." After two weeks in Boston following Arthur's death, Henry returned to his regiment. On May 3, 1863, Abbott fought with his regiment during the Second Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, which was part of the Chancellorsville
Battle of Chancellorsville
The Battle of Chancellorsville was a major battle of the American Civil War, and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville Campaign. It was fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, near the village of Chancellorsville. Two related battles were fought nearby on...
Campaign. Major General John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick was a teacher, a career military officer, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War. He was the highest ranking Union casualty in the Civil War, killed by a sniper at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House.-Early life:Sedgwick was born in the Litchfield Hills town of...
, commander of the "grand division" of which the 20th Massachusetts Infantry was a part, was ordered to take Fredericksburg and then come to the aid of the bulk of the Union Army which came under heavy attack from Confederate forces at Chancellorsville. The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was on the far right of the line and suffered only 2 dead and 13 wounded, one of whom was Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. who was wounded for the third time. In this battle, the Union troops overwhelmed the more lightly defended Marye's Heights. Sedgwick was stopped from joining Hooker at nearby Chancellorsville by Confederate forces at the Battle of Salem Church
Battle of Salem Church
The Battle of Salem Church, also known as the Battle of Banks' Ford, took place on May 3–4, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, as part of the Chancellorsville Campaign of the American Civil War....
. Brigadier General John Gibbon
John Gibbon
John Gibbon was a career United States Army officer who fought in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.-Early life:...
's division, including the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, which had been left to hold the line at Fredericksburg, had to retreat across the Rappahannock River
Rappahannock River
The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...
to join Hooker and Sedgwick, who had recrossed the river further upstream.
Gettysburg, Pickett's Charge and Bristoe Station
On June 5, 1863, Hooker realized that Confederate General Robert E. LeeRobert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
was moving his army north and began to follow them, keeping the Army of the Potomac between Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. in the Civil War
As capital of the United States, the federal district of Washington, D.C., became a significant civilian leadership, military headquarters, and logistics center during the American Civil War. Defending the capital became a major priority of the War Department, and often dictated military strategy...
and Lee's forces. President Lincoln accepted Hooker's resignation as commanding general of the Army of the Potomac on June 27, 1863 and appointed Major General George Gordon Meade to replace him. The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, under its new colonel, Paul J. Revere, grandson of the hero of the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
of the same name, arrived in its position on Cemetery Ridge
Cemetery Ridge
Cemetery Ridge is a geographic feature in Gettysburg National Military Park south of the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that figured prominently in the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1 to July 3, 1863. It formed a primary defensive position for the Union Army during the battle, roughly the center of...
at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg is a borough that is the county seat, part of the Gettysburg Battlefield, and the eponym for the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. The town hosts visitors to the Gettysburg National Military Park and has 3 institutions of higher learning: Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg College, and...
on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
. Although not moved to the front line until later that night, the 20th Massachusetts Infantry came under shelling on the evening of July 2, 1863. Eleven officers or men of the regiment were killed or severely wounded, including Colonel Revere, who was mortally wounded. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry was moved into the center of the line, about 100 yards to the left of a clump of trees. The Confederate bombardment of Union positions on Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg on the afternoon of July 3, 1863 was generally high and beyond the front line although the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment did suffer a few casualties during the shelling. The bombardment was followed by Pickett's Charge
Pickett's Charge
Pickett's Charge was an infantry assault ordered by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee against Maj. Gen. George G. Meade's Union positions on Cemetery Ridge on July 3, 1863, the last day of the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. Its futility was predicted by the charge's commander,...
which the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry took a key part in repelling. Abbott was one of three unwounded officers in the regiment during Pickett's Charge and assumed command of the regiment when his superiors were wounded. The 20th Massachusetts Infantry waited until the Confederates were close to the Union line and then unleashed murderous volleys which broke the Confederate Army's advance at that point. Realizing that they had repulsed the Confederate advance at great loss to the attackers, the Massachusetts soldiers began to shout "Fredericksburg, Fredericksburg" as they believed they had avenged their defeat and loss in that terrible battle. Then, Abbott had his men turn to help beat off the Confederate attack on the Union line at the clump of trees, which was at the very heart of the battle (the high water mark of the Confederacy
High Water Mark of the Confederacy
The high-water mark of the Confederacy refers to a Gettysburg Battlefield area at The Angle which was the farthest American Civil War line of advance of "The Assaulting Column" of the Confederate "Longstreet's assault" into the Union Army defensive line during July 3 of the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg...
). Although the battle had been won, over half of the enlisted men and 10 of the 13 officers of the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry had been killed or wounded.
After the battle, Abbott remained in command of the regiment and was promoted to major on October 10, 1863. Four days later, the 20th Massachusetts Infantry fought in the small but sharp action at Bristoe Station
Battle of Bristoe Station
The Battle of Bristoe Station was fought on October 14, 1863, at Bristoe Station, Virginia, between Union forces under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren and Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill during the Bristoe Campaign of the American Civil War...
, Virginia. Union forces were surprised by the attack of Confederate Lieutenant General A. P. Hill
A. P. Hill
Ambrose Powell Hill, Jr. , was a career U.S. Army officer in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars and a Confederate general in the American Civil War...
's men. The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry took few casualties, however, because they were able to fight from behind a steep railroad grade. After Major General Meade demonstrated against Confederate forces at the battle of Mine Run
Battle of Mine Run
The Battle of Mine Run, also known as Payne's Farm, or New Hope Church, or the Mine Run Campaign , was conducted in Orange County, Virginia, in the American Civil War....
Creek, the Army of the Potomac went into winter quarters at Brandy Station, Virginia
Brandy Station, Virginia
Brandy Station is an unincorporated community in Culpeper County, Virginia, United States. Its original name was Brandy. The name Brandy Station comes from the Orange and Alexandria Railroad station that was constructed in the 19th century....
. In December 1863, Abbott received a 15-day leave to visit home, which was extended by 20 days due to his suffering from chronic diarrhea. In January, 1864, Abbott left home to rejoin his regiment.
Death at the Wilderness
On May 4, 1864, newly appointed General-in-ChiefGeneral-in-Chief
General-in-Chief has been a military rank or title in various armed forces around the world.- France :In France, General-in-Chief was first an informal title for the lieutenant-general commanding over others lieutenant-generals, or even for some marshals in charge of an army...
of the Union Armies and Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
began his drive south into Virginia that became known as the Overland Campaign
Overland Campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union armies, directed the actions of the Army of the...
. Although two sources state that Abbott remained in command of the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry until his death, another source says that Colonel George N. Macy returned to the regiment just before the Battle of the Wilderness
Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5–7, 1864, was the first battle of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Both armies suffered heavy casualties, a harbinger of a bloody war of attrition by...
on May 5–6, 1864, and that Abbott again assumed command of the regiment after Colonel Macy was wounded. At the Battle of the Wilderness, on May 6, 1864, Major Henry Abbott was shot in the abdomen while encouraging his command from an exposed, standing position, after he ordered his men to fight while lying down, as he had done at the Battle of Ball's Bluff. Mortally wounded, Henry Livermore Abbott died at a field hospital on the same day.
Brevet awards and posthumous praise
Henry Livermore Abbott's service and exploits had gained him some notoriety so news of his death was met with consternation and grief at the highest levels of command and back in Lowell, Massachusetts. Holmes later said that Abbott was a friend whose death "seemed to end a portion of our life also."On December 12, 1864, President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
nominated Major Abbott for the award of the honorary grade of brevet
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
brigadier general, United States Volunteers
United States Volunteers
United States Volunteers also known as U.S. Volunteers, U. S. Vol., or U.S.V.Starting as early as 1861 these regiments were often referred to as the "volunteer army" of the United States but not officially named that until 1898.During the nineteenth century this was the United States federal...
, to rank from August 1, 1864. The United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
confirmed the award on February 20, 1865. On February 15, 1867, President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
nominated Major Abbott for the award of the honorary grades of brevet lieutenant colonel, brevet colonel, and brevet brigadier general, United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
(Regular Army
Regular Army
The Regular Army of the United States was and is the successor to the Continental Army as the country's permanent, professional military establishment. Even in modern times the professional core of the United States Army continues to be called the Regular Army...
), to rank from March 13, 1865. The U. S. Senate confirmed the awards on March 2, 1867.
Abbott has been said to have been the most widely known and admired officer of his grade (or "rank") in the Army of the Potomac. Major General John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick was a teacher, a career military officer, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War. He was the highest ranking Union casualty in the Civil War, killed by a sniper at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House.-Early life:Sedgwick was born in the Litchfield Hills town of...
said that Abbott was "a wonderfully good soldier" and "a bright, particular star." Major General Winfield Scott Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock was a career U.S. Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service in the Mexican-American War and as a Union general in the American Civil War...
said "his reputation was built upon a solid foundation, and the closest scrutiny could not diminish it." Abbott's extensive correspondence with his family provides an especially good record of the engagements in which he fought and the generals and other personalities with whom he came into contact. Yet, over 90 percent of it remained unpublished until 1991.
Henry Livermore Abbott's good friend, future United States Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., who served in the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment with him, deeply admired Abbott for his courage and unruffled calm, and for his determination to do his duty even though he was deeply skeptical of Union war aims (except for preservation of the Union), was politically opposed to President Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, and did not support the abolition of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
because he thought it would die out in the near future. Holmes considered Abbott an ideal soldier, and praised him in a famous 1884 Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
speech stating that: "In action he was sublime."
See also
- List of Massachusetts generals in the American Civil War
- Massachusetts in the American Civil War
External links
.- Guide to Abbott family Civil War letters at Houghton Library, Harvard University