Walter Paye Lane was a Confederate

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...

 general 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...

 who also served in the armies of the Republic of Texas

Republic of Texas

The Republic of Texas was an independent nation in North America, bordering the United States and Mexico, that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the state claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S...

 and the United States of America

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Early life

Lane was born in County Cork

County Cork

County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

. The Lane family emigrated to Fairview

Fairview, Ohio

Fairview is a village in Belmont and Guernsey counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area...

 in Guernsey County, Ohio

Guernsey County, Ohio

Guernsey County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 40,087. Its county seat is Cambridge and is named for the Isle of Guernsey in the English Channel, from which many of the county's early settlers came....

, in 1821, and moved to Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

 in 1825. In 1836 Lane moved to Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

 to participate in its war for independence

Texas Revolution

The Texas Revolution or Texas War of Independence was an armed conflict between Mexico and settlers in the Texas portion of the Mexican state Coahuila y Tejas. The war lasted from October 2, 1835 to April 21, 1836...

 against Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

. After Texas had gained its independence, Lane lived in San Augustine County

San Augustine County, Texas

As of the census of 2000, there were 8,946 people, 3,575 households, and 2,520 families residing in the county. The population density was 17 people per square mile . There were 5,356 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile...

 in East Texas

East Texas

East Texas is a distinct geographic and ecological area in the U.S. state of Texas.According to the Handbook of Texas, the East Texas area "may be separated from the rest of Texas roughly by a line extending from the Red River in north central Lamar County southwestward to east central Limestone...

 and then San Antonio

San Antonio, Texas

San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...

, where he briefly served as a Texas Ranger

Texas Ranger Division

The Texas Ranger Division, commonly called the Texas Rangers, is a law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in Texas, and is based in Austin, Texas...

. In 1846 Lane joined the First Regiment, Texas Mounted Riflemen, as a first lieutenant to fight in the Mexican-American War. Lane fought with honors at the Battle of Monterey

Battle of Monterey

-Preliminaries:Prior to the Mexican-American War the Californio forces had already driven the Mexican appointed Governor Manuel Micheltorena and most of his soldiers from Alta California...

 and was later given the rank of major

Major (United States)

In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...

 and command of his own battalion

Battalion

A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...

. After the Mexican-American War, Lane wandered about doing various things in Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, and Peru

Peru

Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....

 before opening a mercantile business in Marshall, Texas

Marshall, Texas

Marshall is a city in Harrison County in the northeastern corner of Texas. Marshall is a major cultural and educational center in East Texas and the tri-state area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Marshall was about 23,523...

, in 1858.

Civil War

When the Civil War broke out, Lane was among the first Texans to call for secession

Secession

Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...

. Lane's military reputation was so great that the first volunteer Confederate company raised in Harrison County

Harrison County, Texas

Harrison County is a county of the U.S. state of Texas. In 2000, its population was 62,110. It is named for Jonas Harrison, a lawyer and Texas revolutionary. It is located in the Ark-La-Tex region...

 was named for him, though Lane would join the 3rd Texas Cavalry. Lane participated in the battles of Wilson's Creek, Missouri

Battle of Wilson's Creek

The Battle of Wilson's Creek, also known as the Battle of Oak Hills, was fought on August 10, 1861, near Springfield, Missouri, between Union forces and the Missouri State Guard, early in the American Civil War. It was the first major battle of the war west of the Mississippi River and is sometimes...

, Chustenahlah

Battle of Chustenahlah

The Battle of Chustenahlah was fought in Osage County, Oklahoma, on December 26, 1861, during the American Civil War. A band of 9,000 pro-Union Native Americans was forced to flee to Kansas in bitter cold and snow in what became known as the Trail of Blood on the Ice.Confederate troops had...

, Pea Ridge

Battle of Pea Ridge

The Battle of Pea Ridge was a land battle of the American Civil War, fought on March 6–8, 1862, at Pea Ridge in northwest Arkansas, near Garfield. In the battle, Union forces led by Brig. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis defeated Confederate troops under Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn. The outcome of the...

 and Corinth

Battle of Corinth

The Battle of Corinth may refer to a Roman battle, or to one of two American Civil War Battles:* The Battle of Corinth * The Siege of Corinth, Mississippi , also known as the First Battle of Corinth, during the American Civil War* The Second Battle of Corinth...

. Lane led the 3rd Texas at the battle of Franklin, Mississippi

Franklin, Mississippi

Franklin is an unincorporated community located in Holmes County, Mississippi. Franklin is located on Mississippi Highway 17 and is approximately south of Lexington and approximately north of Pickens....

, and was commended by General P.G.T. Beauregard for his efforts. Lane was severely wounded in the Battle of Mansfield

Battle of Mansfield

The Battle of Mansfield, also known as the Battle of Sabine Crossroads, occurred on April 8, 1864, in De Soto Parish, Louisiana. Confederate forces commanded by Richard Taylor attacked a Union army commanded by Nathaniel Banks a few miles outside the town of Mansfield, near Sabine Crossroads...

 in 1864, where Confederates forces rebuffed a push to capture either or both Shreveport, Louisiana

Shreveport, Louisiana

Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....

, or Marshall, Texas. Before the war ended, Lane was promoted to the rank of brigadier general in 1865, being confirmed on the last day the Confederate Congress

Congress of the Confederate States

The Congress of the Confederate States was the legislative body of the Confederate States of America, existing during the American Civil War between 1861 and 1865...

 met.

Postbellum career

After the Civil War Lane returned to Marshall where he helped to establish the Texas Veterans Association. After Reconstruction, Lane and his brother George, a local judge

Judge

A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...

, founded the first White Citizens Party in Texas and ran Republicans and African-Americans out of Marshall. With Democratic white hegemony brutally reestablished in Marshall and Harrison County, Lane declared the city and county "redeemed". He died in Marshall, Texas, and is buried in the Marshall Cemetery near downtown Marshall. His memoirs, The Adventures and Recollections of General Walter P. Lane, were published posthumously in 1928.

See also

• List of American Civil War generals

External links