Hans Christian Heg
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Hans Christian Heg (December 21, 1829 – September 19, 1863) was a Norwegian immigrant to the United States who served as a colonel and brigade commander in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Hans C. Heg was born in Drammen, Norway. He immigrated with his family to America in 1840, settling in Wisconsin. Heg was a Major in the 4th Wisconsin Militia. He served as the State Prison Commissioner (the first Norwegian elected to a Wisconsin state-wide office). A member of the recently formed Republican Party, he was an outspoken anti-slavery activist.
With the outbreak of the Civil War, he was appointed by Wisconsin Governor Alexander Randall to be the Colonel of the 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment. The 15th Wisconsin was called the Scandinavian Regiment because its soldiers were almost all immigrants from Norway, with some from Denmark and Sweden. It was the only all Scandinavian regiment in the Union army. On October 8, 1862, Colonel Heg led his regiment into its first big fight, the Battle of Perryville in Kentucky. Despite being under fire while driving the enemy back several miles, the 15th Wisconsin suffered few casualties and no fatalities. However, one of those hurt was Colonel Heg, who was injured when his horse fell.
Heg then commanded the 15th during the bloody Battle of Stones River in Tennessee. In response to his conduct at Stones River, General William Rosecrans placed Colonel Heg in command of the newly formed 3rd Brigade of the 1st Division, Twentieth Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland, on May 1, 1863.
On September 19, 1863, Colonel Heg led his brigade at Battle of Chickamauga, where he was mortally wounded. Upon hearing of Heg's death, General Rosecrans expressed regret, saying he had intended to promote Heg to Brigadier General. As it was, Colonel Heg was the highest-ranked Wisconsin soldier killed in combat during the Civil War.
There is a statue of Hans Christian Heg in Madison, Wisconsin. A copy of the statue stands in Lier, Norway, Heg's birthplace.
