| William Nelson Pendleton | |
|---|---|
William Nelson Pendleton |
|
| Nickname | "Parson" Pendleton |
| Born | December 26, 1809 Richmond, Virginia |
| Died | January 15, 1883 (aged 73) Lexington, Virginia |
| Place of burial | Grace Church Cemetery in Lexington |
| Allegiance | United States of America Confederate States of America |
| Service/branch | Confederate States Army |
| Years of service | 1830–33 (USA) 1861–65 (CSA) |
| Rank | Second Lieutenant (USA) Brigadier General (CSA) |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
| Other work | episcopal priest |
William Nelson Pendleton (December 26, 1809 – January 15, 1883) was an American teacher, Episcopal priest, and soldier. He served as a Confederate general during the American Civil War, noted for his position as Gen. Robert E. Lee's chief of artillery for most of the conflict. After the war Pendleton returned to the priesthood and became a religious writer.
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William Nelson Pendleton was born in 1809 in Richmond, Virginia. He grew up there on the plantation belonging to his parents, Edmund Pendleton and his wife Lucy (Nelson) Pendleton.[1] His primary education came from private tutors and from attending John Nelson's School located in Richmond.[2] Pendleton's family arranged for his older brother (Francis Walker Pendleton) to enter the United States Military Academy at West Point, but when Francis expressed little military interest William went in his place.[3] He entered West point in 1826 and graduated four years later, standing 5th out of 42 cadets.[4]
Among Pendleton's classmates at West Point were future Confederate generals Joseph E. Johnston, Robert E. Lee, and John B. Magruder (with whom he was roommates) as well as future statesman Jefferson Davis.[3] He was appointed a brevet second lieutenant in the United States Army on July 1, 1830. That same day Pendleton was assigned to the 2nd U.S. Artillery as a full second lieutenant.[4] His regiment was ordered to Fort Moultrie defending the harbor in Charleston, South Carolina, but that fall Pendleton fell sick with malaria and was re-assigned to the arsenal in Augusta, Georgia to restore his health. On July 15, 1831, he married Anzolette Elizabeth Page, and they would have four children together. His only son, Alexander Swift "Sandie" Pendleton, would also serve the Confederacy as an aide to Stonewall Jackson and was killed in action as a colonel during the Third Battle of Winchester on September 19, 1864.[5] His daughter Susan would marry future Confederate general Edwin G. Lee on November 16, 1856.
Pendleton returned to West Point in 1831 to teach mathematics, and on October 27, 1832, he was transferred to the 4th U.S. Artillery. He resigned his U.S. Army commission a year later on October 31, 1833, reportedly due to the issue of nullification in his home state.[6] In 1833 Pendleton joined the faculty at Bristol College in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, teaching mathematics. In 1837 he began serving in the same capacity at Newark College in Delaware. That same year Pendleton was ordained an Episcopal priest in the state of Pennsylvania, and in 1840 he began teaching at the Episcopal Boy's High School in Wilmington, Delaware. Three years later he relocated to Baltimore, Maryland, and in 1847 he gave up teaching and served as rector of All Saints' Church. In 1853 Pendleton returned to Virginia and became rector of Grace Church in Lexington, and was there when the American Civil War began.[7]
When the American Civil War commenced in 1861, Pendleton chose to follow the Confederate cause. On March 16 he entered the Regular Confederate Artillery with the rank of captain, and on May 1 he was elected captain in the Virginia Artillery. He commanded a four-gun battery called the Rockbridge Artillery, naming his guns "Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John" after the Gospel writers.[8] On July 2 Pendleton participated in the minor Battle of Falling Waters, where "he and his battery performed capably."[9] On July 13 Pendleton was promoted to colonel and began serving as chief of artillery for Brig. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's command during the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21. He was wounded in this fight, injured in an ear and his back.[4]
Beginning in July 1861 Pendleton led the artillery of the Confederate Army of the Potomac, and on March 14, 1862, he continued in this role after the army was renamed the Army of Northern Virginia. On March 26 he was promoted to brigadier general.[10] On July 3 Pendleton was again wounded when a mule from his artillery kicked him in the leg and possibly breaking one of his bones there.[9] His most noted Civil War performance occurred during the 1862 Maryland Campaign. On the evening September 19 Lee gave Pendleton command of the rearguard infantry following the Battle of Shepherdstown, ordering him to hold the Potomac River crossings until the morning. Despite a commanding position from which to defend the fords, "Pendleton lost track of his forces and lost control of the situation." Awakening Lee after midnight, he frantically reported his position lost and all of his guns captured. This turned out to be a highly exaggerated and hasty account, as he lost only four guns, but he had pulled out the infantry "without sufficient cause." Richmond newspapers viciously reported on this incident for the remainder of the war, and unflattering rumors and jokes were spread by his own soldiers and throughout the army. At least one military court of inquiry was held to investigate Pendleton's actions at Shepherdstown.[11]
Pendleton served with the Army of Northern Virginia for the rest of the conflict, taking part in the 1863 and 1864 major campaigns of the Eastern Theater. However during the final two years of the war, Pendleton's role was mostly administrative, and his active command was only of the reserve ordnance. Throughout the war, he continues in his religious calling, always preaching to his men. Pendleton surrendered with Lee's army at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865, and was paroled from there and returned home.[12]
After the war, Pendleton returned to Lexington and his rectorship of Grace Church, which he would hold for the rest of his life.[7] There in Lexington, Virginia, he retained a strong friendship with Matthew Fontaine Maury, Francis Henney Smith, and Robert E. Lee, and played a significant role in persuading his former commander to move to Lexington himself to take up the presidency of the institution that was to become Washington and Lee University. Lee, in turn, became one of Pendleton's parishioners, and Lee's last public transaction in 1870 was at a Grace Church vestry meeting in which Lee led a group of church leaders in a mutual pledge to increase Pendleton's salary.(Source: Joseph William Jones' [former C.S.A.] "Personal Reminiscences, Anecdotes, and Letters of Gen. Robert E. Lee.") Pendleton remained in Lexington until his death in 1883, and is buried in the city's Grace Church Cemetery.[4]
Pendleton was portrayed in the 2003 Civil War film Gods and Generals by John Castle. The scene featured a conversation between Pendleton and Stonewall Jackson regarding his son, Alexander Swift "Sandie" Pendleton, who was present. During the scene, Pendleton informed Jackson of the naming the howitzers Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John; to which, Jackson replied "I'm sure your men will spread the gospel wherever they encounter the enemy."