| Włodzimierz B. Krzyżanowski | |
|---|---|
Włodzimierz Krzyżanowski |
|
| Born | July 8, 1824 Rożnowo, Grand Duchy of Poznań |
| Died | January 31, 1887 (aged 62) New York City, New York |
| Place of burial | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Allegiance | United States of America Union |
| Service/branch | Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861–65 |
| Rank | Colonel and Brigadier General (temporary) |
| Unit | Army of the Potomac Army of the Cumberland |
| Commands held | Krzyżanowski's Brigade, XI Corps |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Brevet Brigadier General |
| Relations | cousin of Frédéric Chopin |
| Other work | civil engineer, military territorial administrator, Treasury Department clerk, customs agent |
Włodzimierz Bonawentura Krzyżanowski ([vwɔˈd͡ʑimjɛʂ kʂɨʐaˈnɔfski]; in the United States; 8 July 1824 – 31 January 1887) was a Polish engineer, politician, and military leader — a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. In the July 1863 Battle of Gettysburg, Krzyżanowski helped repel an evening assault by the famed Louisiana Tigers on the Union defenses atop East Cemetery Hill.
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Krzyżanowski was born in Rożnowo, Grand Duchy of Poznań, into an old Polish noble family that bore the Świnka coat of arms, and whose roots reached back to the 14th century and ownership of the village of Krzyżanowo near Kościan. Krzyżanowski's father and both uncles had fought for Polish independence under Napoleon's banners, and his brother fought in the November 1830 Uprising.[1]
Krzyżanowski was a first cousin to Frédéric Chopin, whose mother Justyna Krzyżanowska's brother was Włodzimierz Krzyżanowski's father.[2]
After the death of Krzyżanowski's father, the family fell into debt and had to leave their estate. The mother sent Włodzimierz to relatives in Poznań, while the rest of the family moved to Warsaw. Young Krzyżanowski attended St. Mary Magdalen Gymnasium in Poznań, a principal center of the Polish nationalist underground in Prussian Poland.[3]
Krzyżanowski took part in the 1848 uprising against Prussia and, after its suppression, fled Poland to avoid arrest. He went to Hamburg, Germany, and from there sailed to New York. In the United States he learned the English language and continued his education.[4]
After completing his education, Krzyżanowski worked as a civil engineer and surveyor in Virginia and was instrumental in pushing America's railroads west. There he made the acquaintance of General Burnett and married his daughter Caroline, with whom he moved to Washington, D.C., to set up his own company, which brought him substantial wealth. He also became active in Republican Party politics. In 1860 he supported Abraham Lincoln's candidacy for president of the United States.[5]
In Washington, D.C., in early 1861, Krzyżanowski enlisted as a private two days after President Abraham Lincoln called for volunteers. Krzyżanowski recruited a company of Polish immigrants, one of the first companies of Union soldiers. He moved the company to New York City, enlisted more immigrants, and soon became colonel of the 58th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, listed in the official Army Register as the "Polish Legion".[6][7]
Krzyżanowski participated in the battles of Cross Keys in the Shenandoah Valley, and Second Bull Run (Second Manassas), where he was injured when his horse fell,[7] Chancellorsville, where his brigade and the corps they were part of were routed by a Confederate flank attack, and Gettysburg in the Eastern Theater.
President Lincoln appointed Krzyżanowski brigadier general on November 26, 1862.[7] The appointment expired by law on March 4, 1863 because the U.S. Senate failed to confirm the promotion.[7] The Senate belatedly approved the appointment on March 9, 1863 but recalled and tabled it on March 11, 1863.[7]
At Gettysburg on July 1, 1863, his men were pushed back through the town as the Union XI Corps retreated. Krzyżanowski was injured when his horse stumbled during this action.[7] However, Krzyżanowski led a counterattack on July 2 on Cemetery Hill that helped stabilize the faltering Union line.[6]
Later in the year, the XI Corps was sent to the Western Theater to help relieve the Confederate siege of Chattanooga. Krzyżanowski played a role in the Battle of Wauhatchie, where he followed Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker's orders very literally; and he was present at the Battle of Missionary Ridge.[6]
When the XI Corps was dissolved, much of it being added to XX Corps, Krzyżanowski was assigned to command at Bridgeport, Alabama, to guard the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad, and later to Stevenson, Alabama, both commands within the Department of the Cumberland.[6] He also commanded the 3rd Brigade of the Defenses of the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad, reporting to Maj. Gen. Robert H. Milroy.[7] He led this brigade into an action at the Third Battle of Murfreesboro, in which Milroy's troops defeated the renowned Confederate Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest.
On March 2, 1865, President Lincoln nominated Krzyżanowski for the award of the grade of brevet brigadier general of volunteers to rank from March 2, 1865.[8] The U.S. Senate confirmed the award on March 9, 1865.[8] Krzyżanowski was mustered out of the volunteers on October 1, 1865.[7]
After the war, Krzyżanowski was given governing duties in Alabama.[9] He later served as the appointed governor of several Southern states (Florida, Georgia, and Virginia.)[9] Supposedly he also served as the first American administrator of Alaska Territory. However, the Anchorage Daily News was unable to find conclusive information to support or disprove this claim.[10] It is said that the supposed posting was a reward for his performance as personal representative of Secretary William H. Seward during the negotiations for the purchase of Alaska.[11]
He served in the U.S. Treasury Department and later in the customs service in Panama and New York.
Krzyżanowski died in New York City. On October 13, 1937, the 50th anniversary of his death, his remains were transferred with military honors from Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York, to Arlington National Cemetery. President Franklin D. Roosevelt broadcast his tribute to the nation via radio, and Poland's President, Ignacy Mościcki, transmitted his esteem from Warsaw.