Get your own Free Home Page
In the summer of 1862, 34 year-old Professor Joshua L. Chamberlain of Bowdoin college secured a sabbatical, supposedly to study in Europe; however, instead of travelling across the Atlantic, Chamberlain joined the U.S. Army as Lieut. Colonel of the 20th Maine Regiment.
The 20th Maine, part of the V Corps, saw action with the Army of the Potomac in most of its engagements from Antietam to Appomattox. At the bloody Battle of Fredericksburg, on Dec. 13, 1862, Chamberlain and his men spent a horrific night under relentless Confederate fire. His most heroic moment, however, waited for him at Gettysburg.
On July 2, 1863, Chamberlain, now in command of the 20th Maine, received orders to hold a small wooded hill on the extreme left of the Union line. Chamberlain knew as well as the commander of his brigade, Strong Vincent, that Little Round Top was vital to the Federal position. His men held their position against repeated Confederate attacks late into the hot afternoon. As the Southerners formed for a final attack, Chamberlain realized that his men had exhausted their ammunition, and would be helpless against the charging Confederates. Chamberlain, however, refused to retreat. He ordered his men to fix bayonets, and led them charging down the hill. His heroic attack sent the Confederates running, and held Little Round Top for the Union Army. Although wounded during the fight, Chamberlain still led his men until the Confederates retreated from Gettysburg. 30 years after his defense of Little Round Top, in August 1893, the nation recognized Chamberlain's valor by awarding him the Congressional Medal of Honor.
In November 1863, Chamberlain was sent home, stricken with malaria. He would spend several months recovering from the illness, and did not return to command of his regiment until May 1864. After Cold Harbor, Chamberlain was elevated to command of the 1st Brigade, 1st Division, 5th Corps, and led his troops on the assault at Petersburg in June 1864. During the attack, Chamberlain received a fourth wound, and one thought to be mortal. Ulysses S. Grant, so impressed with his bravery, promoted him to brigadier general on the field.
Against all expectations, except perhaps his own, Chamberlain recovered from the wound, and returned to the army. He received a promotion to major general on March 29, 1865, and was given the extreme honor of receiving the formal surrender of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northen Virginia on April 12, 1865. As the shattered remnants of Lee's once-mighty army stacked arms, Chamberlain, in a chivalrous gesture, snapped his men to attention, saluting the late foe.
Chamberlain, refusing a commission in the Regular Army when he was mustered out of service in January 1866, later served four terms as governor of Maine, from 1866-70, and then as president of Bowdoin College, from 1870-73. Chamberlain spent his later years as a businessman, writing extensively about his wartime experiences. On February 24, 1914, Chamberlain finally succumbed to the effects of the wound he received at Petersburg, dying in Portland, Maine.
Get your own Free Home Page