Morale In The Army Of The Cumberland During The Tullahoma And Chickamauga Campaigns by Major Robert J. Dalessandro

Author:Major Robert J. Dalessandro [Dalessandro, Major Robert J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781786253750
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Golden Springs Publishing
Published: 2015-11-06T00:00:00+00:00

Discipline

Discipline is the cornerstone of any army in the field. Foraging, violent crime, desertion, or other infractions of military law were daily occurrences that commanders had to come to grips with. As we observed in the case of Gordon Granger, the manner of punishment for these crimes often had a direct impact on both discipline and morale. It is often stated that discipline was more lax in the western armies than in its eastern counterpart. This statement is unfounded. In light of the record, it is evident that steps were immediately taken in Rosecrans’ department to correct errant behavior on the part of both soldiers and civilians within his department’s jurisdiction.

The Provost-Marshal General’s Department, headed by Major William M. Wiles, dealt with every form of nefarious activity from drunkenness, through the trade of “contraband” by sutlers and the issue of passes to civilians, to the control of camp followers. Of course, in most cases, criminal infractions were handled by the regimental chain of command. Occasionally, however, even minor criminal activity drew the attention of the headquarters. On September 18, 1863, Rosecrans’ Assistant Adjutant General fired off the following order: “The Commanding General directs you take charge of the discipline of the Headquarters Camp, to see that everything is kept in proper order and that the guards are efficient. There has been complaint recently that many articles are stolen from the wagons. The General desires you to devise some means to prevent this and punish the offenders.”{171}

Rosecrans’ staff may have succeeded in controlling theft, but according to William R. Stookly, 42nd Indiana Infantry Regiment, the provost marshal was less successful controlling the camp followers. In an unusually frank letter to his wife Stookly wrote, “as to getting home for twenty to thirty dollars just to sleep with a woman...I can get to sleep with them without going two miles from camp and with less than half the money and I never miss an opportunity.”{172} Amusing as his statement seems, the large amount of camp following caused the army-constant problems ranging from petty theft to more violent crime.

Minor infractions usually drew time in the guard house, however, the department dealt harshly with violent crime—it usually carried the death penalty. Alonzo Merrill Keeler, 22nd Michigan Regiment, wrote, “Hiram Reynolds, 82nd Illinois, hung at 12 M at the penitentiary Nashville for shooting a fellow soldier—Plead intoxication & was swung off while praying—seemed much agitated.”{173} Although executions were rare, they gave soldiers a memorable example of the reality of military discipline. At least two cases of rape were reported during the Tullahoma Campaign. The first case occurred at the mid-point of the campaign near McMinnville, Tennessee. Saddler Jacob Leonhart, 26th Pennsylvania Battery, entered the home of Mrs. Jane Young and, “did then and there, feloniously and against her will, [did] attempt to commit rape upon the person of “Sally,” a Negro woman in her employ.” Leonhart was caught and promptly sentenced to the penitentiary for the remainder of the war.{174} The second case involved one of the officers of the Army of the Cumberland.

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