Bayonets, Balloons & Ironclads: Britain and France Take Sides with the South (Britannia's First Trilogy Book 3) by Peter Tsouras

Author:Peter Tsouras
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Published: 2015-02-09T16:00:00+00:00

10

“Old Soldiers of the Queen”

KENNEBUNK, MAINE, 1:45 P.M., MONDAY, APRIL 4, 1964

Troops had been detraining all day on the north side of the Kennebunk River into the ruins of the town where the British had defeated VI Corps’ attempt to relieve Fortress Portland the previous October. The news of Portland’s fall less than a week before had been met with intense disappointment by the men of the Army of the Hudson. They had been arriving in southern Maine for days as the railroad system of the Northeast had been devoted to their transfer from Upstate New York’s Canadian border.

They had been relieved in place by the IX Corps, another detail from the Army of the Potomac. Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside had been finally relieved of its command; his honest and repeated protestations of his inability at high command had been proven prescient too many times to risk him in a command of such importance.

Maj. Gen. Dan Sickles had recovered enough from the loss of his leg at Gettysburg to be given this independent command, the only non-West Pointer to be so rewarded. Meade had said flatly that he would resign if Sickles were returned to command his old III Corps. He had clearly identified Sickles as the author of the scathing articles on his command at Gettysburg under the pen name of Historicus.1 Nevertheless, Grant and Lincoln concluded that they could put up with the man’s flamboyance for the fact that he was a natural leader and a hard fighter.

Disappointment quickly hardened into resolve to liberate Gallant Portland for the Army of the Hudson. With VI Corps added to its order-of-battle, Sherman now had over sixty thousand men.2 He had arrived a few days before the rest of the Army to supervise the building of a base of operations at Kennebunk and had welcomed Maj. Gen. Horatio Wright back to the command of his corps after his exchange. He had also brought his own team of commanders from the West, such as Maj. Gen. John A. Logan to command XI Corps and Maj. Gen. James McPherson to command XII Corps. Both were gifted commanders who worked well with each other.3

Sherman was also pleased to receive another officer to his command, though he had never met him before—Maj. Gen. Joshua Chamberlain and his Maine Division. Chamberlain and his men had been exchanged after the surrender of Portland and were national heroes for their stout defense of the city. To that shrunken band, the other Maine regiments in the army were transferred so that it formed a small division of two brigades that Sherman assigned to XI Corps to round out Logan’s command to three divisions. It was thought that no men would fight harder to drive the British men than sons of their own native state.

Sherman was enormously buoyed by the song the men were singing, “The Old Soldiers of the Queen,” based on a song of the Revolution.

Since you all must having singing and won’t be said “Nay,”

I cannot refuse when you beg and you pray.

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