William S. Rosecrans Article

              Illustration by Clara Fargo Thomas and Alexander Varnak; text by John A. Menaugh  Regarded by many historians as an able leader and called by some "the greatest strategist of the war," William S. Rosecrans made an acceptable record for himself in the first two and a half years of the Civil war.  Then, after losing the bloodiest battle of that historic conflict, he vanished from the ranks of the Union's fighting generals, relieved of his field command and assigned to duty that required no fighting.  Nicknamed Old Rosy by his soldiers, he was a resourceful and energetic warrior, able to accomplish an incredible amount of work and to get along on the absolute minimum of sleep.  He resented interference by his superiors, however, was hot-tempered and hasty, and frequently indiscreet in his utterances.  A graduate of West Point, he had resigned from the army in 1854 to engage in civilian pursuits, but on the outbreak of the Civil war he became a volunteer aide-de-camp to Gen. George B. McClellan.  The war had been in progress only a short time when he was appointed a brigadier general of the regular army, and in McClellan's campaign in western Virginia, he commanded a brigade, winning the battle of Rich Mountain in July, 1861.  Succeeding McClellan in command of the department of the Ohio, he later was made chief of the newly created department of western Virginia.  He continued operations that ended in driving the Confederates from the territory that was set up as the state of West Virginia.  Assigned to the Army of the Mississippi in May, 1862, Rosecrans took part in the federal advance on Corinth, Miss., and in the following month he succeeded to the command of that army, with which, as Ulysses S. Grant's subordinate, he was successful at the battles of Iuka and Corinth.  At Corinth, however, he failed to pursue he enemy after repulsing him.  Promoted to major general of volunteers thereafter, he was ordered to relieve Don C. Buell in Kentucky, his command there, which he joined in November, being reorganized as the Army of the Cumberland.  Moving with his troops to Nashville, Tenn., he spent about a month preparing for a campaign against the troops of the Confederate leader Braxton Bragg, whom he met in the indecisive battle of Stone River (Murfreesboro) on Dec. 31 to Jan. 3.  The enemy was successful in the early phases of the engagement, but Rosecrans re-formed his lines and repulsed Bragg's later attacks.  The Confederates then withdrew from the field, and for six months the two armies faced each other without engaging in any major operations.  It was not until late June, 1863, that Rosecrans maneuvered Bragg's army out of Shelbyville, Tenn., and forced it to fall back on Chattanooga.In the meantime the commander of the Army of the Cumberland had become involved in a controversy with Henry W. Halleck, the federal general in chief,which brought him into disfavor in Washington.  Halleck constantly urged Rosecrans to advanced again against Bragg, but it was not until mid-August that he did so.  Making a feint above Chattanooga, he then threw the bulk of his army across the Tennessee river below that city, compelling Bragg to move out.  With his adversary's lines now extended, Bragg, reinforced by troops under James Longstreet, turned against Rosecrans and on Sept. 19-20 was fought the battle of Chickamauga, in which the percentage of losses was heavier than in any other battle of the war.  The two armies were about matched in numerical strength.  The casualties of each exceeded 16,000.  On the second day of the fighting an unfortunate shift in the Union lines, ordered by Rosecrans, opened a gap into which Longstreet hurled his command.  The federal right wing thereafter was swept from the field.  Rosecrans and his corps commanders all were caught up in the rout that followed,and the federals were compelled to retreat to Chattanooga, where they were besieged.  The disaster at Chickamauga was laid directly to the execution of Rosecrans' order, which plainly was an error and which opened the gap in the federal lines.  The error cost Rosecrans his command and he was relieved in October, sent to the department of Missouri, and in December ordered to Cincinnati to await orders.  In the spring of 1865 he received the brevet rank of major general of regulars as a reward for his services at Stone River.