USA Bio George B. McClellan

[Battleline]

Here is the first stab at a bio for George B. McClellan. At 5885 characters, its just under 2000 characters too long. I'm open to suggetions of what to take out. McClellan easily could have a bio twice as long as this! Edited for my horrible math!

Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan (b. 1826, d. 1885) Calling George Brinton McClellan controversial would be like calling the Civil War a minor tiff. Had McClellan lived a century later, one would have thought of him as a soap opera character. As a general McClellan, “Young Napoleon” to his admirers, he was tasked with trying to end the war with the Army of the Potomac in 1861 and 1862. As a politician, he tried to end the war as the Democratic party’s nominee for president in 1864. He failed on both accounts. McClellan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Dec. 3, 1826. He attended the University of Pennsylvania until 1842, leaving to enter the U.S. Military Academy. At West Point, McClellan was among the stars of his class, which gave Civil War armies 20 general officers. He graduated second in the Class of 1846 and became a brevet second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers. Attached to Winfield Scott’s forces, he quickly gained favorable attention for his conduct. He was breveted to first lieutenant and captain. After the war, his duties included a tour at West Point as an instructor. He was sent west to look for possible transcontinental railroad routes. He went to Europe to study the Crimean War. He developed the McClellan saddle from the Hungarian saddle as a direct result of his trip. This remained the standard saddle until the army discontinued horse cavalry. In 1857, he left the army to become chief engineer of the Illinois Central Railroad. When the Civil War started, he was living in Cincinnati and was president of the Ohio & Mississippi Railroad. On April 23, 1861, McClellan, with his military background and political connections, was commissioned as major general of Ohio Volunteers with command of all of the state’s forces by the appointment of Gov. William Dennison. In command of the Department of Ohio, he was tasked with taking care of Kentucky and western counties of Virginia, which did not want to secede. McClellan was able to hold both areas for the Union, sending troops into Kentucky. In what later became West Virginia, he set out on the Rich Mountain Campaign to insure that area’s allegiance. The McClellan magic was noticed by Pres. Abraham Lincoln, who appointed McClellan major general in the regular army, where he ranked second to Winfield Scott. This success, coupled with the Federal disaster at First Bull Run, led to McClellan being recalled to Washington in August of 1861. His first actions weren’t on the battlefield as he brought order and organization to the army, creating the Army of the Potomac. He restored morale to Federal forces and established rapport with the troops. He ascended to General-in-Chief of the Armies of the United States Nov. 1, 1861, on the retirement of Gen. Scott. He held that position until replaced by Henry Halleck. Unfortunately, McClellan couldn’t find the same success on the battlefield. His command amounted to “lost opportunities and frustration” according to Ezra Warner’s “Generals in Blue.” Urged by the administration and against his own judgment, McClellan launched an attack on the Confederates via the Virginia Peninsula. McClellan protested when part of his army was retained for the Washington, D.C. defenses. The campaign was called “magnificent in conception but undistinguished in execution (Warner).” Throughout the Peninsular Campaign, McClellan greatly overestimated the number of troops opposing him. Advancing on Richmond, McClellan failed to capitalize on opportunities even when his opponent was undergoing a change in leadership from Joseph Johnston to Robert E. Lee. Beaten back during the Seven Days battles, McClellan’s force retreated to Harrison’s Landing. Citing a lack of support from Washington, McClellan refused to move forward until receiving reinforcements. Eventually, McClellan’s force evacuated by the James River. When units arrived at Alexandria, they were reassigned to Gen. Pope’s Army of Virginia, which had the task of advancing on Richmond via the Orange & Alexandria Railroad. When Pope’s tactics failed, McClellan was called in to restore order, which he did. When the Confederates moved into Maryland, McClellan brought his force to protect Washington, D.C. at Frederick, Maryland. He met the Army of Northern Virginia at Sharpsburg. While winning the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest day of the Civil War, McClellan missed the chance to crush Lee’s force as he again let his subordinates make local tactical decisions. In the meantime, the rift between McClellan and certain members of the government grew. Politically, McClellan differed from the Radical Republicans. He believed the planter elite had forced succession on the South and wanted to restore things with little revision. He repeatedly warned against turning the war into a crusade against slavery. There is evidence (according to Warner) that Secretary of War Edwin Stanton withheld items from the Army of the Potomac. Factions supporting either McClellan or the administration formed within the ranks. The bubble burst for McClellan Nov. 7, 1862, when he sent an order from the War Department to turn over army command to Gen. Ambrose Burnside (a favorite of the Radical Republicans) and to return home to New Jersey and await further orders. Those orders never came. Still very popular, McClellan became a candidate for president in the Democratic party. His platform of “peace at any price” failed. Late in the campaign, he changed to his old stance that the war should be vigorously prosecuted. On election day, 1864, McClellan cast his vote and resigned from the U.S. Army. McClellan won three states, but Abraham Lincoln retained the presidency. McClellan was successful in state politics and was governor of New Jersey from 1878-81. He died Oct. 29, 1885, in Orange, New Jersey. He is buried in Riverview Cemetery in Trenton, New Jersey.

[Gil R.]

Battleline, you're misremembering. The maximum for bios is 3900 characters. Unfortunately, that means that this will need to be shortened. It's a real shame, since this is an excellent bio. I guess chopping some of his early career info would be good. If you can get it down to around 4400 characters I can do the rest, much as I prefer that it be closer to 4000.

Any feedback on this bio from others out there?

[jkBluesman]

Tough job to shorten. There are much more things to add than to take out. So just some remarks:
McClellan not only overestiamated the enemy forces during the Peninsula Campaign but during the Maryland campaign as well, even after he got in posession of Lee's lost order No. 191, which listed the disposition of every Confederate division in the Army of Northern Virginia. So maybe the sentence could be changed to: Throughout the war, McClellan constantly overestimated the number of troops opposing him and often believed himself to be outnumbered.
He may have opposed the design of the Peninsula Campaign but as he was opposed to almost every offensive move, the administration forced a decission.

Sidenote: Was it Pope's tactics that failed or his strategy?

[Drex]

Maybe the info about Stanton could be deleted even though it does add to the bio. hard choices here.

[Battleline]

Here's the slimmed-down version, 3889 characters!

Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan (b. 1826, d. 1885) Calling George Brinton McClellan controversial would be like calling the Civil War a minor tiff. Had McClellan lived a century later, one would have thought of him as a soap opera character. As a general McClellan, “Young Napoleon” to his admirers, he was tasked with trying to end the war in 1861 and 1862. As a politician, he tried to end the war as the Democratic party’s nominee for president in 1864. He failed on both accounts. McClellan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Dec. 3, 1826. One of the standouts of the U.S. Military Academy’s Class of 1842 (2nd in class), McClellan was a rising star in the army, earning praise for service in Mexico, serving as an engineer. He was an observer in the Crimean War and inventor of what became the army’s standard saddle. In 1857, McClellan left the army to work in the railroad. Living in Cincinnati at the outbreak of the war, he was commissioned as major general of Ohio Volunteers (April 23, 1861) with command of all of the state’s forces by the appointment of Gov. William Dennison. McClellan’s first command helped the Union hold both Kentucky and West Virginia. After the Rich Mountain Campaign, Pres. Abraham Lincoln appointed him major general in the regular army, ranked second. In August of 1861, he was called to Washington, where he organized Federal forces and created the Army of the Potomac. He ascended to General-in-Chief of the Armies of the United States Nov. 1, 1861, and held that position until replaced by Henry Halleck. McClellan couldn’t success on the battlefield. His command amounted to “lost opportunities and frustration” according to Ezra Warner’s “Generals in Blue.” Urged by the administration, McClellan launched an attack on the Confederates via the Virginia Peninsula. He protested when part of his army was retained for the Washington, D.C. defenses. The campaign was called “magnificent in conception but undistinguished in execution (Warner).” Throughout the Peninsular Campaign, he greatly overestimated the number of troops opposing him. Advancing on Richmond, he failed to capitalize on chances even when his opponent was undergoing a change in leadership. Beaten back during the Seven Days battles, McClellan’s force retreated to Harrison’s Landing. Citing a lack of support, he refused to move forward until receiving reinforcements. Eventually, his force evacuated by the James River. When units arrived at Alexandria, they were reassigned to Gen. Pope’s Army of Virginia. When Pope’s tactics failed, McClellan was called in to restore order. When the Confederates moved into Maryland, McClellan brought his force to protect Washington, D.C. at Frederick, Maryland. He met the Army of Northern Virginia at Sharpsburg, staying cautious even after viewing the “Lost Order,” which detailed his opposition. While winning the Battle of Antietam, McClellan missed the chance to crush his foe as he again let his subordinates make local tactical decisions. In the meantime, the rift between McClellan and certain members of the government grew. Politically, McClellan differed from the Radical Republicans. He believed the planter elite had forced succession on the South. He repeatedly warned against turning the war into a crusade against slavery. The bubble burst Nov. 7, 1862, when he was ordered to turn over command and to return home to New Jersey and await further orders, which never came. Still very popular, McClellan became the Democratic party’s candidate for president in the 1864 election. His original platform was “peace at any price.” On election day, McClellan cast his vote and resigned from the Army. He won three states, but Lincoln retained the presidency. McClellan was successful in state politics and was governor of New Jersey from 1878-81. He died Oct. 29, 1885, in Orange, New Jersey. He is buried in Trenton.

[Gil R.]

Excellent! I'll prioritize this for the next patch, much as I like those unknown guys whose names start with 'P'.

[Gil R.]

An excellent job of boiling down the essentials. Still, I had to make numerous changes in order to add stuff and then had to boil it down to fit. (My goodness, this one took a long time!) So, in addition to a bit of rewriting here and there, I had to shorten or cut quite a few things. I removed the bit about his appointment over Ohio forces (since it lasted for less than two weeks), and the sentence “He protested when part of his army was retained for the Washington, D.C. defenses.” I also removed the introductory sentence “Calling McClellan controversial would be like calling the Civil War a minor tiff. Had McClellan – “Young Napoleon” to his admirers – lived a century later, one would have thought of him as a soap opera character” and replaced it with my own, since I wanted to get the Grant quote in. And I replaced the details about the evacuation from the Peninsula with other relevant info. And I removed one Ezra Warner quote. And I removed mention of the transition from Johnston to Lee as a missed opportunity. And I removed mention of his failing to crush the ANV at Antietam because “he again let his subordinates make local tactical decisions.” Plus various other changes to make it fit.

By the way, I discovered that McClellan was put in charge of Ohio forces on the same day that Lee was given command of Virginia forces. Sadly, this piece of trivia had to be removed soon after I added it.

Maj. Gen. George Brinton McClellan (b. 1826, d. 1885). Perhaps the most controversial figure of the Civil War, McClellan’s great gifts and failings would lead even Ulysses S. Grant to consider him “one of the mysteries of the war.” As a general, he was supposed to end the war quickly; as a politician, he tried to end it by running against Pres. Abraham Lincoln. He failed on both accounts. McClellan was born in Philadelphia on Dec. 3, 1826. One of the standouts of West Point’s Class of 1842 (2nd out of 59), McClellan was a rising star in the army, earning praise for his service in Mexico as an engineer, serving as a military observer in the Crimean War, and even inventing the army’s standard saddle. In 1857, he left the army to work in the railroad industry. Reentering the Regular Army on May 3, 1861 as commander of the Department of the Ohio, McClellan had secured western Virginia by mid-July. In the aftermath of the calamity at Manassas, the hero McClellan was summoned to the capital, where as the second-ranking major general – and later, beginning on Nov. 1, new General-in-Chief – he would be tasked with reorganizing Union forces. Over several months, McClellan created the formidable Army of the Potomac and prepared it for battle. However, the talented McClellan could not succeed where it counted most: on the battlefield. Urged by Lincoln to go on the offensive, he launched his Peninsular Campaign in March 1862 by landing 121,500 troops on the Virginia Peninsula for an advance on Richmond – a campaign that would be remembered as “magnificent in conception but undistinguished in execution” (Ezra Warner, “Generals in Blue”). At crucial points, his cautious nature led him to greatly overestimated the number of troops opposing him and to fail to capitalize on various opportunities. Beaten back from Richmond during the Seven Days’ Battles of June 25-July 1, he was ordered to return with his army to Washington, D.C. Ignoring McClellan’s claims that the War Department had failed to support his efforts, Lincoln, who was tired of his arrogance, insubordination, and lack of aggression, reassigned most of his men to Gen. John Pope’s Army of Virginia, and on July 23 replaced him as General-in-Chief. But after Pope’s tactics failed and led to disaster at 2nd Bull Run on Aug. 29-30, McClellan was once again (reluctantly) called in to restore order in the army. When Lee moved into Maryland, McClellan brought his force to Frederick to protect Washington. Despite a great stroke of fortune when the “Lost Order,” a copy of Lee’s operational plans, was discovered, McClellan again acted cautiously, and though on Sept. 17 he won the Battle of Antietam, he missed the chance to crush his retreating foe. Meanwhile, the rift between McClellan and certain members of the government was growing. Politically, McClellan differed from the Radical Republicans. He believed the planter elite had forced secession on the South, and repeatedly warned against turning the war into a crusade against slavery, as Lincoln had done. Finally, on Nov. 5, McClellan was ordered to relinquish command and return home to await further orders, which never came. Still very popular, McClellan – “Young Napoleon” to his admirers – became the Democrats’ presidential candidate in 1864, challenging Lincoln. His platform of “peace at any price” made him the favorite candidate of southern onlookers as well as Peace Democrats and his campaign benefited from war fatigue, but in September the fall of Atlanta and success in the Shenandoah Valley restored hopes of a Union victory. On election day, McClellan cast his vote and resigned from the Army. He won three states, but Lincoln retained the presidency. McClellan was more successful in state politics, becoming governor of New Jersey from 1878-81. He died Oct. 29, 1885, in Orange, N.J. and was buried in Trenton. (Bio by Bill Battle)

“Death” date: 44