Thread by @bonesoflasalle

Few Confederate generals are as famous today as James Longstreet. In his own time, he never quite had top tier status as far as fame & glory went but had a more solid record than some who did. Yet, after the war, he became positively despised by many of his countrymen.👇🏻

A native of South Carolina, Longstreet was of Dutch ancestry & was raised by relatives in Georgia.
He joined the U.S. Army & served with distinction in the Mexican-American War. His political views were not especially strong but his commitment to defending the south was. 👇🏻

Casting his lot with the southern Confederacy, he led a brigade at the 1st Battle of Manassas & after was promoted to Major General & given a division. He led them to success at Williamsburg but fumbled at Seven Pines.
Nonetheless, when General Robert E. Lee took command... 👇🏻

..he appointed Longstreet to command the 1st Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia. Despite suffering a grievous personal loss, his prowess on the battlefield never wavered. Longstreet did well, not flawlessly but very well in the subsequent Seven Days' battles. 👇🏻

At the 2nd Battle of Manassas, Longstreet punched through to link up with Jackson's corps, resulting in a great victory for the Confederates. Yet, some did criticize Longstreet who gained a reputation for caution & a
preference for fighting defensively. Perhaps unfair but he...👇🏻

..certainly displayed his defensive tenacity at the brutal Battle of Antietam & then at the great southern victory at Fredericksburg at the end of 1862. He missed the Battle of Chancellorsville but with the death of Jackson, Lee relied on Longstreet all the more going forward. 👇🏻

Longstreet played the starring role in the epic Battle of Gettysburg in the summer of ‘63. It would be the most controversial & picked apart battle of his career. He would've preferred not to have fought it at all but his attitude caused many to unfairly blame him for the loss.👇🏻

In the wake of this disaster, Longstreet returned to a notion he had in mind for some time; using his corps to reinforce the hard pressed Army of Tennessee which had been pushed into northern Georgia. The higher ups agreed & Longstreet & his men arrived just in time to... 👇🏻

..play a decisive role in the bloody Battle of Chickamauga; the Army of Tennessee's greatest victory of the war. However, like many others, he subsequently got crossways with army commander General Braxton Bragg. He was given a detached assignment which did not go well. 👇🏻

Longstreet began having issues with his subordinates. He appointed a new commander for one of his divisions over another more popular with the soldiers, which led to bitterness & blamed a failure in the Knoxville campaign on his longtime friend & subordinate... 👇🏻

..Lafayette McLaws which McLaws viewed as unjust & a personal betrayal. Longstreet still won some battles but overall, after being critical to the huge success at Chickamauga, his foray into Tennessee had not gone well & he returned to Virginia. He was just in time... 👇🏻

..to particpate in the Battle of the Wilderness in March of 1864. His corps performed brilliantly & Longstreet seemed to be his old self again, even earning a new nickname; "old Bull of the Woods" However, he was severely wounded which put him out of action, preventing his...👇🏻

..action from being as successful as it could've been. Due to the severity of his injury, Longstreet was out of action for the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House & the beginning of the siege of Petersburg. During his convalescence he was confirmed in the Episcopal Church. 👇🏻

By the time he returned, the war in Virginia was nearly over. He initially commanded troops defending Richmond but soon had to pull double duty. As Lee was extricating his army from Richmond, A.P. Hill was killed in action & Longstreet found himself in charge of both the...👇🏻

..1st & 3rd Corps. He favored fighting on as long as any hope remained. However, ultimately, the Confederate forces were surrounded & Lee felt he had no choice but to surrender to General U.S. Grant. Longstreet had fought the good fight but soon attracted controversy. 👇🏻

What was it that made Longstreet so despised after the war was over? It mostly boils down to being ahead of the curve. Longstreet did three things that enraged many of his fellow countrymen; he became a Republican, he criticized General Lee & he converted to Catholicism. 👇🏻

Basically, Longstreet put the war behind him & was ready to move on as a U.S. citizen. Not everyone was so willing to embrace their conquerors & occupiers so soon after the war was over. However, much of the ill will toward
Longstreet was rather unfair given that most would...👇🏻

..reconcile themselves to their Yankee overlords but it just took a little more time. James Longstreet was one of the most important figures of the war, the last surviving member of the Confederate army high command & an excellent corps commander.
He died in 1904 at 82. 💀