4 4 The American Civil War1861 and won some modest victories in
western Virginia early in the war. A man of
medium height with large shoulders and a
barrel chest, he dressed carefully and
presented a thoroughly professional
appearance. The northern press lauded him
as a brilliant commander, which fed his
considerable ego and led him to believe no
one else could save the republic.
As a Democrat, McClellan opposed much
of the Republican Party's legislative agenda
and reserved some of his harshest criticism
for Radical Republicans and abolitionists
who sought to turn the war into a crusade
against slavery. McClellan joined virtually all
other northern Democrats (and most
Republicans as well) in defining the conflict
as a struggle to restore the Union rather than
to free slaves. A member of his staff recalled
McClellan's saying that anyone who
expected him to wage war against the South
'to free the slaves ... would be mistaken, for
he would not do it.'
McClellan quickly revealed a deep
contempt for most of his civilian and
military superiors. He complained to his wife
that General-in-Chief Scott got in his way.
He called three members of the President's
cabinet 'an incompetent little puppy,' a
'garrulous old woman' and 'an old fool.' He
dismissed Lincoln as 'an idiot' and a 'well-
meaning baboon.' On one occasion, he
returned home to find that Lincoln and
Secretary of State William Henry Seward
had been waiting to see him. The General
proceeded to go upstairs, sending word 30
minutes later that he had gone to bed and
the two could come back another time.
Obnoxious personal qualities did not
prevent McClellan from turning McDowell's
demoralized soldiers into a formidable force.
He christened them the Army of the
Major-General George B. McClellan won the hearts of
soldiers in the Army of the Potomac, but he lacked the
stomach for the harsher aspects of war 'I am tired of the
sickening sight of the battlefield,' he wrote to
Mrs McClellan following his first real engagement at
Seven Pines, 'with its mangled corpses & poor suffering
wounded! Victory has no charms for me when
purchased at such cost.' (Author's collection)
Potomac in August 1861, having expanded
their number to more than 100,000, put
them through a strict regimen of drill and
instilled in them a strong sense of pride.
Soldiers and officers alike responded with an
outpouring of affection that made McClellan
by far the most popular of all the generals
who fought with the army.
Promotion came McClellan's way in early
November 1861. A combination of infirmities
and aggravation with McClellan prompted
Winfield Scott to resign on 1 November.
'Little Mac', as the men called him, took
Scott's place and added overall planning
responsibility to his role as field commander
of the Union's largest army. When Lincoln
cautioned the General about juggling the
many responsibilities of his two positions,
McClellan answered, 'I can do it all.'
What he proved unwilling to do was move
against Joseph E. Johnston's 45,000
Confederates in northern Virginia. McClellan
grotesquely overestimated Johnston's strength,
insisting that he needed 200,000 men to
launch an offensive. To the end of his time in