DK - The American Civil War

S

carcely bigger than a drummer

boy, “Little Phil” Sheridan must

have looked an improbable

candidate to become, one day, general

of the army. Of his contemporaries, the

only others to attain this elevated rank

were Ulysses S. Grant and William T.

Sherman. But Sheridan was as

combative as a gamecock in his love

of a fight. He also possessed what

Grant himself most admired, “that

magnetic quality of swaying men

which I wish I had—a rare quality in a

general.” Soldiers responded to his

presence and rallied at his command.

Pugnacious youth

Philip Henry Sheridan grew up in

Somerset, Ohio, where town legend

had it that he won every boyhood

fight that came his way and even once

chased his schoolmaster up a tree.

But he was nearly rejected by the

examining board at West Point because

of his peculiar build. He was

broadchested but tiny—his height

was later generously estimated

at 5ft 5in (1.65m). And the

lanky Abraham Lincoln

famously described

Sheridan as a “brown,

chunky little chap,

with a long body, short

legs, not enough neck

to hang him, and such

long arms that if his

ankles itch he can

scratch them without

stooping.” West Point

Philip Sheridan

cadets, however, had to beware—

Sheridan did not take kindly to teasing.

Long arms made for a fine swordsman;

and he was suspended once for waving

a bayonet at a cadet for some perceived

parade-ground slight.

Meteoric career

As the son of Irish immigrant parents,

Sheridan had an astonishing rise in the

Civil War that could not be ascribed to

family or political connections, which

was the case with a number of officers.

The young lieutenant on the Western

frontier was also distant from

influential contacts and had very few

friends. When war did come, he earned

his promotions through performance.

Though his first postings were as a

quartermaster and commissary officer

in St. Louis, his efficiency and naturally

bellicose streak soon won him the

UNION MAJOR GENERAL Born 1831 Died 1888

“He felt no doubt, he would

submit to no defeat, and

he took his army with

him as on a whirlwind.”

A. F. WALKER, 11 VERMONT VOLUNTEERS, ON SHERIDAN IN THE VALLEY CAMPAIGN

Grand Victory March

This sheet music for a march by Edward Mack is

“respectfully dedicated to Major General P. Sheridan.”

After the Valley Campaign in 1864, Sheridan became

one of the most widely admired Union generals.

Dauntless Sheridan

Mathew Brady’s portrait of

Sheridan captures a hint

of the general’s combative

personality. The distinctive,

flat-crowned hat was a style

he particularly favored.

GRANT, SHERMAN, AND TOTAL WAR 1864