DK - The American Civil War

George B. McClellan

became head of the Illinois Central

Railroad, remaining a railroad man until

the outbreak of the Civil War, when he

returned to the Army as commander of

the Ohio Volunteers. McClellan had

voted for Stephen Douglas in the 1860

election, and while he had no

sympathies for anti-slavery causes,

like Douglas, he remained a strong

Union man.

General-in-chief

Shortly before the humiliating

Union defeat at First Bull Run,

McClellan’s forces had won a series

of notable victories in western

Virginia. Following these successes, he

took command of the Army of the

Potomac, then became the Union

Army’s general-in-chief on Scott’s

retirement in 1861.

McClellan’s organizational brilliance

did much to restore confidence to the

Union war effort, and most importantly,

to Irvin McDowell’s volunteers, who

had just been disgraced at Bull Run. A

chastened North, which had now seen

firsthand the potential downsides of

precipitate military action, was more

than willing to give McClellan ample

time to train and prepare his army.

Presidential protection

McClellan did not have unlimited

time, and his imperious manner

toward civilian leaders, including his

commander-in-chief, won him few

friends. Lincoln did his best both to

shield his top general from political

pressures and to educate him in

political realities, but McClellan’s

egotism made him a poor student.

Republican leaders became

increasingly frustrated with

G

eorge Brinton McClellan served as

the talented, if mercurial, father of

the Army of the Potomac. He also

became the political standard bearer for

the significant minority of Northerners

who believed in the Union, but deemed

it unproductive and unconstitutional to

make emancipation a war goal.

Intelligent and precocious, McClellan

completed his military training at West

Point in 1846 at the age of 19. He

came second out of a class of 59

graduates, and his peers included

Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, George

Pickett, and his successor at the head

of the Army of the Potomac, Ambrose

Burnside. The War with Mexico began

the year he graduated, and McClellan

served as an engineer officer in

General Winfield Scott’s Veracruz

campaign. He compiled an excellent

combat record, winning two brevet

(acting) promotions.

After the War with Mexico ended,

McClellan was sent by Secretary of War

Jefferson Davis to observe the Crimean

War. He left the Army in 1857 and

UNION GENERAL-IN-CHIEF Born 1826 Died 1885

SECESSION TRIGGERS WAR 1861

Music cover dedicated to McClellan

This patriotic song Hail! Glorious Banner of Our

Land, published in 1861, is dedicated to Major

General George B. McClellan. In his early career

McClellan was a popular figure with the public.

Young Napoleon

Arrogant and ambitious,

McClellan was often called

the “Young Napoleon.” He

was also an authority on

cavalry tactics, inventing a

saddle adopted by the

army in 1859.

“I believe that [Lincoln] liked me

personally, and ... he was always

much influenced by me.”

MCLELLAN RECALLING HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH PRESIDENT LINCOLN