Trivia 3-26-18 Song Parody

Status
Not open for further replies.
John Bankhead Magruder

"Prince John Magruder" - Confederate Showman

"Knowing the Federal pickets (advance guards) would be watching, Magruder stage-managed his ruse by marching his limited troops in a large circle, with many areas open to view. This line of soldiers, whooping and hollering and passing in sight of various sections of the Union army appeared endless. The reality, however, was that the same soldiers were passing and re-passing. This is a maneuver is commonly used in stage plays.

Magruder’s razzle-dazzle ploy bought valuable time for Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston to reinforce the small army at Yorktown.

Then Magruder deployed and redeployed his artillery. While his small army was marching in circles, he ordered the artillery to race quickly to various venues and do the same. The sounds of cannon fire were heard throughout a large area. The drums tapped out their rat-a-tats and the bugles sounded their commands. The upshot was that the Federals believed there was Confederate activity all around.

McClellan’s army fell for the scheme hook, line and sinker. They were easily flummoxed into believing they were vastly outnumbered, a phenomenon to which George McClellan would be personally vulnerable on numerous occasions. He regularly believed he was outmanned and outsupplied, and never quite realized the main fact: he was out-Generaled.

In actuality, the Yankee troops vastly outnumbered the Confederates and could have easily pushed Magruder’s miniscule force into the Chesapeake, had they pressed. Instead, they believed a siege would be necessary, and settled in for the long haul. This gave General Johnston sufficient time to reinforce Magruder, and slog it out and tussle with the Union army all the way to Richmond."

https://featherfoster.wordpress.com/2014/08/13/prince-john-magruder-confederate-showman/
 
The most famous use of a Quaker gun was by Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston, who placed them in his field works around(Battle of Williamsburg) Centreville, Virginia in March 1862, to give the appearance that the works were still occupied, while his men were actually withdrawing to the Rappahannock River.[citation needed]

Nickname to follow later

Edit - Johnston's use of Quaker guns was deceptive, but the words of the song parody are not about the positioning of non-functioning guns but about soldiers marching around and around, which makes Magruder the correct answer.

hoosier
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Well, this might well describe several different Confederate commanders at one time or another including Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, Joseph E. "Retreating Joe" Johnston, or even Robert E. "The King of Spades" Lee - but I imagine you have in mind John B. "Prince John" Magruder who was McClellan's first opponent on the Virginia Peninsula at Yorktown.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top