- Joined
- Mar 31, 2012
- Location
- Central Ohio
The reasons that officers chose to "go with their state" or not were often intensely personal ones, and ones which literally divided families as brothers went different directions. There were a few individuals in key positions who, if they had decided differently, might have significantly affected the flow of events.
The classic example is the well-known fact that Winfield Scott favored giving command of the United States Armies to Robert E. Lee. Had the old warrior managed to sway Lee to his side, the course the war would have taken may have been very different.
Another one is David G. Farragut. While the small navy of the Confederacy might have given him no chance for distinction (though one wonders about the-might-have-beens of Captain Farragut of the CSS Alabama, for instance), his unavailability may have meant that New Orleans stayed Confederate.
Who are some other "game changers" if they had decided differently, either to go with their state when they historically didn't, or vice versa?
The classic example is the well-known fact that Winfield Scott favored giving command of the United States Armies to Robert E. Lee. Had the old warrior managed to sway Lee to his side, the course the war would have taken may have been very different.
Another one is David G. Farragut. While the small navy of the Confederacy might have given him no chance for distinction (though one wonders about the-might-have-beens of Captain Farragut of the CSS Alabama, for instance), his unavailability may have meant that New Orleans stayed Confederate.
Who are some other "game changers" if they had decided differently, either to go with their state when they historically didn't, or vice versa?