Jackson - Gregg ?

[davepi2]

Sorry if this question has been asked and answered before but I haven't found the answer yet. Last night I had the chance for the first time too sit and enjoy Gods And Generals. During a conversation between A.P. Hill and Maxcy Gregg Hill asks Gregg if he has settled his differences with Jackson. Does anyone know what the cause of their dispute was? For that matter there must have been one between Hill and Jackson also. Does anyone know what that one was about?

 

[Scott Bowden]

Hi,

Jackson, it has been said, led his men by courts martial. He arrested Maxcy Gregg and all the regimental commanders of Gregg's SC brigade of the Light Division during the period between Second Manassas and Sharpsburg when a very few men of Gregg's command committed a minor violation of Jackson's standing orders concerning private property. Now, there are so many examples of Jackson arresting his subordinates during so close a period of time (summer '62) that all the incidents tend to run together in my mind. As best I can recall without looking it up in Schenck's (sic?) book on the Light Division (entitled Up Came Hill) or in Freeman's Lee's Lieutenants, the Gregg incident centered around some starving men getting into an orchard along a route of march, and in the process tearing up some fences. Jackson responded as Jackson did by arresting all the senior officers of the brigade, leaving General Lee to have to clean up the mess.

Regards,


SB

 

[davepi2]

interesting, thank you very much for the information. I do appreciate it.

 

[diane]

Gregg's brigade was also one of the hardest hitting of Hill's Light Division - Hill did NOT like their commander up for court martial! There were a couple other things that got him in dutch with Jackson - including contributing (accidentally) to the mess at Mechanicsville. Maxcy Gregg, though, is a favorite. At Second Manassas he walked along with his troops whacking off daisies with his sword muttering, "Let us die as men! Let us die as men!"

 

[Nathanb1]

They apparently tore up some fences for firewood or something, which was against orders. (There had been complaints, naturally, from farmers and property owners, and an order had come down, I believe from Richmond.)

 

[Scott Bowden]

Diane,

I believe the origin of the Powell Hill-Jackson spat was Jackson's very poor tactical handling of the battle at Cedar Mountain, a situation which was saved by the Light Division. (Jackson was a no-show at Mechanicsville, and Powell Hill's unilateral decision to commit his brigades to a premature attack was another mess ...and another situation that was thrust upon Lee to deal with).

Regards,

SB

 

[diane]

That's the start, yes. Little Powell was mighty touchy, too, and Jackson was not the most diplomatic general Lee had! Part of Hill's impetuous attack was Jackson's secrecy. Nobody knew anything!

 

[davepi2]

wow this is really great stuff guys, it is great to have such a resource for information.

 

[ole]

If Jackson were alive today, you'd all hate working for him. There was rigid discipline with little slack. It was his way or the highway. "Excuse me, sir, but......" was not permitted. You could get away with that with Lee, or Longstreet, but not Jackson.

 

[diane]

Maxcy Gregg and "Old Stars" Mitchell would have liked each other a lot! Gregg was also an astronomer and had a private observatory that colleges and universities would have envied. Philosophy, mathematics, you name it he knew it! The 1st South Carolina Volunteers were recruited by him and consisted mostly of doctors, professors and other extremely well-educated men. He proved to be a stubborn fighter - at 2nd Manassas he ran out of ammo but told Hill he would hold his position with the bayonet! (Now that Jackson approved!) He was killed at Fredericksburg, however, when Meade poked through the gap everybody noticed but nobody did anything about. Gregg was a strong secessionist, almost a fire-eater, and unlike most of them, he put his life where his mouth was. His commanders, both Jackson and Hill, were heartily sorry to lose him.