Major General John S. Marmaduke (CSA)

[ColorizedPast]

Major General John Sappington Marmaduke (CSA)

John Sappington Marmaduke was born near Arrow Rock, Saline County, Missouri on 14 March 1833. His father Meredith was the eighth governor of Missouri, and his great-grandfather, John Breathitt, served as governor of Kentucky from 1832 to 1834, dying in office.

He attended Chapel Hill Academy in Lafayette County, Missouri and the Masonic College in Lexington, Missouri, before attending Yale University for two years and then Harvard University for another year. Congressman John S. Phelps appointed Marmaduke to the U.S. Military Academy where he graduated 30th out of 38 cadets in 1857. He briefly served as a second lieutenant in the First United States Mounted Rifleman before transferring to the Second United States Cavalry under Col. Albert Sidney Johnston. He served in the Utah War and was posted to Camp Floyd from 1858 to 1860.

On duty in the New Mexico Territory when he received news that secession was brewing in Missouri, he returned home and met his father, an avid Unionist. Marmaduke resigned from the U.S. Army, and pro-secession Missouri Governor Claiborne F. Jackson, Marmaduke's uncle, appointed him as colonel of the First Regiment of Rifles in the Missouri State Guard. Jackson and Major General Sterling Price left Jefferson City in June to recruit more troops. Marmaduke and his regiment met them at Boonville. Again, Jackson and Price left him with a small force of militiamen to make a stand against Union Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon's 1,700 well-trained and equipped soldiers. On 17 June 1861, Lyon easily routed Marmaduke's untrained and poorly armed force at the Battle of Boonville dubbed by Unionists "the Boonville Races," since Marmaduke's recruits broke and ran after just 20 minutes of action.

Disgusted, Marmaduke resigned his commission in the Missouri State Guard and traveled to Richmond receiving a commission as first lieutenant in the regular Confederate States Army. He was sent to Arkansas and served on the staff of Lt. Gen. William J. Hardee. In early 1862, he joined Albert Sidney Johnston's staff.

He was wounded at the Battle of Shiloh while colonel of the 3rd Confederate Infantry. In November 1862, he was promoted to brigadier general. In April 1863, he led 5,000 men and ten artillery pieces into Union held Missouri. However, he was repulsed at the Battle of Cape Girardeau and force back to Helena, Arkansas.

In September 1863, he accused his immediate superior officer, Maj. Gen. Lucius M. "Marsh" Walker, of cowardice in action for not being present with his men on the battlefield. Walker challenged Marmaduke to a duel, resulting in Walkers death on 6 September.

Marmaduke commanded a cavalry division in the Trans-Mississippi Department during the Red River Campaign. Controversy followed Marmaduke. Commanding a mixed force of Confederate troops, including Native-American soldiers of the 1st and 2nd Choctaw Regiments, Marmaduke defeat a Federal foraging detachment at the Battle of Poison Spring, Arkansas on 18 April 1864. His men were accused of murdering African-American soldiers of the First Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry. He and other officers claimed the accusations were overblown and blamed any murders on the Choctaw troops.

Marmaduke commanded a division in Maj. Gen. Sterling Price's raid into Missouri during the autumn of 1864. He was captured at the Battle of Mine Creek. While still a prisoner of war, he was promoted to major general.

Following the war, he served on Missouri's first Rail Commission. Entering politics, he lost the 1880 Democratic nomination for governor to former Union general Thomas T. Crittenden. He campaigned four years later for Governor emphasizing his Confederate service, alleged abuses of Missourians by Union troops, celebrating the activities of pro-Confederate "partisan guerillas", claiming the Republican Party in Missouri was a tool of "Carpetbaggers" to oppress "native" Missourians, and making overt appeals to white racism. Ironically, he was elected on a platform officially focused on cooperation between former Unionists and Confederates.

He settled potentially crippling railroad strikes in 1885 and 1886. In 1887, he pushed through laws that finally began regulating the state's railway industry. He dramatically boosted state funding of public schools, with nearly a third of the annual budget allocated to education. Like his great-grandfather, Marmaduke died while serving as governor on 28 December 1887.

 

[Schwallanscher]

is he in any way related to marty feldman?

 

[ColorizedPast]

His eyes aren't that off-kilter are they?

 

[James N.]

DO note that this photo of Marmaduke is one of those "exposed" in a recent article in Civil War Times as having been taken in a Richmond studio where the subject is wearing a "borrowed" or photographer's prop uniform coat like in the hokey souvenir photo shops today! That helps explain why it seems to "hang" on his lanky frame. That certainly doesn't make the colorization job any less - just a historical note about the accuracy of thinking this is how Marmaduke would've appeared "in the field" back home in Arkansas or Missouri.

 

[Schwallanscher]

His eyes aren't that off-kilter are they?

surely not as much as marty's guess that's just how his eyes looked

 

[ColorizedPast]

DO note that this photo of Marmaduke is one of those "exposed" in a recent article in Civil War Times as having been taken in a Richmond studio where the subject is wearing a "borrowed" or photographer's prop uniform coat like in the hokey souvenir photo shops today! That helps explain why it seems to "hang" on his lanky frame. That certainly doesn't make the colorization job any less - just a historical note about the accuracy of thinking this is how Marmaduke would've appeared "in the field" back home in Arkansas or Missouri.

Interesting. It is also interesting which officers you can find good photos of and which you can't.

 

[James N.]

More photos showing what is pretty obviously THE SAME COAT:

Col. Thomas P. Ochiltree of Texas

Col. M. S. Stokes (?) - Note these two have turned down the collar so as to hide the general's insignia!

Brig. Gen. Henry H. Sibley

There were several others I don't remember now, but the coat is easily identifiable by the very large center star in the collar insignia, plus the very closely spaced pairs of large, flat buttons running up and down the breast. Most of the subjects in these photos, like all pictured here, seem to have been western officers who likely lacked such finery when they came to the capital on official business and took advantage of the opportunity to have their likenesses taken. Whichever studio produced these was certainly a good one, because all the images are clear, sharply focused, and well-posed, and well-lit.

 

[Susannah]

His eyes aren't that off-kilter are they?

When I saw the series of photos of John S. Marmaduke I was puzzled. He looked like he was crazy and bone thin. I taped that particular photo on the wall and looked at it for a week. Then I thought: "Graves' disease". I wrote to an ophthalmologist at a medical school asking for help, sending all the photos I had found of Marmaduke including the one from the Kansas City public library where he had a goatee and looked like a riverboat gambler. The ophthalmologist took the photos to another specialist and it seems they found the whole thing very interesting. According to the specialist in oculoplastics, it is possible that Marmaduke had Graves' Disease, which is an immune system disorder that results in over activity of the thyroid gland and is characterized by a number of symptoms, the most notable being bulging eyes, but also includes weight loss, chest pain, fatigue, hand tremors, etc. Marmaduke never married, perhaps due to a sexual dysfunction associated with Graves' disease. While Graves' disease is a strong possibility, another possible diagnoses of Marmaduke's problem, according to the specialist in oculoplastics, could be brow ptosis (upper eyelid droop), which could be as the result of a complication of Bell's palsy, muscular dystrophy, or other disorders that affects the nerves and muscles of the face.

 

[Lusty Murfax]

All that from a photo? Those are some fine Doctors.

 

[donna]

That coat sure got around for photos.

Marmaduke had several brothers who served during the Civil War.

His brother, Captain Henry H. Marmaduke was in the Confederate Navy. His brother, Vincent Marmaduke was in the Confederate Army and served under General Bragg.

 

[James N.]

That coat sure got around for photos...

The current issue of Civil War Times has "exposed" another instance of this sort of foolery with surprising results! The famous series of photos showing Gen. P. G. T. Beauregard, one of which is shown above, weren't made during the war, nor in his own coat! There were at least three other prominent generals pictured, which on examination were all wearing the same "borrowed" coat which turned out in actuality belonged to Gen. Mansfield Lovell. The coat itself now resides along with the sash and belt he's wearing in the photo below in a museum in New York City where Lovell resided post-war working as a civil engineer which he had also been there before the war. The author of the article speculates that in 1866 when all the subjects were known to have visited there they all borrowed Lovell's coat to have their photos made in it at Brady's famous studio! Since it belonged to and actually fit Lovell, he's the only one of the five who is also wearing the sash and sword belt.

@Mike Serpa @civilwarincolor and @chubachus - you might find this interesting also!

 

[Susannah]

All that from a photo? Those are some fine Doctors.

No, it wasn't just the one photo. It was the Kansas City Public Library Missouri Valley Special Collection photo of Marmaduke with a goatee , a painting of him as Governor of Missouri as well as the series of photos in different poses taken after his release from prison and before he went to Europe to recover his health. In the doctors' opinion it is impossible to say for sure what Marmaduke's problem was, especially from photographs, but there are indications that he might have had a medical condition and that it might have been Graves' Disease or one of the other conditions mentioned. And yes, they are fine doctors at the top of their respective fields who are interested in the Civil War and who were doing me a favor.

Jack D. Welch in Medical Histories of Confederate Generals, 1999, wrote this about Marmaduke: "He was captured at Mine Creek, Kansas, on October 25, 1864. Federal reports do not mention that he was wounded but do say he was on horseback when captured and was in a poor physical state. Others have reported he was wounded and had been thrown from his horse. He appeared to be in poor condition when he and William L. Cabell arrived at Johnson's Island, Ohio, in November, but no wound was mentioned. While a prisoner, he was seen at the U.S.A. post hospital in January 1865 with a cold."

Also of interest was the capture of 31 year old Marmaduke indicating that he had fatigue, one sign of Graves' Disease:
THE CAPTURE OF GENERAL MARMADUKE BY JAMES DUNLAVY AN IOWA PRIVATE CAVALRYMAN "Both being now dismounted, Dunlavy again started for the rear with his prisoner on the double quick. They had not gone far, however, when the captive General stated to his captor that he had been up all night and was exceedingly weary and sleepy and asked to be allowed to slow down to a walk." Iowa Journal of History and Politics, April, 1913. Iowa State Historical Society. p. 2-3

Then there are Gen. George Pickett's budging eyes....!

 

[James N.]

A correction to my above post; Lovell's coat is currently in the Louisiana State Museum in the Cabildo Building on Jackson Square in the French Quarter of New Orleans. However, I correctly stated that he was living in New York in 1866 when the photos were likely made; below are two more well-known post-war photos of Cadmus M. Wilcox at left and Edmund Kirby Smith at right also wearing Lovell's coat:

 

[jackt62]

To me, the most interesting part of his story is his accusation against Maj. Gen. Lucius M. "Marsh" Walker, "of cowardice in action for not being present with his men on the battlefield. Walker challenged Marmaduke to a duel, resulting in Walkers death on 6 September." Looks like they settled disputes somewhat differently in those days.

 

[Patrick H]

Interesting. Frankly, I don't see how the coats in all of these pictures can be identified as attributed, but it's obvious that Marmaduke's coat is neither tailored for him nor as finely made as the rest. I don't have any problem accepting it as a prop.
I have wondered why Marmaduke and Walker wasted time fighting a duel when they should have been fighting for Little Rock. Oh well...

I don't believe Marmaduke was very keen at all about making a stand at Boonville. He knew his forces weren't ready. In spite of that, Lyon said they delivered a galling fire for about twenty minutes. Once Lyon brought up artillery and started bouncing shot through the field, the local boys did, indeed, hurry back to Boonville. I don't know the cost to Lyon's force. A few central Missouri boys died on the field that day or under care the next day--one having suffered an amputation. A Boonville physician serving with the State Guard was one of the dead.

 

[novushomus]

To me, the most interesting part of his story is his accusation against Maj. Gen. Lucius M. "Marsh" Walker, "of cowardice in action for not being present with his men on the battlefield. Walker challenged Marmaduke to a duel, resulting in Walkers death on 6 September." Looks like they settled disputes somewhat differently in those days.

Marmaduke was very prickly to say this least. He did not get along with any of his superiors with the exception of Thomas C. Hindman. The dispute with Walker is actually a bit more complex than commonly described. In the spring of 1863, all of the Confederate cavalry in Arkansas was in a single division under Marmaduke. He led a portion of this cavalry in a raid at Cape Girardeau, Missouri, which not only failed but alienated a lot of pro-Confederate Missourians, who vigorously complained to Lt. Gen. Theophilus Holmes, Marmaduke's superior. Holmes responding by removing all the non-Missouri Confederate cavalry from Marmaduke's command and using these troops to form a new division under Brig. Gen. Lucius M. Walker.

Walker's commission predated Marmaduke's, which meant that Marmaduke had been effectively replaced as the cavalry commander in the District of Arkansas. This injured Marmaduke's pride. Walker was a very cautious commander, and at Helena, he failed to support Marmaduke's left flank. Marmaduke responded by withdrawing without informing Walker. Then during the Little Rock Campaign, at the engagement of Brownsville, Walker, and Marmaduke arranged for Walker's command to ambush the advancing Federal column while Marmaduke held the Federal front.

The Federal advance was rapid enough that it seems to have caught Walker flat footed. Walker decided to withdraw rather than support Marmaduke, who in turn was forced to withdraw to Bayou Meto. When Walker refused to come to the front at Bayou Meto to meet with Marmaduke to discuss defensive options, then Marmaduke sent a representative which triggered the fatal duel.

That duel resulted in Walker's death, the removal of Walker's successor, Col. Archibald Dobbins, who refused to serve under Marmaduke, and Marmaduke's arrest. Because the Federal army was at the gates of Little Rock, Marmaduke was restored to command, but it is worth noting that later Sterling Price would send an officer to Richmond to argue against Marmaduke's promotion to major general, and that junior officers Joseph Shelby and James F. Fagan were both promoted over and before Marmaduke.

 

[Patrick H]

but it is worth noting that later Sterling Price would send an officer to Richmond to argue against Marmaduke's promotion to major general, and that junior officers Joseph Shelby and James F. Fagan were both promoted over and before Marmaduke.

Who could blame Price for this?

 

[James N.]

Interesting. Frankly, I don't see how the coats in all of these pictures can be identified as attributed, but it's obvious that Marmaduke's coat is neither tailored for him nor as finely made as the rest. I don't have any problem accepting it as a prop...

If you read the Civil War Times article, the author (who I unfortunately forget) makes a convincing examination based on both the photos, the surviving coat, and timeline for the visits of these men to NYC; as I remember one occasion that drew most of them was a reunion or meeting of the Aztec Club, a group of officer veterans of the Mexican War.

 

[James N.]

Who could blame Price for this?

Perhaps oddly enough, Union General Jefferson C. Davis got off scot-free for doing almost exactly the same thing when he shot in cold blood Gen. William "Bull" Nelson during the Perryville, Ky. campaign in the fall of 1862.

 

[Patrick H]

If you read the Civil War Times article, the author (who I unfortunately forget) makes a convincing examination based on both the photos, the surviving coat, and timeline for the visits of these men to NYC; as I remember one occasion that drew most of them was a reunion or meeting of the Aztec Club, a group of officer veterans of the Mexican War.

I realize my first post about this didn't say exactly what I meant for it to say. Without the benefit of having read the article you reference here, I was just wondering how in the world the second crop of coats could all be accurately attributed to the same owner. I expect it's a pretty interesting analysis. Thanks!