Last updated: September 22, 2024
Person
Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan, 1864
Quick Facts
Significance:
U.S. Army General
Place of Birth:
Albany, N.Y.
Date of Birth:
March 6, 1831
Place of Death:
Nonquitt, Mass.
Date of Death:
August 5, 1888
Place of Burial:
Arlington, Va.
Cemetery Name:
Arlington National Cemetery
In August of 1864, Philip Sheridan took command of the United States Middle Military Department, which included field command of the Army of the Shenandoah. His campaign in the Shenandoah Valley, including the decisive Battle of Cedar Creek, ensured his status as one of most successful, and popular, Civil War generals in the United States.
Early Life
Philip Henry Sheridan was born in 1831, although the location of his birth is unknown. He grew up in Somerset County, Ohio and worked during his youth as a clerk and bookkeeper in local shops.
Sheridan entered West Point in 1848. At one point, he was suspended from the Military Academy for assaulting a senior cadet. During his year of suspension, Sheridan returned home and resumed his role as clerk and bookkeeper. Reverted to the Class of 1853, Sheridan’s new classmates included John Bell Hood, James B. McPherson and John M. Schofield: all future Civil War army commanders. Sheridan graduated 34th out of 46 cadets and was assigned to duty in Texas with the 1st Infantry.
In 1854, Sheridan was promoted and reassigned to the Pacific Northwest, commanding a company of dragoons. Sheridan’s men fought against the Yakima Tribe and then against a larger confederation of the Walla Walla, Spokane, Umatilla and Nez Pierce. On the eve of the Civil War, Sheridan was promoted to First Lieutenant and then to Captain in 1861. He was ordered to staff duty in St. Louis.
Civil War
His early experience as bookkeeper served him well. In St. Louis, Sheridan audited expenses and claims against the Army. He was then assigned to the Army of Southwest Missouri as both Chief Commissary Officer, in charge of collecting food, and as Chief Quartermaster, in charge of delivering rations. Although excelling at staff duty, Sheridan got himself appointed to a combat position as Colonel of the 2nd Michigan Cavalry. At this point, his officers gifted Sheridan a horse named Rienzi. Sheridan would ride Rienzi throughout the war.
Sheridan soon received the rank of Brigadier General. He commanded a division at the Battles of Perryville and Stones River. At Stones River, Sheridan’s troops held a key position on the field, and he was promoted for his leadership and determination. Sheridan continued to impress at the Battles of Chickamauga and Chattanooga. As part of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s Overland Campaign in the spring of 1864, Sheridan was ordered east to command the Cavalry of the Army of the Potomac.
Sheridan focused on taking the fight to the Confederates. Aggressive raiding left the Army of the Potomac without screening and valuable intelligence. Many cavalry raids in Virginia resulted in Federal defeats, despite heavy fighting and heavy casualties.
Army of the Shenandoah
In the summer of 1864, after Confederate General Jubal Early’s Raid on Washington, Sheridan was selected to command the newly created Middle Military Department, a consolidation of US armies around Washington, DC and in the Shenandoah Valley. He defeated Early’s Confederate Army of the Valley at Battles of Third Winchester and Fisher’s Hill. Sheridan then engaged in the destruction of crops and infrastructure in the Shenandoah Valley to deny the Confederate Army access to the rich agricultural region. Away from the army on October 19, 1864, Sheridan heard the sounds of battle which signaled a surprise attack at Cedar Creek. Famously, Sheridan mounted Rienzi and rode to meet his army. After rallying his men and leading a massive counterattack, Sheridan received promotion to Major General in the Regular Army, ranking fourth behind Grant, William T. Sherman, and George G. Meade.
Returning to the Army of the Potomac in the spring of 1865, Sheridan oversaw a Federal attack on Confederates protecting the crossroads at Five Forks, south of Petersburg. At Appomattox Court House, Sheridan’s troops trapped the Confederate Army, leading to the surrender of Robert E. Lee.
Post Civil War
Sheridan spent many years on duty enforcing the peace among Native American Tribes of the Great Plains. But peace for who? Sheridan oversaw numerous conflicts through the 1870s and early 1880s, including the Red River Wars of 1874-75, the Great Sioux Wars of 1876-77, and the Nez Perce War of 1877. Reminiscent of his hard war policy in the Shenandoah Valley, Sheridan often ordered his officers to destroy camps and material goods during winter campaigns. This was successful in driving the Tribes onto government reservations. Sheridan's Civil War heroics should not overshadow this violence in the west.
What does it mean to call a place a park? Fearing the impacts of railroad companies and land developers Sheridan used his military influence to order the 1st US Cavalry into newly created Yellowstone National Park. Their mission was to prevent the destruction of wildlife and natural features, setting the precedent for National Park Service stewardship.
In 1883 Sheridan became Commanding General of the US Army. In 1888, he was promoted to the rank of General of the Army of the United States, the equivalent to a modern five-star general. Sheridan died of heart failure two months later.
He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery near Arlington House, with his wife (Irene Rucker) and daughters (Mary, Irene, and Louise). His son, Major Philip H. Sheridan Jr, USA, is buried nearby. Sheridan’s horse, Rienzi, is currently on display in the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History.