Stonewall in the Valley
Early Life
Thomas Jackson was born to Jonathan Jackson and Jula Beckwith Neal on January 21, 1824 at Clarksburg, Virginia but now part of present-day West Virginia. He was the third of three children though his older sister died of typhoid fever in March of 1826 only to be followed by his father who died of the same disease a few days later. His mother remarried in 1830 but died a year later. Orphaned, Jackson and his siblings were separated to live with relatives. He went to live with his uncle Cummins Jackson who ran a mill where he lived a regimented life helping out with the chores in between schooling because of his uncles strictness. Despite the norms, he went out of his way to mingle with the slaves and even teach them reading which was forbidden.
West Point
In 1842, Jackson was admitted to the United States Military Academy at West Point following the resignation of one cadet from his home state which prompted his congressman Samuel Hays to endorse him and even took him to the Secretary of War to hear his case. His pluck and determination impressed the Secretary that his appointment was assured. As a cadet, he struggled in his studies due to his meager educational background and mostly being self-educated. It was said that he was slow to pick up his lessons that he had to go over it thrice or more to master something. In addition, West Point follows a tradition of hazing called Beast Barracks where the upper class cadets would teach the lower class cadets the lesson of the privileges of rank as well as seeing who has the right stuff to endure the next four years at the academy. Jacksons rough rural background gave him that mental toughness and resilience to endure these abuses and he did it without complaining which was a sin at West Point and seen as a sign of weakness. This was the same kind of experience and lessons other future military leaders after Jackson have learned from Douglas MacArthur to H. Norman Schwarzkopf who had also gone through these hallowed halls and went through the same ordeal as the likes of Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, William Sherman and of course, Thomas Jackson.
Despite these difficulties, he persevered and barely a year later, he moved up from being a plebe to a Fourth Class Cadet. Jackson assumed duties as a Third Class Cadet in July 1843 and finished his sophomore year without incident in the spring of 1844. Upon the arrival of the new school year Jackson was appointed a Cadet Sergeant, which would be the only leadership position he would hold. By the time his junior year ended, Jackson advanced to Cadet First Class but did not hold any senior leadership position and the highest rank he held was Cadet High Private. Jackson graduated from West Point in 1846 finishing 17th among the 59 cadets who graduated that year. During those days, graduation ceremonies at West Point were austere with the lack of a formal ceremony. Nevertheless, he left the academy commissioned as a Brevet Second Lieutenant ready to take on the world as he knew it with his new calling as a military officer.
Religion
Despite being a military officer dedicated to a life of soldiering, Jackson was a deeply religious man. His devotion to God was so deep and this was manifested in his zeal as a hardworking member of his church (Presbyterian). His religiosity was not limited to the perfunctory attendances at the services. He was truly active becoming a deacon, and spent most of his leisure time to the work in his church. This involved collecting alms and to distribute to the poor, and he would never allow anything to interfere with their exact performance. He was also exceedingly charitable himself as he would give a tenth of his fortune to the church, as well as to all causes of benevolence and public enterprise. He religiously attended church services without fail and was very close with his pastor.
Jackson s religiosity permeated his way of life. This had shaped his values and enabled him to adhere to the highest moral standards despite what was going on around him. The Bible had been his guide. His observance of the Sabbath on Sundays was very strict to the point that during the Civil War, he would not fight on these days. He was very scrupulous as well. He was always tolerant of others, while keeping his distance towards those who have lost his trust and confidence humble enough to know his own faults and shortcomings, and if he could not say anything good about a person, he would adopt a policy of no talk, no mistake. He believed in positive fatalism and this showed when he braved enemy fire in the field of battle and it was from here that he earned his famous nickname and this was attributed to that religious attitude. Because of his religiosity, there are those who found him rather eccentric to the extent that was called, Tom Fool Jackson. But to the very end, Jackson never wavered in his religious conviction.
The Mexican War
Jackson was posted to the 1st Artillery Regiment following his graduation and commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army and was posted in the western frontier. When the Mexican War broke out, his unit was deployed to the theater. He had seen action and had distinguished himself in the Siege of Veracruz and the battles of Contreras, Chapultepec, and Mexico City, ultimately leading to a promotion to First Lieutenant. In the battle of Chapultepec, this was the first time he was known to have stood his ground though he was not called Stonewall yet. It was when his unit was attacked which resulted in heavy casualties, leaving him the only one uninjured who could fight. Instead of retreating, he stood his ground along with his wounded men who could still fight. They kept the enemy at bay until reinforcements arrived to rout the Mexican forces. His resolute stand would be the shape of things to come for the then young officer nearly 20 years later.
During the assault on Chapultepec Castle, he did not follow what he felt was bad order to pull out his troops as ordered by General Pillow because he thought they were exposed to hostile fire. Jackson explained his rationale, claiming that withdrawal would put his men at greater risk than continuing his overmatched artillery duel. It turned out that Jacksons decision proved correct, and a follow-on brigade was able to exploit the advantage Jackson had broached. It was here that Jackson earned a promotion to brevet major and was given recognition by the overall commander of the US (expeditionary) forces in Mexico, General Winfield Scott. As an added footnote to his tour in Mexico, he would meet for the first time a fellow officer whom he would later serve with on the side of the Confederacy Robert E. Lee, who was then a company commander in the campaign as well as P.T. Beauregard who would command the Confederate forces in the attack on Fort Sumter. Jacksons unit even covered the advance of a company led by then Captain Ulysses S. Grant as they assaulted Chapultepec Castle.
In 1851, after a series of postings after the Mexican War, Jackson accepted a teaching position at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI), in Lexington, Virginia, the states premier military institution modeled after West Point. Although it is a military academy, not all its graduates are immediately commissioned into the United States Army and have to go through West Point or Officer Candidate School. He became Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy and Instructor of Artillery. Jacksons teachings are still used at VMI today because of its continued relevance, to wit discipline, mobility, assessing the enemys strength and intentions while attempting to conceal your own, and the efficiency of artillery combined with an infantry assault.
However, despite showing competence, he was not popular as a teacher. He tended to teach by rote, memorizing his lectures and then reciting them in class and any student who would consult him was given the same explanation as before. And if students came to ask again, Jackson would punish them on grounds of insubordination. The students mocked his apparently stern, religious nature and his weird traits which in their eyes he obstinately adhered to and there was even an attempt by several alumni to have him removed from the faculty which came to naught. Among the highlights of Jacksons stint at VMI was his marriage to Elinor Junkin in 1853 which was short-lived when she died the following year during childbirth. Three years later, he remarried, this time to Mary Anna Morrison and from their union, they had a baby that died in less than a month in 1858 and another one in 1862 named Julia Laura before he would fall in battle. The other highlight would be his participation during the execution of abolitionist John Brown who was arrested following his abortive raid on Harpers Ferry. Jackson commanded an artillery unit manned by VMI cadets.
As tensions were brewing between the southern states and Washington over the issue of slavery, Jackson tried to remain neutral for he was still a Unionist at heart but the moment Virginia seceded, his loyalty to the state was greater than to Washington and followed the same path as his eventual superior Lee who later became overall commander of the Confederate Army (of Virginia). Jackson was commissioned Colonel by the governor of Virginia and raised was able to raise a brigade for the state.
Jacksons Valley Campaign
After the battles of Bull Run (Manassas) in 1861, Jackson launched a campaign the following year in the Shenandoah Valley known as the Valley Campaign. Employing audacity and rapid, unpredictable movements within their lines, Jacksons men marched over 600 miles in a couple of days and won several minor battles as they single-handedly and successfully took three Union armies that were thrice as large, checking their advance and preventing them from reinforcing the Union offensive against Richmond.
Tactics
Besides displaying audacity, efficiency as well as unpredictability, Jackson successfully managed his forces and husbanded their resources, namely food. Jackson adhered to Napoleons dictum that an army travels on its stomach and it was essential to keep his men sustained throughout the campaign to maintain their combat effectiveness and his logistics officers made sure they had an ample supply of food to make them last very long.
Jackson was careful in deploying his men in marches. He never broke down his men by long continuous movement which would exhaust them by the time they would engage the enemy. He would give them rest very often, but only for a few minutes in a stretch. He liked to see the men lie flat on the ground to rest, and would say, His troops marched light, carrying only rifles, blankets, haversacks, and ammunition which were the only essentials for the campaign as speed was of the essence. When long distances were to be covered, they would travel way ahead of their supply columns yet carried several days rations and when these were expended they relied on the farmers, or on captured Union supply columns they would waylay.
Another advantage Jackson had was his familiarity with the region, having lived there for a long time in his youth prior to coming to West Point. His command included the Stonewall Brigade and a variety of militia units. After his initial defeat in the battle of Kernstown, Jackson became wiser and planned carefully, utilizing sound intelligence reports to plan his next move. He made use of his familiarity with the terrain to launch daring attacks despite being numerically inferior, thus giving his forces relative superiority which sent Union forces in flight. His wise tactics of deceiving Union forces, along with his efficient marshaling of his troops helped win the campaign after roughly three months of fighting though he nearly lost in the battle of Port Republic but was spared from the defeat following the retirement of the opposing forces. He would also utilize flanking maneuvers rather than frontal attacks to defeat his enemies. It also helped that his adversaries were either timid, which worked well for his bold offensives, or did not coordinate with each other very well, ensuring they would not consolidate and crush his forces. He was also open-minded and flexible, not allowing himself to be rigidly bound by the rules of war and would adapt or innovate when the need arose.
Leadership
Similar to that he had displayed in the early campaign, Jackson had shown tenacity and perseverance in the heat of battle. This was partly attributed to his religious belief in predestination or positive fatalism where he would expose himself to enemy fire while being at the head of his troops rather than direct them from the rear. He was also a very charismatic leader, being in the front has enabled him to be one with his men, to know how they feel, making it easy for him to empathize and understand them well as well as displaying exceptional humility. He was never haughty towards his men and this was shown when he would pace them in their marches rather than force them on extended marches which could have sapped their energy before they would even engage the enemy. While he may be one with his troops, he was also quick to mete punishments to those who would not carry their own weight.
Other CampaignsBattlesTactics
Jackson also shone in other campaigns or battles. There would be at least three other encounters where he would figure prominently. The first would be the Battle of Bull Run or Manassas. As the battle was about to begin, Jacksons Virginia Brigade was well prepared and highly disciplined. He wisely held his forces back as a reserve while other units were already engaging Union forces. In the early stages of the battle, it would appear the Confederates would be defeated as the forces under Generals Cumnins and Barnard Bee were falling back. When they saw Jackson standing firm in the face of hostile fire, they regrouped and rallied on Jackson who in the words of General Bee said that he stood there like a stone wall and that was how Jackson earned his famous nickname. Jacksons steadfastness helped save the day as his well-disciplined troops checked the Union advance and bet them back. His stand in Bull Run led to his promotion to major general of the Confederate forces.
The other battle was the battle of Fredericksburg. Prior to this encounter, he teamed up with General James Longstreet in what came to be known as the second battle at Bull Run. The two utilized the hammer and anvil strategy where Jacksons offensive prowess would compliment Longstreets defensive capabilities. Jackson would attack Union forces and feign retreat, luring Union forces into a solid defensive wall put up by Longstreet. In Fredericksburg, Jacksons forces dug in and checked Union attacks which were futile as the Confederates were well entrenched. Jacksons counterattack, still part of the hammer and anvil tactic with Longstreet, helped push the Union forces back to their starting positions and ensure Confederate victory. Despite the victory, the Confederates passed up a chance to make it decisive as they did not attempt pursue the enemy across the Rappahannock. The reasoning behind it was the river was rising, making it difficult to ford, Union forces across the river, was too large to be attacked. It was at this point that Jackson exercised prudence despite his audacious offensive maneuvers.
Jacksons final battle was at Chancellorsville where he utilized the element of surprise. Using similar tactics in the Valley campaign, Jackson relied on good intelligence provided by his scouts and moving his troops silently into the flanks of the Union forces when he found out that the sides of the Union forces, the XI Corps under Major General Howard were vulnerable as their defensive positions were poor and it did not help that the Corpss morale was very poor following the relief of the previous commander by Howard plus the fact they had not had any battle experience yet. After sneaking into the flanks of the Union through the Wilderness, Jacksons forces charged into the thinly defended Union lines in a surprise attack as the latter forces were cooking dinner. Over 4,000 Union soldiers were captured and this was done without any shooting at all.
Leadership
As mentioned earlier, Jacksons leadership skills shone through again. Besides showing tactical astuteness, he showed resolved and this was demonstrated in the Battle of Bull Run when he held firm while under fire which in turn inspired his men. Prior to this battle, Jackson also showed charisma and empathy as he addressed his First Brigade
Throughout the broad extent of the country through which you have marched, by your respect for the rights and property of others, you have always shown you are soldiers -- not only to defend, but able and willin both to defend and protect. Youve already won the brilliant reputation throughout the army of the whole confederacy...I shall look with anxiety to your future movements. And I trust whenever I shall hear of the 1st Brigade on the field of battle, it will be of still nobler deeds achieved and higher reputation won...In the Army of the Shenandoah you were 1st Brigade In the Army of the Potomac you were the 1st BrigadeIn the 2nd Corps of this Army you are the 1st Brigade You ARE the FIRST BRIGADE in the affections of your General.
From this speech, it is apparent that Jackson had captured the hearts and minds of his troops and he was confident that they would follow him anywhere. He made them feel special, giving them some degree of empowerment or feeling of superiority.
Death at Chancellorsville
Jacksons penchant for leading in the front proved to be his undoing when he was scouting ahead of his troops following their initial victory at Chancellorsville. Following his return from a scouting mission, he and his party were mistaken for Union infiltrators and shot. Jackson was struck in the arm which proved to be debilitating that it had to be amputated. Jackson contracted pneumonia from the operation and died a few days later on May 10, 1863. His death was a severe blow to the Confederacy as it lost one of its best military leaders.
Conclusion
General Thomas Stonewall Jackson had distinguished himself as one of Americas finest military leaders. He had exemplified the best in American soldiering even though he fought against the same country that educated him and gave him a career in the military. As a leader, he had demonstrated the qualities of a leader which is not only limited to military aspects but can also be applied to non-military aspects as well, especially the traits of empathy which is key to fostering close relationships with subordinates and peers charisma, the ability to motivate other people to help ensure success in carrying out plans. As a leader, he showed an example by leading from the front, facing the same risk as his men not only to earn their loyalty but to better understand how to manage them when the battle begins. His steadfastness at Bull Run also showed his grit and tenacity, never allowing adversity or feat to dominate him. He had also demonstrated astute thinking in determining the best course of action.
In other aspects, Jackson has shown that he was a deeply religious man who acknowledged a higher power over him or any man for that matter. His faith was solid as a rock and unshakable which defined his life even to the point he was resented by others because of this. Nevertheless, he kept his faith in God to the very end and this what also influenced his role as a leader.
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