IX Corps (Union Army)
IX Corps | |
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John G. Parke | |
Insignia | |
1st Division | |
2nd Division | |
3rd Division | |
4th Division |
United States Army Corps, 1861-1865 | ||||
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IX Corps (Ninth Army Corps) was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War that distinguished itself in combat in multiple theaters: the Carolinas, Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Mississippi.
Corps history
Formation, Second Bull Run, and Antietam
Although the official order designating its number was not issued until July 22, 1862, the IX Corps organization dates from the
After a short stay at Newport News the corps was ordered to reinforce Maj. Gen.
General Reno retained command of the corps on the
The Battle of South Mountain was fought wholly by Burnside's two corps, the IX Corps losing 157 killed, 691 wounded, and 41 missing; total, 889. The loss in the I Corps was about the same. General Reno was killed in this action, upon which General Cox succeeded to his command. At Antietam the corps lost 438 killed, 1,796 wounded, and 115 missing; total, 2,349, out of about 8,500 in action. General Rodman was among the mortally wounded. In October, Cox's Division returned to western Virginia and its brief connection with the corps terminated. This division had made a brilliant record by its gallant services at South Mountain and Antietam.
Upon the departure of General Cox the command of the corps fell to General Willcox. General
At Fredericksburg, the casualty lists indicate that the corps took into action 31 regiments and 5 batteries, with a loss of 111 killed, 1,067 wounded, and 152 missing; total, 1,330. Not long after this battle Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick was assigned to the command of the corps, and General Willcox returned to the command of his division, relieving General Burns.
Western Theater
On February 5, 1863, Sedgwick was assigned command of VI Corps, and was succeeded by Maj. Gen.
In the meantime, General Burnside had been assigned to the command of the Department of Ohio, a district that included
The corps left Mississippi in August, 1863, and returned to Kentucky, where, after a short rest, it joined in Burnside's advance into East Tennessee, a movement that had already commenced. The two divisions were now reduced to about 6,000 men. General Parke having been made chief of staff of the Army of the Ohio, General Potter succeeded to the command of the corps, with Brig. Gen. Edward Ferrero and Col. John F. Hartranft in command of the two divisions.
Ferrero's Division had a sharp little fight at Blue Springs, Tennessee, October 10, 1863, and the whole corps was engaged, November 16, at Campbell's Station. This was followed by the occupation of Knoxville and the gallant defense against James Longstreet's besieging forces, terminating December 4, in the defeat and withdrawal of the enemy.
Overland Campaign
General Willcox resumed command of the corps on January 17, 1864, relieving General Potter; on January 26, Parke relieved Willcox, who then took command of the 2nd Division.
General Burnside was again assigned to duty as commander of his old corps, which was ordered to
In the
In the
Petersburg and the Crater
On June 9, at Cold Harbor, General Crittenden was relieved at his own request, and Brig. Gen. James H. Ledlie was placed in command of the 1st Division. In the first assault on Petersburg, June 17, the corps made a brilliant attack, Potter's Division gaining possession of the works; unfortunately, the division was obliged to relinquish its foothold for want of proper support. The corps was engaged in a similar attempt on the following day, the losses in Potter's and Willcox's Divisions being unusually severe in proportion to the number engaged. Losses were 497 killed, 3,232 wounded, and 262 missing; total, 2,991. The dead included former Brig. Gen. James St. Clair Morton, chief engineer of the corps.
The enemy's works proving too strong for assault, the army entrenched itself in preparation for the ten-month siege that followed. On June 19, Ferrero's (4th) Division of black troops rejoined the corps, having been absent during the whole of the previous campaign, engaged on duty at the rear. Ferrero's men were now placed in the trenches with the other three divisions. The part of the line occupied by the IX Corps was very near the enemy's works, and an incessant firing was kept up during the siege, resulting in a daily loss of men, killed or wounded. While there was a comparative quiet in front of the other corps positions, the men of the IX Corps were subjected to the terrible strain of a constant watchfulness and deadly exposure. The enemy seemed to be excited to an undue activity by the presence of Ferrero's Colored Division.
The IX Corps was prominently connected with the siege because of its role in the infamous
On August 13, 1864, General Burnside was granted a leave of absence; he never rejoined the corps, but was succeeded by General Parke, who remained in command until the close of the war. At the battle of the
1865
The vacancy caused by detaching Ferrero's Division was filled by six new regiments of Pennsylvanians on one-year enlistments, organized into a division of two brigades, the command of which was given to General John F. Hartranft. This division rendered gallant service at Fort Stedman, and Hartranft added to his laurels by the ability displayed at that critical juncture.
The morning report for March 31, 1865, showed a corps strength of 18,153, "present for duty, equipped," and 36 pieces of light artillery. With this force the IX Corps entered upon the final campaign, taking a prominent part in the storming of Petersburg, April 2, 1865, which resulted in the evacuation of Richmond and the downfall of the Confederacy. The corps was not only among the foremost in this brilliant assault,[peacock prose] but its flags were the first to wave over the public buildings of Petersburg. This was the last battle in which the corps participated, and on July 27, 1865, the IX Corps was officially disbanded.
Command history
Ambrose E. Burnside
|
Army of the Potomac | July 22, 1862 – August 3, 1862 |
Ambrose E. Burnside |
Department of Virginia
|
August 3, 1862 – September 3, 1862 |
Jesse L. Reno | Army of the Potomac | September 3, 1862 – September 14, 1862 |
Jacob D. Cox |
Army of the Potomac | September 14, 1862 – October 8, 1862 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Army of the Potomac | October 8, 1862 – January 16, 1863 |
John Sedgwick | Army of the Potomac | January 16, 1863 – February 5, 1863 |
William F. Smith | Department of Virginia
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February 5, 1863 – March 8, 1863 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Department of Virginia
|
March 8, 1863 – March 17, 1863 |
Ambrose E. Burnside |
Department of the Ohio | March 17, 1863 – March 19, 1863 |
John G. Parke |
Department of the Ohio | March 19, 1863 – April 4, 1863 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Department of the Ohio | April 4, 1863 – June 5, 1863 |
John G. Parke |
Department of the Tennessee
|
June 5, 1863 – August 25, 1863 |
Robert B. Potter |
Army of the Ohio | August 25, 1863 – September 15, 1863 |
John G. Parke |
Army of the Ohio | September 15, 1863 – September 17, 1863 |
Ambrose E. Burnside |
Army of the Ohio | September 17, 1863 – December 9, 1863 |
John G. Foster | Army of the Ohio | December 9, 1863 – January 17, 1864 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Army of the Ohio | January 17, 1864 – January 26, 1864 |
John G. Parke |
Army of the Ohio | January 26, 1864 – March 16, 1864 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Army of the Ohio | March 16, 1864 – April 13, 1864 |
Ambrose E. Burnside |
independent command, reporting directly to Gen. Grant | April 13, 1864 – May 24, 1864 |
Ambrose E. Burnside |
Army of the Potomac | May 24, 1864 – August 22, 1864 |
John G. Parke |
Army of the Potomac | August 22, 1864 – September 1, 1864 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Army of the Potomac | September 1, 1864 – September 10, 1864 |
John G. Parke |
Army of the Potomac | September 10, 1864 – December 31, 1864 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Army of the Potomac | December 31, 1864 – January 12, 1865 |
John G. Parke |
Army of the Potomac | January 12, 1865 – January 24, 1865 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Army of the Potomac | January 24, 1865 – February 2, 1865 |
John G. Parke |
Army of the Potomac | February 2, 1865 – April 24, 1865 |
John G. Parke |
Department of Washington | April 24, 1865 – June 7, 1865 |
Orlando B. Willcox | Department of Washington | June 7, 1865 – June 26, 1865 |
John G. Parke |
Department of Washington | June 26, 1865 – July 27, 1865 |
References
- Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., Civil War High Commands, Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.
- Fox, William F., Regimental Losses in the American Civil War, reprinted by Morningside Bookshop, Dayton, Ohio, 1993, ISBN 0-685-72194-9.
- Wipperman, Darin, Burnside's Boys: The Union's Ninth Corps and the Civil War in the East, Stackpole Books, 2023 ISBN 978-0811772648.
External links
- Media related to IX Corps (Union Army) at Wikimedia Commons
- IX Corps history