George S. Greene - Civil War

Civil War

Despite being over 60 years old and having been out of the Army for 25 years, the crisis of the Union compelled Greene to seek to rejoin the service. He was essentially apolitical and was not an abolitionist, but he was a firm believer in restoring the Union. He was appointed colonel of the 60th New York Infantry regiment on January 18, 1862. The regiment of upstate New Yorkers had been dissatisfied with their colonel and the company commanders had petitioned for his removal. Governor Edwin D. Morgan, although initially reluctant to appoint Greene because of his age, saw his 13 years of regular army experience as a solution to his political/military problem. During this period, Governor John A. Andrew of Massachusetts was also prepared to offer Greene a regiment, but Greene chose to serve New York. The officers of the 60th were dismayed when the elderly, gray-haired man reported for duty. They had requested that their lieutenant colonel be promoted, which would have raised many of them in rank themselves.

On April 28, 1862, Greene was appointed brigadier general of volunteers and served on the staff of Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Banks in the Shenandoah Valley campaign against Stonewall Jackson. At age 61, Greene was one of the oldest generals in the Union army and his troops took to calling him "Old Man" or "Pap" Greene. (There were actually 17 general officers in the Civil War older than Greene.) However, his age did not keep him from being one of the most aggressive commanders in the army. He commanded the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, II Corps, of the Army of Virginia at the Battle of Cedar Mountain during the Northern Virginia Campaign. Attacked by a Confederate force three times the size of his own, Greene and his men refused to give ground, holding out until the neighboring Union units were forced to withdraw. His division commander, Brig. Gen. John W. Geary, received a severe wound during the action and Greene took command of the division temporarily.

Greene was again temporarily elevated to command of his division, now designated part of the XII Corps of the Army of the Potomac, at the Battle of Antietam. His division's three brigades were led by junior officers who had survived Cedar Mountain. Even though XII Corps commander Brig. Gen. Joseph K. Mansfield was killed shortly after the fighting began, Greene led a crushing attack against the Confederates near the Dunker Church, achieving the farthest penetration of Maj. Gen. Stonewall Jackson's lines than any Union unit. Under immense pressure, Greene held his small division (only 1,727 men engaged at the start of the day) in advance of the rest of the Army for four hours, but eventually withdrew after suffering heavy losses. While the division was posted to Harpers Ferry, Greene took a three-week sick leave. Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard speculated that Greene, like many of his fellow officers, was sickened by the stench of dead and wounded at Antietam. When he returned, there was a new division commander, Brig. Gen. Geary. Greene was disgruntled that Geary, with only a few days seniority over him, was selected for the post; Geary had been wounded at Cedar Mountain and his combat record was not as good, but his political connections and a sentiment that a wounded officer should not be set back in his career unnecessarily, gave him the nod.

Greene resumed command of the 3rd Brigade, which was involved in minor skirmishes in northern Virginia and not engaged at the Battle of Fredericksburg in December. At the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863, his brigade was in the center of the line. When the Union right—the XI Corps—collapsed, Greene's brigade was subjected to enfilade artillery fire and then infantry assaults. He had ordered his men to fortify their positions 200 yards to their front using abatis and trenches and they were able to hold out against several Confederate assaults, although losing 528 men of 2,032 engaged. During part of the battle, Greene once again assumed temporary command of the division when Geary was wounded again.