Michigan Brigade
Encyclopedia
The Michigan Brigade, sometimes called the Wolverines, the Michigan Cavalry Brigade or Custer's Brigade, was a brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

 of cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...

 in the volunteer Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 during the latter half of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

. Composed primarily of the 1st Michigan Cavalry, 5th Michigan Cavalry, 6th Michigan Cavalry and 7th Michigan Cavalry, the Michigan Brigade fought in every major campaign of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...

 from the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...

 in July 1863 to the Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 surrender at Appomattox Court House
Appomattox Court House
The Appomattox Courthouse is the current courthouse in Appomattox, Virginia built in 1892. It is located in the middle of the state about three miles northwest of the Appomattox Court House National Historical Park, once known as Clover Hill - home of the original Old Appomattox Court House...

 in April 1865.

The brigade first gained fame during the Gettysburg Campaign
Gettysburg Campaign
The Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for offensive operations in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...

 under the command of youthful Brigadier General
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...

 George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer
George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...

. After the war, several men associated with the brigade joined the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment
U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment
The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army Cavalry Regiment, whose lineage traces back to the mid-19th century. Its official nickname is "Garryowen," in honor of the Irish air Garryowen that was adopted as its march tune....

 and later fought again under Custer in the Old West frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...

.

Organization and the Gettysburg Campaign

The Michigan Cavalry Brigade was created on December 12, 1862, at Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

. It originally consisted of the 5th, 6th and 7th Michigan Cavalry regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...

s, under the command of General Joseph T. Copeland
Joseph T. Copeland
Joseph Tarr Copeland was a Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court from 1852 until 1857, as well as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:...

. During the early part of the 1863 Gettysburg Campaign
Gettysburg Campaign
The Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for offensive operations in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...

, the 1st Michigan Cavalry and Battery M, 2nd United States Artillery were added to the brigade in central Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 as part of a major reorganization of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...

's Cavalry Corps
Cavalry Corps (ACW)
Two corps of the Union Army were called Cavalry Corps during the American Civil War. One served with the Army of the Potomac; the other served in the various armies of the West.- Overview :...

 by its commander, Alfred Pleasonton
Alfred Pleasonton
Alfred Pleasonton was a United States Army officer and General of Union cavalry during the American Civil War. He commanded the Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac during the Gettysburg Campaign, including the largest predominantly cavalry battle of the war, Brandy Station...

.

The larger brigade was assigned to the newly promoted Custer, who assumed command near Westminster, Maryland
Westminster, Maryland
Westminster is a city in northern Maryland, United States. It is the seat of Carroll County. The city's population was 18,590 at the 2010 census. Westminster is an outlying community within the Baltimore-Towson, MD MSA, which is part of a greater Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV...

. The Michigan Brigade saw its first combat action as an entity at the Battle of Hanover
Battle of Hanover
The Battle of Hanover took place on June 30, 1863, in Hanover in southwestern York County, Pennsylvania, as part of the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War....

 in southern Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 on June 30, 1863. There, Custer's men were deployed as a strong advance skirmish line south of town. Two days later, on July 2, the brigade participated in the Battle of Hunterstown
Battle of Hunterstown
The Battle of Hunterstown was a minor cavalry engagement in Adams County, Pennsylvania, on July 2, 1863, during the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War...

, where one of the Wolverines, Norville Churchill, rescued a fallen Custer, who was pinned in the road under his slain horse.

At the subsequent Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...

, the Michigan Brigade was posted east of Gettysburg
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg is a borough that is the county seat, part of the Gettysburg Battlefield, and the eponym for the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. The town hosts visitors to the Gettysburg National Military Park and has 3 institutions of higher learning: Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg College, and...

 along the Hanover Road on July 3. On the third day
Battle of Gettysburg, Third Day cavalry battles
The history of the third day of the Battle of Gettysburg has focused on the disastrous infantry assault nicknamed Pickett's Charge...

, the brigade fought in piecemeal fashion, with the 5th and 6th serving as dismounted skirmishers near the John Rummel farm on the left of the battlefield, while first the 7th and then the 1st Michigan charged into a growing mounted melee in the center. Custer's cry of "Come on, you Wolverines!" became the rallying cry of the brigade.

During the retreat of the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...

 from Gettysburg, Custer's men maintained a series of skirmishes and encounters with the Confederate rear guard, fighting another battle at Falling Waters as the last of Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....

's army slipped across the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...

. The skirmishing continued well into Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

, including a minor affair at Amissville
Amissville, Virginia
Amissville is an unincorporated community in Rappahannock County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is located on U.S. Route 211 about halfway between Warrenton and the small town of Washington, Virginia. Amissville was first settled by French Huguenots and the English. In about 1763, Thomas...

.

Bristoe and Mine Run Campaigns

During the balance of 1863, the Michigan Brigade performed scouting and patrol duty, as well as screening the flanks of the Army of the Potomac. The brigade again engaged in a series of fights with J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a cavalry commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use...

's Confederates during the Bristoe Campaign
Bristoe Campaign
The Bristoe Campaign was a series of minor battles fought in Virginia during October and November 1863, in the American Civil War. Maj. Gen. George G. Meade, commanding the Union Army of the Potomac, began to maneuver in an unsuccessful attempt to defeat Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern...

 and the subsequent Mine Run Campaign.

1864

For a time, the 1st Vermont Cavalry
1st Vermont Cavalry
The 1st Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Cavalry was a three years' cavalry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater from November 1861 to August 1865, in the Cavalry Corps, Army of the Potomac....

 was assigned to the Michigan Brigade.

In February 1864, the Michigan Brigade participated in Judson Kilpatrick's large 5,000-man cavalry raid on the Confederacy's capital city, Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...

. Kilpatrick's objectives for the daring raid were to free Federal prisoners of war, cut supply lines, and create panic among the Confederate civilians and government officials. Carrying only rations for two days, the troopers were expected to live off the land by foraging for food. Kilpatrick's men severed all the rail lines between Richmond and the Army of Northern Virginia, but did not enter Richmond or free the prisoners.

During the Overland Campaign
Overland Campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union armies, directed the actions of the Army of the...

 in May, the Michigan men were engaged in Philip H. Sheridan's raid, fighting at the Battle of Haw's Shop
Battle of Haw's Shop
The Battle of Haw's Shop or Enon Church was fought on May 28, 1864, in Hanover County, Virginia, as part of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E...

 on May 28. There, due to the heavily wooded terrain, Custer dismounted the brigade and deployed in a long, double-ranked line of battle, as if they were infantrymen. However, Custer inspired his men by staying mounted as he led them forward, waving his hat in full view of the enemy. Some of the relatively inexperienced South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

 Confederate infantry mistook a Union shift in position for a retreat and charged after them, only to run into Custer's men, who captured eighty Confederates. Forty-one Michigan cavalrymen fell in the attack, but their enthusiastic charge caused Wade Hampton
Wade Hampton III
Wade Hampton III was a Confederate cavalry leader during the American Civil War and afterward a politician from South Carolina, serving as its 77th Governor and as a U.S...

's men to withdraw.

At Trevilian Station
Battle of Trevilian Station
The Battle of Trevilian Station was fought on June 11–12, 1864, in Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan fought against Confederate cavalry under Maj. Gens...

 on June 11 and 12, the brigade was heavily engaged. Custer maneuvered into a position in the rear of (and between) two Confederate divisions
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...

 and seized the train depot and a large cache of supplies. However, subsequent enemy movements left the Michigan Brigade nearly surrounded, and Custer had to fight his way out of the encirclement.

In July, the brigade rode to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 en route to the Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River...

, then threatened by a Confederate force under Jubal A. Early. The Michigan Brigade was engaged at Winchester, Virginia
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...

, on August 11, as well as in numerous other small engagements through September, when it fought at the Battle of Opequon
Battle of Opequon
The Battle of Opequon, more commonly known as the Third Battle of Winchester, was fought in Winchester, Virginia, on September 19, 1864, during the Valley Campaigns of 1864 in the American Civil War....

, also near Winchester, where it captured three Confederate battle flags. The brigade was again in action at the Battle of Fisher's Hill
Battle of Fisher's Hill
The Battle of Fisher's Hill was fought September 21–22, 1864, as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 during the American Civil War. Fisher's Hill is located near Strasburg, Virginia....

.

On September 26, Custer was promoted to divisional command and Colonel James H. Kidd of the 6th Michigan assumed direct command of the Michigan Brigade. The brigade spent the rest of the year in the Valley, engaging in a series of running fights with Confederate cavalry, including the decisive victory over Jubal Early at the Battle of Cedar Creek
Battle of Cedar Creek
The Battle of Cedar Creek, or Battle of Belle Grove, October 19, 1864, was one of the final, and most decisive, battles in the Valley Campaigns of 1864 during the American Civil War. The final Confederate invasion of the North, led by Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early, was effectively ended...

.

1865

On February 27, General Sheridan commenced a major movement against Early's remaining forces in the Valley and his communications and supply lines. The Michigan Brigade participated in an engagement at Louisa Court House against enemy cavalry under Thomas L. Rosser
Thomas L. Rosser
Thomas Lafayette Rosser was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, and later an officer in the Spanish American War and railroad construction engineer. A favorite of J.E.B...

, routing the Confederates and capturing the village and its important stores of military supplies.

Not long afterward, following Early's final crushing defeat at the Battle of Waynesboro
Battle of Waynesboro
The Battle of Waynesboro was fought on March 2, 1865, in Augusta County, Virginia, during the American Civil War. It was the final battle for Confederate Lt. Gen. Jubal Early, whose force was destroyed.-Background:...

, Sheridan's force was reassigned to the Richmond area to help Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...

's final push to break Lee's entrenchments. The Michigan Brigade arrived at White House Landing in time to participate in some of the final engagements of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...

, including the Battle of Five Forks
Battle of Five Forks
The Battle of Five Forks was fought on April 1, 1865, southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, in Dinwiddie County, during the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War. The battle, sometimes referred to as the "Waterloo of the Confederacy," pitted Union Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan against...

 on April 1. They were active in the pursuit of Lee's retreating army following the fall of Richmond and again engaged the Confederates at the Battle of Sayler's Creek
Battle of Sayler's Creek
-External links:* * : Maps, histories, photos, and preservation news...

 on April 6. They were among the troops that finally blocked Lee's planned escape route, precipitating the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House.

Under the command of Colonel Peter Stagg, the Michigan Brigade was part of Sheridan's force that rode southward to Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and south of the state capital city of Richmond. The city's population was 32,420 as of 2010, predominantly of African-American ethnicity...

, and then proceeded into North Carolina
North Carolina in the Civil War
The Southern United States state of North Carolina provided an important source of soldiers, supplies, and war materiel to the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War...

 to assist William T. Sherman's army in its quest to defeat another Confederate army under Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph Eggleston Johnston was a career U.S. Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...

. However, Johnston surrendered before Sheridan arrived. The Michigan Brigade returned to Washington, D.C., for the Grand Review of the Armies
Grand Review of the Armies
The Grand Review of the Armies was a military procession and celebration in Washington, D.C., on May 23 and May 24, 1865, following the close of the American Civil War...

 on May 23.

Western frontier duty

Immediately after the review, the Michigan Brigade received orders to serve in the Western frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...

 in the District of the Plains, Department of Missouri. Using railroads and a series of riverboats, the brigade arrived at Fort Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth
Fort Leavenworth is a United States Army facility located in Leavenworth County, Kansas, immediately north of the city of Leavenworth in the upper northeast portion of the state. It is the oldest active United States Army post west of Washington, D.C. and has been in operation for over 180 years...

, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...

, 2,300 strong but with only 600 horses. There, the 5th Michigan was formally mustered out of the service, as well as portions of the other three regiments whose enlistments had expired, in all half the brigade. The remaining troopers saw subsequent duty in the Dakota Territory
Dakota Territory
The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of North and South Dakota.The Dakota Territory consisted of...

 in the forces of Patrick Connor
Patrick Edward Connor
Patrick Edward Connor was a Union General during the American Civil War. He was most famous for his campaigns against Native Americans in the American Old West.-Early life and career:...

 until December.

In late 1865, the remnants of the much depleted brigade were consolidated into the 1st Michigan Veteran Cavalry and served in the Montana Territory
Montana Territory
The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 28, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Montana.-History:...

. Despite the fact that their term of enlistment had expired, the remaining men were kept in the service until March 10, 1866, when they were finally mustered out and allowed to return home to Michigan. Some men elected to stay on the frontier and enlist in Custer's 7th U.S. Cavalry; a few former members of the Michigan Brigade fought at the Battle of Little Big Horn in June 1876.

Most veterans of the Michigan Brigade were active in various fraternal organizations such as the Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic
The Grand Army of the Republic was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army, US Navy, US Marines and US Revenue Cutter Service who served in the American Civil War. Founded in 1866 in Decatur, Illinois, it was dissolved in 1956 when its last member died...

, and many men returned to Gettysburg for the 25th Anniversary commemorations. A few returned in 1913 for the 50th Anniversary.

A modern non-profit group calling itself the Michigan Cavalry Brigade Association serves as living historians and reenactors.

External links


Further reading

  • Urwin, Gregory J. W., Custer Victorious: The Civil War Battles of General George Armstrong Custer. Lincoln, Nebraska, The University of Nebraska Press, 1990. ISBN 0803295561.
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