- Philip St. George Cooke
Infobox Military Person
name= Philip St. George Cooke
born=June 13 ,1809
died= death date and age|1895|3|20|1809|6|13
caption=
nickname=
placeofbirth=Leesburg, Virginia
placeofdeath=Detroit, Michigan
placeofburial=
allegiance= United States of America
branch=United States Army
serviceyears= 1827-1873
rank= Brevet Major General
unit=
commands=2nd U.S. Cavalry Cavalry Reserve,Army of the Potomac Department of the Platte
battles=Black Hawk War Mexican-American War Bleeding Kansas American Civil War
*Peninsula Campaign
**Battle of Yorktown
**Battle of Williamsburg
*Seven Days Battles
**Battle of Gaines' Mill
**Battle of White Oak Swamp
awards=
relations=
laterwork=Philip St. George Cooke (
June 13 ,1809 –March 20 ,1895 ) was a careerUnited States Army cavalry officer who served as a Union General in theAmerican Civil War . He is noted for his authorship of an Army cavalry manual, and is sometimes called the "Father of the U.S. Cavalry", but his wartime service was forgettable and he is better remembered for his famous relatives who joined theConfederate States Army .Early life
Cooke was born in
Leesburg, Virginia . He graduated from theUnited States Military Academy in 1827 and was commissioned a brevet second lieutenant in the infantry. He served at a variety of installations in the American West and in theBlack Hawk War . In 1833 he was promoted to first lieutenant in the newly formed 1st U.S. Dragoons.In the Dragoons, Cooke went on numerous trips of exploration into the Far West. He led the
Mormon Battalion from Santa Fe toCalifornia during theMexican-American War and received a brevet promotion to lieutenant colonel for his service in California. In the 2nd U.S. Dragoons he fought in theBattle of Ash Hollow against theSioux and was sent to keep the peace inBleeding Kansas . Despite being acquainted withBrigham Young , Cooke took part in the Utah expedition of 1857–58, after which he was promoted tocolonel and command of the 2nd U.S. Dragoons, was an observer for the U.S. Army in theCrimean War , and commanded the Department of Utah from 1860 until 1861.Cooke had in his family three men who would become prominent general officers. Tragically, the issue of
secession deeply divided his family and some of these relatives became his enemies. His son,John Rogers Cooke , was an infantry brigade commander in theArmy of Northern Virginia . His son-in-law wasJ.E.B. Stuart , the famous Confederate cavalry general in that same army. His other son-in-law wasJacob Sharpe , a general in the Union Army. In the case of Stuart, who married Cooke's daughter Flora, the two never spoke again, with Stuart saying, "He will regret it only once, and that for the rest of his life."Civil War
At the start of the Civil War, the U.S. Army had five mounted regiments. Cooke commanded the 2nd Dragoons, which was redesignated the 2nd U.S. Cavalry. As they prepared to ride into their first battles, they had the potential opportunity to learn from the two-volume manual on
cavalry tactics written by Cooke in 1858, but not published until 1862. It was a controversial work at the time and the War Department chose not to make it the basis for official doctrine. Cooke espoused the value of mounted attacks as the primary purpose for cavalry forces; others, more sensibly, realized that the emergence of therifled musket as an infantry weapon made the classic cavalry charge essentially obsolete and recommended a mission emphasis on reconnaissance and screening. Even those who agreed that cavalry charges retained some value found reasons to disagree with Cooke. A prominent theory of cavalry charges at the time, endorsed by future generalsHenry W. Halleck andGeorge B. McClellan , was that the cavalry should be deployed in double ranks (aregiment would deploy in two lines of five companies each), which would increase the shock effect of the charge by providing an immediate follow-up attack. Cooke's manual called for a single-rank formation in which abattalion of four companies would form a single line and twosquadron s of two companies each would cover the flanks. A third battalion would be placed in reserve a few hundred yards to the rear. Cook believed that the double-rank offensive promoted disorder of the horses in the ranks and would be difficult to control.Cooke was promoted to brigadier general on
November 12 ,1861 . He initially commanded a brigade of regular army cavalry within the defenses ofWashington, D.C. For thePeninsula Campaign , he was selected by McClellan to command the Cavalry Reserve, a division-sized force, of theArmy of the Potomac . When Confederate forces evacuated the city of Yorktown, Cooke was sent along with Major GeneralGeorge Stoneman in pursuit and his cavalry was roughed up in an assault ordered by Stoneman against Fort Magruder. He saw subsequent action at the battles of Williamsburg, Gaines' Mill, and White Oak Swamp. Cooke ordered an ill-fated charge of the 5th U.S. Cavalry at Gaines' Mill during theSeven Days Battles , nearly sacrificing an entire regiment of regulars.After the Peninsula, Cooke left active field service. One proximate reason was the embarrassment he suffered when his son-in-law, Jeb Stuart, humiliated the Union cavalry by completely encircling the Army of the Potomac in his celebrated raid. Cooke served on boards of
court-martial , commanded the District of Baton Rouge, and was superintendent of Army recruiting for theAdjutant General 's office. He received a brevet promotion to major general in the regular army onMarch 13 ,1865 .Postbellum
Cooke commanded the
Department of the Platte from 1866 to 1867. He retired from the Army with over 50 years service onOctober 29 ,1873 .Cooke is the author of a variety of memoirs of his service: "Notes of a Military Reconnaissance, from Fort Leavenworth, in Missouri, to San Diego, in California" (1848), "Scenes and Adventures in the Army: or, Romance of Military Life" (1857), "Cavalry Tactics" (1862), "Handy Book for United States Cavalry" (1863), and "The Conquest of New Mexico and California "(1878).
Cooke died in
Detroit, Michigan , and is buried there in Elmwood Cemetery.ee also
*List of American Civil War generals
*Cavalry in the American Civil War References
* Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., "Civil War High Commands", Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.
* Longacre, Edward G., "Lincoln's Cavalrymen, A History of the Mounted Forces of the Army of the Potomac", Stackpole Books, 2000, ISBN 0-8117-1049-1.
* Warner, Ezra J., "Generals in Blue: Lives of the Union Commanders", Louisiana State University Press, 1964, ISBN 0-8071-0822-7.External links
* [http://www.usregulars.com/Cooke.htm Online text of Cooke's cavalry manual]
* [http://pequotsgallop.com/dragoon.htm Review of Cooke's "Scenes and Adventures"]Persondata
NAME= Cooke, Philip St. George
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Union Army general
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