- Lorenzo Thomas
Lorenzo Thomas (
October 26 ,1804 –March 2 ,1875 ) was a careerUnited States Army officer who wasAdjutant General of the Army at the beginning of theAmerican Civil War . After the war, he was appointed temporary Secretary of War by PresidentAndrew Johnson , precipitating Johnson's impeachment.Early life
Thomas was born in
New Castle, Delaware . He graduated from theUnited States Military Academy in 1823, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 4th U.S. Infantry. He fought in theSeminole War inFlorida and, during theMexican-American War , he was the chief of staff to GeneralWilliam O. Butler . He received a brevet promotion to lieutenant colonel for Monterrey. From 1853 to 1861, he served as chief of staff to the commanding general of the U.S. Army,Winfield Scott .Civil War
Just before the start of the Civil War, Thomas was promoted to colonel and adjutant general of the U.S. Army on
March 7 ,1861 . He was promoted to brigadier general onMay 7 .Camp Thomas , a Regular Army training base inColumbus, Ohio , was named in his honor in July 1861. He held the position of adjutant general until he retired in 1869, except for a special assignment to recruitAfrican-American troops in the Military Division of the Mississippi from 1863 to 1865.Thomas did not get along well with Secretary of War
Edwin M. Stanton and this assignment outside ofWashington, D.C. , was considered a form of banishment. Many historians have claimed Thomas was banished in disgrace after conspiring to defame Union GeneralWilliam T. Sherman as insane. [ [http://books.google.com/books?id=k-yQW4DdxIsC&pg=PA137&dq=%22hugh+boyle+ewing%22&sig=5TvkskW1NlSAizkXd5SbtdJMOm0#PPA136,M1 Boritt, 137] ] Thomas was replaced by Maj. Gen.Edward D. Townsend as Adjutant General, who would serve until 1880. [" [http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9D01E5DB1031E033A25751C1A9639C94629ED7CF Obituary, Gen. Edward D. Townsend] ". "New York Times ".May 12 ,1893 . p. 5]From
March 17 toJuly 23 ,1862 , he served as the chairman of the War Board, the organization that assisted PresidentAbraham Lincoln and Secretary Stanton in the management of the War Department and the command of the Union armies during the period in which there was no general-in-chief. Just before the end of the war, he was given a brevet promotion to major general in theregular army , as ofMarch 13 ,1865 .Postbellum
On
February 21 ,1868 , President Johnson attempted to replace Stanton by appointing Thomas as Secretary of War "ad interim". Thomas, still stinging from his bad treatment by Stanton, boasted of his ability and determination to oust him from office by force, if necessary. Some historians believe that it was this attitude in his testimony at Johnson's impeachment trial in the Senate that was partially responsible for Johnson's acquittal. Thomas retired from the Army onFebruary 22 ,1869 , ten days before Johnson left office. He died in Washington and is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery,Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Fort Thomas, a military post established in
Arizona Territory in 1876, was named for Thomas.cite web |url=http://groups.msn.com/apacheconflictingrahamcountyarizona/apacheconflictii.msnw |title=Apache Conflict in Graham County Arizona |accessdate=2008-04-28 |accessmonthday= |accessdaymonth= |accessyear= |author= |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher= |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= ]ee also
References
* Sears, Stephen W., Neely, Mark E., Fellman, Michael, and Simon, John Y., ed. by Boritt, Gabor S. "Lincoln's Generals." Oxford University Press. 1994. pp. 135-138. ISBN 0195101103
* Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., "Civil War High Commands", Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.
* Sears, Stephen W., Neely, Mark E., Fellman, Michael, and Simon, John Y., ed. by Boritt, Gabor S. "Lincoln's Generals." Oxford University Press. 1994. ISBN 0195101103
* Warner, Ezra J., "Generals in Blue: Lives of the Union Commanders", Louisiana State University Press, 1964, ISBN 0-8071-0822-7.Notes
External links
* [http://www.footnote.com/image/4123526/ Document] detailing $52,899 in property losses Thomas suffered during the Civil War. Thomas was eventually awarded $6,500 from the government.
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