Fitz John Porter

(1822 - 1901)
Home State: New Hampshire
Command Billet: Army Corps Commander
Branch of Service: Infantry
Unit: Fifth (V) Army Corps

see his Battle Report

Before the Antietam Campaign:
He graduated from the USMA in 1845, served in the Mexican War, as an artillery instructor at West Point, and was on the Utah Expedition. In May 1861 he was Colonel of the 15th US Infantry, and was appointed Brig. Gen. of Volunteers. He served as chief of staff to Patterson in the Shenandoah, and commanded the 1st Division/III Corps in Peninsula campaign and the V Corps at the Seven Days. In July 1862 he was promoted to MGen. of Volunteers and led his Corps at Second Bull Run.

In the Antietam Campaign:
He was in command of the Fifth (V) Corps, in reserve on the day of the battle.

The remainder of the War:
He was court martialled for insubordination (refusing Pope's orders to make an apparently impossible attack) for his part at Second Bull Run, and dismissed from the Army in January 1863. The court martial was (probably) politically inspired by (Sec'y of War) Stanton, to harm McClellan. Porter fought to clear his name, and was exonerated and reinstated by an Army review board in 1878.

More on the Web:
For more about the court martial see the Court Martial of Fitz John Porter at Shotgun's Civil War page. Another essay on the subject is Fitz John Porter by Buford.

Birth Date: 8/31/1822    Place of Birth: Portsmouth, NH
College: US Military Academy, West Point, NY    Graduating Year: 1845
Death Date: 5/21/1901    Death Place: Morristown, NJ

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