The 48th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation.
In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
raised in southwest
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
for service in the
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
. It fought mostly with the
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. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...
.
[John D. Chapla, 48th Virginia Infantry (Lynchburg, Virginia Regimental History Series 1989)]
The 48th Virginia, organized at
Big Spring near
Abingdon,
Washington County, Virginia
Washington County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,935. Its county seat is Abingdon.
Washington County is part of the Kingsport–Bristol–Bristol, TN-VA Metropolitan Statis ...
in September 1861, and contained men from Scott, Washington, Smyth, Lee, and Russell counties. It fought in
Jackson's Valley Campaign and later was assigned to General
John R. Jones
John Robert Jones (March 12, 1827–April 1, 1901) was a Virginia educator who became a Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general in the Confederate States Army, Confederate army during the American Civil War, during which he twice ...
' and then
William Terry's Brigade,
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. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most oft ...
.
The 48th participated in many conflicts from the
Seven Days' Battles
The Seven Days Battles were a series of seven battles over seven days from June 25 to July 1, 1862, near Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. Confederate General Robert E. Lee drove the invading Union Army of the Potomac, comman ...
to
Cold Harbor
The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought during the American Civil War near Mechanicsville, Virginia, from May 31 to June 12, 1864, with the most significant fighting occurring on June 3. It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S ...
, then although undermanned after many initial troops failed to re-enlist upon expiration of their initial one-year service commitment. Nonetheless, it was involved in Early's Shenandoah Valley operations and the Appomattox Campaign.
It was organized with 912 officers and men and had a force of 800 in May, 1862. The unit reported 17 casualties at
Cross Keys Cross Keys or Crosskeys may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Crosskeys, Wales
** Crosskeys railway station
** Crosskeys College, a campus of Coleg Gwent
* Crosskeys Bridge, a swing bridge in Lincolnshire, England
* The Cross Keys (disambiguatio ...
and Port Republic, 62 at
Cedar Mountain, 24 at
Second Manassas
The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate ...
, 7 at
Fredericksburg (when it was in the rear), and 103 at
Chancellorsville (after which Gen. J. R. Jones ceased field service). Of the 265 troops from this unit engaged at
Gettysburg, more than twenty-five percent were disabled. Only 4 officers and 38 men surrendered at Appomattox.
The field officers were Colonels
John A. Campbell (who resigned in October 1862 upon
John R. Jones
John Robert Jones (March 12, 1827–April 1, 1901) was a Virginia educator who became a Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general in the Confederate States Army, Confederate army during the American Civil War, during which he twice ...
's transfer and promotion to brigadier general despite his lack of military experience), Robert H. Dungan, and Thomas S. Garnett; Lieutenant Colonel Oscar White; and Majors James C. Campbell, Wilson Faris, and D. Boston Stewart.
See also
*
List of Virginia Civil War units
Virginia provided the following units to the Virginia Militia and the Provisional Army of the Confederate States (PACS) during the American Civil War. Despite the state's secession from the Union it would supply them with third most troops from a ...
References
*
Units and formations of the Confederate States Army from Virginia
1861 establishments in Virginia
Military units and formations established in 1861
1865 disestablishments in Virginia
Military units and formations disestablished in 1865
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