The 49th 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

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 ...

. The 49th Virginia completed its organization in July 1861. Its members were from the counties of Prince William, Warren, Fauquier, Rappahannock, Amherst, and Shenandoah. Three companies fought at First Manassas and these companies formed the nucleus of the regiment. It was assigned to General Featherston's, Early's, W.Smith's, Pegram's, and J.A. Walker's Brigade, Army of Northern Virginia. The unit participated in many battles from Williamsburg to Cold Harbor, was active in Early's Shenandoah Valley operations, and took part in the final campaign at Appomattox. It reported 40 casualties at First Manassas and in April, 1862, contained 539 effectives. The regiment lost fifty-three percent of the 424 at Seven Pines, had 2 killed and 36 wounded during the Seven Days' Battles, and suffered 5 killed and 73 wounded in the Maryland Campaign. At Fredericksburg 6 were killed and 46 wounded, at Gettysburg thirty-five percent of the 281 were disabled, and at The Wilderness and Spotsylvania 87 were lost. On April 9, 1865, it surrendered with 9 officers and 46 men. The field officers were Colonels

William "Extra Billy" Smith William "Extra Billy" Smith (September 6, 1797May 18, 1887) was a lawyer, congressman, the 30th and 35th Governor of Virginia, and a major general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. On his appointment in January 1863, ...

and Jonathan (John) Catlett Gibson, Lieutenant Colonels Edward Murray and Charles B. Christian, and Major Caleb Smith.

References

* Units and formations of the Confederate States Army from Virginia 1861 establishments in Virginia Military units and formations established in 1861 {{AmericanCivilWar-unit-stub

See also

References