The 4th South Carolina Cavalry Regiment was a

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 ...

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

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 ...

. They were from the state of

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

and served primarily in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. The 4th South Carolina Cavalry Regiment was organized on December 16, 1862, by consolidating the 10th Battalion South Carolina Cavalry, the 12th Battalion South Carolina Cavalry, the Charleston Light Dragoons and Company A of the St. James Mounted Riflemen. The 10th Cavalry Battalion (also called the 3rd Battalion) was organized in the spring of 1862 with five companies, and Major James P. Adams and Major William Stokes were the commanding officers. The 12th Cavalry Battalion had also been known as the 4th Cavalry Battalion.

Organization and history

When it was first formed, the 4th South Carolina Cavalry Regiment was commanded by Colonel B. Huger Rutledge and served in the 1st Military District of South Carolina, commanded by Brigadier General Roswell S. Ripley. The 1st Military District was in the Department of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, under the command of General P. G. T. Beauregard. The 4th SC Cavalry served here from December 1862 until it was transferred to 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 ...

in March 1864. With 1,350 officers and men, the regiment was attached to the brigade known as Butler's Brigade under the command of Brigadier General

Matthew Butler Matthew Calbraith Butler (March 8, 1836April 14, 1909) was a Confederate soldier, an American military commander and attorney and politician from South Carolina. He served as a major general in the Confederate States Army during the American Ci ...

, which served under Major General Hampton's Division of cavalry, in the

Cavalry Corps, Army of Northern Virginia The Cavalry Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia was an organized unit of cavalry in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. Starting out as a brigade in late 1861, becoming a division in 1862 and finally a Corps in 1863; it served ...

. It saw heavy action at the battles of Haw's Shop, Va., Matadequin Creek, Va., and

Trevilian Station The Battle of Trevilian Station (also called Trevilians) was fought on June 11–12, 1864, in Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Union cavalry under Maj. ...

, Va. Between May 28, 1864, and June 12, 1864, the regiment suffered more than 280 killed, wounded or captured. In January 1865 the 4th SC Cavalry and all of Hampton's Division were detached from the Army of Northern Virginia and transferred south, by railroad, to the Department of Tennessee and Georgia, commanded by Lieutenant General William J. Hardee, and was under the Cavalry Command of Lieutenant General Hampton. Following the fall of

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city ...

, the unit, along with the entire Cavalry Command were transferred to the

Army of Tennessee The Army of Tennessee was the principal Confederate army operating between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River during the American Civil War. It was formed in late 1862 and fought until the end of the war in 1865, participating i ...

under General

Joseph E. Johnston Joseph Eggleston Johnston (February 3, 1807 – March 21, 1891) was an American career army officer, serving with distinction in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) and the Seminole Wars. After Virginia secede ...

, where they fought final actions in the

Campaign of the Carolinas The campaign of the Carolinas (January 1 – April 26, 1865), also known as the Carolinas campaign, was the final campaign conducted by the United States Army (Union Army) against the Confederate States Army in the Western Theater. On January 1 ...

through the spring of 1865, surrendering with the Army of the Tennessee with less than 200 men. Of the seven cavalry regiments raised in South Carolina during the war, the 4th South Carolina lost more men than any other unit. More than 260 members of the 4th South Carolina were killed in action or died of wounds, disease or in federal prisoner of war camps. CORRECTION TO PRECEDING. Per the book Saddle Soldiers, the Correspondence of General William Stokes (Lt. Colonel of the 4th) by Lloyd Halliburton the 4th SC Cavalry did not surrender. The General's own words were "not desiring to go through the formality of surrendering the Regiment which I commanded, I ordered the camp struck at 8:30 P.M. and marched toward Asheboro, NC. ... At this place I disbanded the Regiment and sent them home."Halliburton, p. 199 On the morning of 27 April General Stokes awoke to find the teamsters had disappeared with the mule team of the headquarters wagon. He then ordered the wagon burned rather than allow it to fall into enemy hands. With that, most of the records, and history, of the 4th SC Cavalry disappeared.

Officers and units

The commanding and staff officers of the regiment were: *Colonel Benjamin Huger Rutledge *Lieutenant Colonel William Stokes *Major William P. Emanuel *Adjutant James R. Massey; Gabriel Manigault *Chaplain William Banks *Quartermaster Joseph W. McCurry *Surgeon: Isaac M. Gregorie *Assistant Surgeon Capers M. Rivers *Sergeant Major Garland M. Yancey Most of the companies in this regiment existed previously as South Carolina Militia companies. Some, such as the Charleston Light Dragoons, traced their history to the early-to-mid 18th century, and are mentioned as guarding Fort Sumter in the summer of 1860. The companies in the regiment were: * Company A - Chesterfield District * Company B - Chester and Fairfield Districts * Company C - Oconee, Pickens and Anderson Districts * Company D - Santee Mounted Riflemen - Georgetown District * Company E - Marlboro District * Company F - E. M. Dragoons - Marion District * Company G - Orangeburg and Colleton Districts * Company H - Catawba Rangers - Lancaster District * Company I - Williamsburg Light Dragoons - Williamsburg District * Company K - Charleston Light Dragoons - Charleston and Beaufort Districts

Notable battles

The battle history of the regiment: * Black River (Aug. 13, 1862) * Destruction of the George Washington near Beaufort, South Carolina (April 9, 1863) *

Raid at Combahee Ferry The Raid on Combahee Ferry ( , also known as the Combahee River Raid) was a military operation during the American Civil War conducted on June 1 and June 2, 1863, by elements of the Union Army along the Combahee River in Beaufort and Colleton c ...

(June 2, 1863) *Expedition from Fort Pulaski, Georgia, to Bluffton, South Carolina (June 4, 1863) *Lownde's Mill, Combahee River (Sept. 13–14, 1863) *Cunningham's Bluff (Nov. 24, 1863) *

Battle of Haw's Shop The Battle of Haw's Shop or Enon Church was fought on May 28, 1864, in Hanover County, Virginia, as part of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia during the Amer ...

(May 28, 1864) * Battle of Matadequin Creek (June 1–3, 1864) *

Battle of Trevilian Station The Battle of Trevilian Station (also called Trevilians) was fought on June 11–12, 1864, in Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Union cavalry under Maj. ...

(June 11–12, 1864) *

Siege of Petersburg The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...

(June 1864 - Jan. 1865) *

Battle of Vaughan Road The Battle of Vaughan Road, also spelled "Vaughn", was an American Civil War engagement between Confederate States Army and Union Army cavalry forces protecting the flank of the main Union attack on Confederate positions on the western end of ...

(Oct. 1, 1864) * Battle of Burgess's Mill (Oct. 27–28, 1864) *

Carolinas Campaign The campaign of the Carolinas (January 1 – April 26, 1865), also known as the Carolinas campaign, was the final campaign conducted by the United States Army (Union Army) against the Confederate States Army in the Western Theater. On January 1 ...

(Feb.-April 1865) *

Battle of Monroe's Crossroads The Battle of Monroe's Crossroads (also known as the Battle of Fayetteville Road, and colloquially in the North as Kilpatrick's Shirttail Skedaddle) was a battle during the Carolinas Campaign of the American Civil War in Cumberland County, North ...

(Mar. 10, 1865) *

Battle of Bentonville The Battle of Bentonville (March 19–21, 1865) was fought in Johnston County, North Carolina, near the village of Bentonville, as part of the Western Theater of the American Civil War. It was the last battle between the armies of Union Maj. ...

(Mar. 19–21, 1865)

Notes

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References

*Bell, Louise, ''Rebels in Gray, Soldiers from Pickens District 1861-65, (Co. C)'' *Brooks, U. R., ''Butler and His Cavalry: 1861-1865'' *Dietrich, Richard Kevin, ''To Virginia and Back with Rutledge's Cavalry: A History of the 4th South Carolina Cavalry Regiment'', Broadfoot Publishing Company, 2015 *Halliburton, Lloyd, ''Saddle Soldiers: The Civil War Correspondence of William Stokes of the 4th South Carolina Cavalry'' *Martin, Samuel, ''Matthew Calbraith Butler: Confederate General, Hampton Red Shirt, and U.S. Senator'' *Rigdon, John C., ''Historical Sketch and Roster of the SC 4th Cavalry Regiment'' *Rivers, Colonel William J., ''Rivers Account of the Raising of the Troops for State and Confederate Service'', Columbia, The Bryan Printing Co., 1909, Reprint 1998 by Eastern Digital Resources. *Salley, A. S., ''South Carolina Troops in Confederate Service, Volume II'', Historical Commission of South Carolina, The State Co., 1930. *Smith, D. H., ''The Call To Arms, Williamsburg, Rosters'' *Wellman, Manley, ''Giant in Grey'' *Wells, Edward L., ''Hampton and His Cavalry in '64'' *Wells, Edward L., ''A Sketch of the Charleston Light Dragoons From the Earliest Formation of the Corps'', 1888, Reprint 1997. Units and formations of the Confederate States Army from South Carolina 1862 establishments in South Carolina Military units and formations established in 1862

Organization and history

Officers and units

Notable battles

See also

Notes

References