Henry King Burgwyn, Jr. (October 3, 1841 – July 1, 1863) was a

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

colonel in 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 ...

killed at the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...

Early life

Burgwyn was born in

Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts Jamaica Plain is a neighborhood of in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Settled by Puritans seeking farmland to the south, it was originally part of the former Town of Roxbury, now also a part of the City of Boston. The commu ...

, to Henry King Burgwyn, Sr. and Ann Greenough Burgwyn while his parents were vacationing there. He was the

second cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...

of Brig. Gen George B. Anderson. Burgwyn grew up in

Northampton County, North Carolina Northampton County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,471. Its county seat is Jackson. Northampton County is part of the Roanoke Rapids, NC Micropolitan Statistical Area, wh ...

, at Thornberry, the family plantation. He attended Burlington College in North Carolina. Hoping for, but never receiving, an appointment to the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

West Point, New York West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Ame ...

, Burgwyn instead graduated from the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

in 1857. He then graduated from the

Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...

as a member of the class of 1861. Burgwyn spent a few tours as a recruiting officer in North Carolina and then as

commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

of Camp Crabtree in

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southe ...

, where he drilled and attempted to instill discipline in the recruits.

Civil War

In August 1861, after a personal recommendation from VMI professor Thomas Jonathan Jackson for an appointment as a Confederate officer, Burgwyn became the lieutenant colonel of the 26th North Carolina Regiment at just 19 years of age. He took part in the 26th North Carolina's fight against

Ambrose E. Burnside Ambrose Everett Burnside (May 23, 1824 – September 13, 1881) was an American army officer and politician who became a senior Union general in the Civil War and three times Governor of Rhode Island, as well as being a successful inventor ...

at the Battle of New Bern and narrowly escaped capture. The regiment next took part in the failed attack on the Union position at

Malvern Hill Malvern Hill stands on the north bank of the James River in Henrico County, Virginia, USA, about eighteen miles southeast of Richmond. On 1 July 1862, it was the scene of the Battle of Malvern Hill, one of the Seven Days Battles of the Americ ...

. Burgwyn was promoted to colonel in August 1862 and took command of the regiment when its commander, Zebulon B. Vance (who Burgwyn felt was unfit for command) was elected governor of North Carolina, despite the fact that the 26th North Carolina's brigade commander,

Brig. Gen. Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Robert Ransom Robert Ransom Jr. (February 12, 1828 – January 14, 1892) was a major general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. His brother Matt W. Ransom was also a Confederate general officer and U.S. Senator. Early life Ransom ...

was against the promotion. Ransom and Burgwyn disliked each other and the 26th was transferred from Ransom's command to the brigade of Brig. Gen.

J. Johnston Pettigrew James Johnston Pettigrew (July 4, 1828 – July 17, 1863) was an American author, lawyer, and soldier. He served in the army of the Confederate States of America, fighting in the 1862 Peninsula Campaign and played a prominent role in ...

. Burgwyn spent much of the fall and winter of 1862 in eastern North Carolina with minor engagements against Union forces. During this period he was also instrumental in recruitment and conscription activity and drilling these new soldiers. Burgwyn next led the 26th at the

Battle of Goldsboro Bridge The Battle of Goldsborough Bridge took place on December 17, 1862, in Wayne County, North Carolina, as part of the Union (American Civil War), Union expedition to Goldsboro, North Carolina, during the American Civil War. Background In December ...

. The regiment was heavily involved in

Daniel Harvey Hill Lieutenant-General Daniel Harvey Hill (July 12, 1821 – September 24, 1889), commonly known as D. H. Hill, was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the eastern and western theaters of the American Civil Wa ...

's New Bern and Washington Campaigns. The 26th was then sent north to join 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 ...

, arriving shortly after the

Battle of Chancellorsville The Battle of Chancellorsville, April 30 – May 6, 1863, was a major battle of the American Civil War (1861–1865), and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville campaign. Chancellorsville is known as Lee's "perfect battle" because h ...

. When his regiment joined Lee's Army, Burgwyn was thought to be the youngest colonel to have served to that point with the Army, and the 26th was the largest regiment in the Army.

Gettysburg and death

Burgwyn and the 26th North Carolina moved north toward

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

as part of the Gettysburg Campaign. The 26th engaged in brutal fighting against

Solomon Meredith Solomon Meredith (May 29, 1810 – October 2, 1875) was a prominent Indiana farmer, politician, and lawman who became a controversial Union Army general in the American Civil War. One of the commanders of the Iron Brigade of the Army of the ...

's vaunted

Iron Brigade The Iron Brigade, also known as The Black Hats, Black Hat Brigade, Iron Brigade of the West, and originally King's Wisconsin Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. Although it fought ent ...

in Herbst's Woods on the afternoon of July 1, 1863, at Gettysburg. As the regiment was exiting Herbst's Woods and reaching the crest of McPherson's Ridge, Burgwyn was shot through both lungs and mortally wounded carrying the colors of the 26th (Historian Earl J. Hess wrote that Burgwyn had just passed the colors to a private then the colors fell again and Burgwyn turned to see what had happened and was then shot). According to William M. Cheek, an eyewitness at the time: In all, 13 color bearers for the 26th North Carolina were either killed or wounded. Burgwyn died about two hours after he was wounded and was buried on the field north of the Chambersburg Pike in an empty gun case. Another eye witness and a member of Burgwyn's command, Fred A. Olds, wrote in a letter that he was with the Colonel when he died: For his gallantry and heroism, Colonel Burgwyn was listed on the Confederate Honor Roll. His family had his body exhumed in 1867 and he was laid to rest in Raleigh's

Historic Oakwood Cemetery Historic Oakwood Cemetery was founded in 1869 in North Carolina's capital, Raleigh, near the North Carolina State Capitol in the city's Historic Oakwood neighborhood. Historic Oakwood Cemetery contains two special areas within its , the Confe ...

.Hess, p. 308.

References

Notes Bibliography * Hess, Earl J. ''Lee's Tar Heels: The Pettigrew-Kirkland-MacRae Brigade,'' The University of North Carolina Press, 2002, .

External links

1906 article about Burgwyn's death.
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Burgwyn, Henry K. People of North Carolina in the American Civil War Confederate States of America military personnel killed in the American Civil War Virginia Military Institute alumni University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni Confederate States Army officers 1841 births 1863 deaths Burials at Historic Oakwood Cemetery Northern-born Confederates People from Jamaica Plain Military personnel from Massachusetts

Early life

Civil War

Gettysburg and death

References

Further reading

External links