Henry Washington Hilliard (August 4, 1808 – December 17, 1892) was a unionist

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

and a

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

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 ...

. In later life, he became a proponent of abolitionism in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

.''See generally'', David I. Durham, ''A Journey in Brazil: Henry Washington Hilliard and the Brazilian Anti-Slavery Society'' (2017).

Early life

Hilliard was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and graduated from South Carolina College (now the University of South Carolina) at Columbia in 1826. While at South Carolina College, he was active in the

Euphradian Society The Euphradian Society, also known as (Phi Alpha Epsilon), a local societyThus not to be confused with Phi Alpha Epsilon Phi Alpha Epsilon () is an academic, discipline-specific honor society for architectural engineering in the United States. T ...

.Durham, David. A Southern moderate in radical times: Henry Washington Hilliard, 1808-1892 (Baton Rouge: LSU Press, 2008), 13–14. He studied law and moved to

Athens, Georgia Athens, officially Athens–Clarke County, is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta, and is a satellite city of the capital. The University of Georgia, the sta ...

, where he was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1829. He was a professor at the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publi ...

from 1831 to 1834, when he resigned to practice law in

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

. He served as member of the state house of representatives in 1836–1838, as member of the Whig National Convention at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 1839, Whig presidential elector in 1840 and was an unsuccessful candidate for election to the Twenty-seventh Congress in 1840. He was chargé d'affaires to Belgium from May 12, 1842, to August 12, 1844. Hilliard was elected as a Whig to the Twenty-ninth, Thirtieth, and Thirty-first Congresses (March 4, 1845 – March 3, 1851) but he was not a candidate for renomination in 1850. In 1856, he served as presidential elector on the National American ticket.

Civil War service

In 1861 he was appointed by Jefferson Davis Confederate commissioner to Tennessee. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, he served as a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

in the

. Hilliard's Legion was organized at Montgomery, Alabama in June, 1862, and consisted of five battalions; one of these, a mounted battalion, was early detached and became part of the Tenth Confederate cavalry. The Legion proceeded to Montgomery nearly 3,000 strong, under the command of Col. H. W. Hilliard, and was placed in McCown's Brigade. It took part in the siege of Cumberland Gap, and spent the fall and winter in Kentucky and east Tennessee. Hilliard resigned from the army December 1, 1862 to take care of personal affairs and because he had not been promoted to

brigadier general 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 ...

Postbellum

He moved to

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Georgi ...

, in 1865 and resumed the practice of his profession. He was an unsuccessful Republican candidate for election in 1876 to the Forty-fifth Congress. He resumed the practice of law in

, moving later to Atlanta. He was Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Brazil from July 31, 1877, to June 15, 1881. In Brazil he worked with Joaquim Nabuco and Emperor Pedro II to support abolition. He died in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

, December 17, 1892 and was interred in Oakwood Cemetery,

Notes

References

* Allardice, Bruce S. ''Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register.'' Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 2008. . Retrieved on 2009-04-16 * * Durham, David R. (2008). ''A Southern Moderate in Radical Times: Henry Washington Hilliard, 1808–1892''. Louisiana State University Press. * Evans, Clement A. ed., Confederate Military History, Vol. VII, p. 234, Confederate Pub. Co., Atlanta, 1899. * Hilliard, Henry Washington.
Politics and Pen Pictures at Home and Abroad
' G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1892.

External links

*
Hilliard's Legion
Ohio State University {{DEFAULTSORT:Hilliard, Henry Washington 1808 births 1892 deaths Politicians from Fayetteville, North Carolina Georgia (U.S. state) Republicans Ambassadors of the United States to Belgium Ambassadors of the United States to Brazil University of South Carolina alumni Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers People of North Carolina in the American Civil War Confederate States Army officers 19th-century American diplomats Alabama Know Nothings Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Alabama 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers