The Middle Military Division was an organization of the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to the ...

during the American Civil War, responsible for operations around the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge ...

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 are ...

and the Valley Campaigns of 1864. In the summer of 1864, Confederate General

Jubal Early Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a Virginia lawyer and politician who became a Confederate general during the American Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early resigned his U.S. Army commiss ...

's army had defeated several Union armies, had advanced close to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

, and continued to operate in the Shenandoah Valley into August. Faced with this continued threat, the Union high command created the Middle Military Division and ordered the cavalry commander of the

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Phillip Sheridan General of the Army Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close as ...

, to command it. The Military Division (an entity that controlled multiple military departments within the Union Army) was established on August 7, 1864. It comprised the geographic and military assets of the Departments of the Susquehanna, Washington, West Virginia, and the

Middle Department The Middle Department was an administrative military district created by the United States War Department early in the American Civil War to administer the troops in the Middle Atlantic states. The department was created on March 22, 1862 by the A ...

. On December 1, 1864, the Department of the Susquehanna within the military division changed its name to the

Department of Pennsylvania The Department of Pennsylvania (or General Patterson's Army) was a large military unit in the Union Army at the outset of the American Civil War. Established on April 27, 1861, its territory consisted of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and all of Marylan ...

. The operational field forces of the division were collectively known as the Army of the Shenandoah. Philip Sheridan commanded both the military division and the army from August 7 to October 18, 1864.

Command history

When Hancock was assigned to the military division, his command did not include the troops under the command of Sheridan. Hancock relieved Sheridan of troop command on May 17, 1865.

References

* Eicher, John H., & Eicher, David J., ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . {{DEFAULTSORT:Middle Military Division Departments and districts of the United States Army Union Army departments Union armies 1864 establishments in Virginia

Command history

See also

References