Thomas Riley was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-born

Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

who earned the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

for gallantry 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 ...

. On 4 April 1865, Riley captured the flag of the 6th Alabama Cavalry. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor on 8 June 1865.

Military service

Riley enlisted in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

served with Company D of the

1st Louisiana Cavalry Regiment The 1st Louisiana Cavalry Regiment, also known as Scott's Cavalry Regiment, was a cavalry regiment from Louisiana that served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Raised in 1861 it served all over the Western Theater of t ...

. He was a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

for most of his service, including during the action from which he received his Medal of Honor. On 4 April 1865, during the

Battle of Fort Blakely The Battle of Fort Blakeley took place from April 2 to April 9, 1865, in Baldwin County, Alabama, about north of Spanish Fort, Alabama, as part of the Mobile Campaign of the American Civil War. At the time, Blakeley, Alabama, had been the count ...

near Fort Blakely,

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

, Riley captured the flag of the 6th Alabama Cavalry Regiment. Riley's Medal of Honor citation reads:

References

American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor United States Army Medal of Honor recipients Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown {{US-military-bio-stub