The 8th Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a

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 ...

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 ...

raised in

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 ar ...

for service 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 ...

. It fought mostly as part of 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 ...

. Virginia's 8th Cavalry Regiment was organized early in 1862 with nine companies but increased its number to eleven to July. Many of the men were recruited in Cabell, Wayne, Mercer, Fayette, Greenbrier, Bland, Smyth, Nelson, Kanawha, and Tazewell counties.Dickinson, Jack L., ''8th Virginia Cavalry'', H.E. Howard, 1986 The unit confronted the Union in western Virginia, fought in East Tennessee then returned to western Virginia. Later it participated in Early's Shenandoah Valley operations and the Appomattox Campaign. This regiment contained 225 effectives in April, 1864. Some claim that none were included in the surrender at Appomattox because it had cut through the Federal lines and disbanded, and that the field officers were Colonels James M. Corns and Walter H. Jenifer; Lieutenant Colonels Thomas P. Bowen, A.F. Cook, Henry Fitzhugh, and

Albert G. Jenkins Albert Gallatin Jenkins (November 10, 1830 – May 21, 1864) was a Virginia attorney, planter, slaveholder, politician and soldier from what would become West Virginia during the American Civil War. He served in the United States Congress and ...

; and Major P.M. Edmondson. However, 2nd Lt. Hezekiah Harmon of Company A swore as a witness to the pension application of Angelina James, widow of S.P. James of the same company, that he and James surrendered at Appomattox on April 9, 1865, and that he "was present and saw all that I have stated". Validating Harmon's statement is the statement of the Adjutant General of the War Department of the United States, Brigadier General George Andrews, on November 21, 1912, on Angelina James' pension application, that "the records show that one S.P. James (not found as Stephen Porter James), private, Company A, 8th Virginia Cavalry, Confederate States Army, was enlisted June 27, 1863; that he was surrendered at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, and was paroled at that place April 9, 1865." This evidence lends strong weight to the 8th Cavalry having been at Appomattox at the surrender. Former

U.S. Congressman 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 ...

and Confederate Congressman

recruited one of the unit's companies as a company of partisan rangers, before it was attached to the regiment and he became commanding officer of the 8th Virginia. He was killed at the

Battle of Cloyd's Mountain The Battle of Cloyd's Mountain was a Union victory in western Virginia on May 9, 1864, that allowed the Union forces to destroy a large bridge on the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. The railroad was used to carry Confederate troops and suppli ...

Companies and officers

References

External links

War-Time Reminiscences of James D. Sedinger, Company E, 8th Virginia Cavalry (Border Rangers)
Units and formations of the Confederate States Army from Virginia 1862 establishments in Virginia 1865 disestablishments in Virginia Military units and formations established in 1862 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865 {{AmericanCivilWar-unit-stub

Companies and officers

See also

References

External links