Don Carlos Buell

Don Carlos Buell (1818-1898) was a West Point graduate, Mexican-American War veteran and Union general during the American Civil War (1861-65). At the start of the Civil War, Buell was charged with organizing Union troops before being sent west to command the Army of the Ohio. In April 1862, Buell and part of his army served at the Battle of Shiloh, a Union victory for which Buell insisted he, and not Ulysses S. Grant, deserved credit. Later that year, Buell fought Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg at the Battle of Perryville, which though inconclusive, did check the Confederate advance into Kentucky. When Buell did not pursue Bragg, he was relieved of command.

More to Explore

People and Groups

Themes

Events

Related Topics

Recommended Articles

  • American Civil War

    American Civil War

    The American Civil War, fueled by the debate over slavery and states' rights, pitted North against South in the costliest conflict fought on U.S. soil.

  • Battle of Shiloh

    Battle of Shiloh

    Fought in April 1862, the Battle of Shiloh was the second great engagement of the American Civil War.

  • Ulysses S. Grant

    Ulysses S. Grant

    Ulysses Grant commanded the Union army during the Civil War and later became the 18th U.S. president.

  • William Tecumseh Sherman

    William Tecumseh Sherman

    William Tecumseh Sherman introduced the concept of "total war" and broke the back of the Confederacy in the American Civil War.

Did You Know?

The Battle of Perryville caught Union Gen. Don Carlos Buell off-guard. Several miles from the fighting, Buell only learned of the battle late in the day and was unable to commit his full forces to the effort.

Don Carlos Buell (born March 23, 1818, near Marietta, Ohio, U.S.—died Nov. 19, 1898, Rockport, Ky.) was a Union general in the American Civil War.

Buell graduated from West Point in 1841 and was a company officer of infantry in the Seminole War of 1841–42 and the Mexican War. From 1848 to 1861 he acted chiefly as assistant adjutant general. On the outbreak of the Civil War he was appointed lieutenant colonel, then brigadier general of volunteers and major general of volunteers in March 1862. He aided in organizing the Army of the Potomac and was sent, in November 1861, to Kentucky to succeed General William T. Sherman in command. There he organized and trained the Army of the Ohio, which to the end of its career retained a standard surpassed only by that of the Army of the Potomac. In the spring of 1862 Buell pursued the retiring Confederates under General Sidney Johnston, served under General Henry W. Halleck in the Union advance on Corinth, and in the autumn commanded in the campaign in Kentucky against the Confederate general Braxton Bragg. A period of maneuvering ended in the indecisive Battle of Perryville. The alleged tardiness of his pursuit and his objection to a plan of campaign ordered by the Washington authorities brought about his removal from command. The complaints made against him were investigated in 1862–63, but the result was not published.

Subsequently, he was offered military employment, which he declined. He resigned his volunteer commission in May and his regular commission in June 1864. After the war he settled in Kentucky, where he engaged in mining.

Copyright © 1994-2009 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. For more information visit Britannica.com.

Fact Check We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!

Advertisement

This Day in History

May 27

Lead Story

Bismarck sunk by Royal Navy, 1941

On May 27, 1941, the British navy sinks the German battleship Bismarck in the North Atlantic near France. The German death toll was more than 2,000. On…

Shop HISTORY

See More

Classroom Study Guides