George mcclellan biography civil war generals

George B. McClellan

George Brinton McClellan is often remembered as the great organizer of the Union Army of the Potomac.  Nicknamed "Young Napoleon," "Little Mac" was immensely popular with the men who served under his command.  His military command style, however, put him at odds with President Abraham Lincoln, and would ultimately upset his military and political fortunes.

McClellan began his military career after entering the United States Military Academy in   He graduated second in a class of 59 in , along with 20 others who would become full rank generals during the Civil War.  He was appointed as a brevet second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers and served under General Winfield Scott during the Mexican-American War, helping to construct roads and bridges for the army.  The recipient of brevet promotions to both first lieutenant and captain, he returned to West Point as an instructor after the war, and helped translate a French manual on bayonet tactics.  Other duties included service as an engineer at Fort Delaware, expeditions to explore the Red River, and the exploration of possible routes for the transcontinental railroad.

George B. McClellan

George B. McClellan
Major General
United States Army, Army of the Potomac
December 3, &#; October 29,

George B. McClellan by Mathew Brady, Public Domain.

Thousands of generals served in the U.S. Army during the American Civil War, but few provoke controversy like Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan. A career Army officer and later a politician, he served during the Mexican-American War and the Civil War. While commanding the Army of the Potomac, McClellan engaged Confederate forces in several major battles. Through triumph and failure, McClellan’s service in the Army during the Civil War contributed to Union victory, though his legacy is still debated by historians.

Born on December 3, , to a prominent Philadelphia family, George Brinton McClellan enjoyed a privileged upbringing. Initially planning to enter medicine or law, the University of Pennsylvania accepted him into preparatory school at 14 years old. Instead, McClellan decided to enter military service two years later. He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, the academy having waived the minimum age requirement to allow McClellan to attend at the request of his influenti

GEORGE MCCLELLAN

If you sift through the history books of former generals of the Civil War you will see that most of them tend to fit into one of two groups, either they were born into a well off family and began their military careers at West Point, or they had humble beginnings and went through an atypical route towards prominence. George McClellan was the former, being born into an elite family in Philadelphia on December 3, McClellan was admitted into West Point at the age of 15, which went against the minimum age requirement of 16, and still went on the finish second in his class in Like many of the era, George McClellan came to military prominence during the Mexican-American War, where he was promoted to captain for showing gallantry under fire. After the war, McClellan returned to West Point, then went to Europe to study military techniques from the Crimean War, and eventually left the military in to become chief engineer on the Illinois Central Railroad.
McClellan had mixed viewpoints when the Civil War was beginning. He certainly wasn’t opposed to slavery, but his desire to keep the Union intact took precedent, leading him to accept command of the voluntee
George B. McClellan
BornGeorge Brinton McClellan
Dec. 3,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
DiedOct. 29, (at age 58)
Orange, New Jersey
AllegianceUnited States of America
Union
RankMajor General (–, –)
Battles/warsMexican–American War
American Civil War
Battle of Rich Mountain
Peninsula Campaign
Seven Days Battles
Maryland Campaign
Battle of Antietam

George B. McClellan () was an American soldier and politician, best known for his service in the American Civil War, where he was a major general in the Union Army. He was very popular with his men, despite having a number of serious shortcomings as a commander. In particular, he was often slow to commit his forces even when numbers were in their favor. McClellan ran for the Presidency of the United States in but was badly beaten by Abraham Lincoln, the incumbent.

Early Life

A son of Philadelphia and one of five children, McClellan was born into a medical family: his father was a renowned ophthalmologist who set up Jefferson Medical College. He also had some military background, since his grandfather, Samuel McClellan, who had been a general in the War of Independence. George himself decided to


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