Departmental Commander—And Disaster

Abstract This chapter addresses the impact of the First Battle of Bull Run on William T. Sherman. On July 21, 1861, Sherman’s brigade had endured the hardest fighting. His superior officers believed that he had done well; on August 3, he received notification that he would be promoted to brigadier general of volunteers. This state of affairs would shortly change. Sherman might have witnessed his men’s foolhardy courage, but he found little else to praise in their conduct. The root of the problem lay in chronic indiscipline. Of greater interest is Sherman’s opinion of the Confederacy, as this would shape his analysis of the war’s conduct for the next six months. The experience of the First Battle of Bull Run, in his opinion, had revealed that the Confederates enjoyed significant tactical virtues. The chapter then details how Sherman suffered from adjustment disorder due to the Bull Run. On December 23, Major General Henry W. Halleck appointed Sherman to Benton Barracks, where he could train recruits and begin the resuscitation of his military career.