Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 3.djvu/644

598 at the battle of Kernstown, March 23, 1862, he commanded the Stonewall brigade. During the Maryland campaign he commanded Pickett's brigade. In the westward movement on September 14th, with his brigade he reached Boonsboro after a hot and tiresome march over the mountains, to which he was ordered to return that afternoon to dispute the mountain pass with the Federal army. His troops, almost exhausted, took a position before Turner's gap, on the eastern slope of the South mountain, under artillery fire, and sustained for some time a fierce attack from Reno's corps of McClellan's army. On the 17th, Garnett and his men fought to the southeast of Sharpsburg village, in support of the Washington artillery, and later in the day in conjunction with S. D. Lee's battalion, and were distinguished for bravery. General Garnett was subsequently identified with the record of Pickett's division, in command of his brigade, consisting of the Eighth, Eighteenth, Nineteenth, Twenty-eighth and Fifty-sixth Virginia regiments, which he finally led into action during the memorable charge on the third day of the battle of Gettysburg. The brigade moved forward in the front line, and gained the enemy's strongest line, where the fighting became hand to hand and of the most desperate character. The brigade went into action with 1,287 men and 140 officers, and after the struggle about 300 came back slowly and sadly from the scene of carnage. General Garnett's part in this fatal action is thus reported by his successor in command, Maj. Charles S. Peyton: "Of our cool, gallant, noble brigade commander it may not be out of place to speak. Never had the brigade been better handled, and never has it done better service in the field of battle. There was scarcely an officer or man in the command whose attention was not attracted by the cool and handsome bearing of General Garnett, who, totally devoid of excitement or rashness, rode immediately in rear of his advancing line, endeavoring, by his personal efforts and by the aid of his staff, to keep his line well closed and dressed. He was shot from his horse while near the center of the brigade, within about 25 paces of the stone wall."

Brigadier-General Robert Selden Garnett, born in Essex county, Va., December 16, 1819, was graduated at the United States military academy in 1841, and