GDG- ANV corps commanders

[Chet Diestel]

Esteemed GDG Member Chris Contributes:

In hindsight there were a couple of intriguing corps commander 
possibilities, problem was they were all too junior at the time of the 
pre-Gettysburg reorganization - Mahone (who did a lousy job at Gettysburg) 
ended up being a good senior commander for Lee later in the war but was only 
a brigadier in July 1863, Gordon and Ramseur were two good brigadiers but 
they were just that, brigadiers...I think Pender would've made a good corps 
commander had he lived (and a comment from Lee about losing all his best 
men - Jackson, Hood, Pender, I think, were the three names Lee gave, 
indicates that Lee thought so as well) - but Pender was very young and also 
just fighting his first battle as division commander at Gettysburg.  Lee 
could've looked outside the ANV I suppose but that could've generated 
problems, conflict, etc...

Chris

  The  first, and most obvious, choice in the reorganization of the ANV that 
took place after Chancellorsville would seemed to have been Jeb Stuart. 
After all, he led Jackson's command in the battle after that general's 
wounding and by all accounts did an excellent job.
   It has always struck me as interesting --- especially given the 
controversial part played during the Gettysburg Campaign --- that the 
Cavalry Corps was the only major organization not revamped. It was much too 
large and cumbersome to be kept a division and deserved to be what it became 
after G --- a full corps. I've never figured out if it was because Lee did 
not want to loose Stuart as his cavalry commander that he was passed over 
for one of the two corps vacancies, or was it because a non-Virginian, Wade 
Hampton, would have taken over?
  I have never been one of those "If only Stonewall was there," folks but 
his death did have one major effect upon the ANV during the Gettysburg 
Campaign. The ANV, even if Jackson had lived, was going to be reorganized 
into three corps --- Ewell, it seems, was always the first in line to become 
a corps commander, which meant A.P. Hill got that level of command only 
because of Jackson's death necessitated another appointment.
  As to who else to select for corps commander status --- the obvious would 
seem to be the two division commanders who in 1864 obtained that rank ---  
Jubal Early and Richard Anderson. As for Hood, it would seem that Lee had 
great admiration for Hood as a brigade and division commander, but little 
faith in his abilities for higher command --- doubts which Hood more than 
sustained.
   With regards,
           Chet