Lee's Artillery Chief: William Nelson Pendleton

By Thomas Rittenburg

Nearly all of Lee's generals found biographers in the more than 150 years that have passed since the Civil War but no one has undertaken to tell the story of Lee's senior field artillery officer General William N. Pendleton. This omission may best be explained because Pendleton was a controversial figure. During the war there were those who considered him a buffoon or an embarrassment. After the war he engaged in a senseless controversy with James Longstreet over the Battle of Gettysburg. Even recently, historians have attacked his reputation as a cleric and as a military officer usually by ignoring the Army command structure or how Civil War field artillery functioned in action. Each recent history relies on the errors made by its predecessors in their assessment of Pendleton. Yet, many of the criticisms are made in error, and the life of the man tells a fascinating story of dedication to faith, science, family, and home. One of the primary reasons I wrote this book was to refute the conclusions reached by your author Phillip Tucker Thomas in his book on Pickett's Charge. It is time for a fresh appraisal of Pendleton, one taking into consideration the actual Confederate command structure and the functions of the field artillery of the time. We need to re-consider Pendleton's unheralded contributions as well as his flaws and limitations. It is forgotten that he created the army field artillery organization, perfected it through multiple re-organizations, and ensured it was adequately supplied with equipment, shells, and provender. Until the day of the surrender at Appomattox Pendleton provided General Lee with an equipped and effective fighting force. He also provided an extra set of eyes and ears for Lee in reconnaissance and preparing battlefield positions while at the same time administering a corps of artillery larger than most divisions. Not only was he the heart and soul of the field artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia, he alone kept it well organized, equipped, and fed until the end of the war.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0BW23RXT5
• ISBN13: 9798379218850
• Release Date: February 2023
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 409 Pages
• Weight: 1.53 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.9" x 6.0"