General Braxton Bragg was the Confederate commander at the Battle of Perryville. Born in Warrenton, North Carolina, on March 17, , Bragg was an graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated fifth in his class. After serving with distinction in the Seminole war and the Mexican War, Bragg left the army in Before the Civil War, Bragg ran a sugar plantation in Louisiana. With the outbreak of the conflict, he joined the Confederacy.
In March , Bragg was commissioned a brigadier general and was sent to protect the Gulf Coast from Mobile to Pensacola. Promotions came quickly to Bragg, who was gifted at organizing armies. In September , he was promoted to major general. Transferred to Tennessee, Bragg commanded a corps at the Battle of Shiloh. When the overall Confederate commander was killed in action, Bragg eventually assumed command. After reorganizing the army, Bragg
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Braxton Bragg: Early Life and Military Service
Braxton Bragg was born on March 22, , into a family of humble means in Warrenton, North Carolina. His father was a contactor and his mother—whom Bragg rarely discussed in his later life—had spent time in jail for killing a freed slave. While his family struggled throughout his youth, Bragg’s politician brother helped him secure an appointment the United States Military Academy at West Point in He graduated in , finishing fifth in a class of 50 cadets.
Did you know? General Braxton Bragg’s triumph at the Battle of Chickamauga in September was the most significant Confederate victory in the Civil War’s Western Theater. But while the battle proved a tactical success, it came at a sobering cost: Bragg’s Army of Tennessee suffered over 18, casualties— a full 3, more than their Union opponents.
Bragg was commissioned into the 3rd U.S. Artillery and first served in Florida during the Second Seminole War (). He was next transferred to C
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Braxton Bragg
Confederate Army general (–)
Braxton Bragg (March 22, – September 27, ) was an American army officer during the Second Seminole War and Mexican–American War and Confederate general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, serving in the Western Theater. His most important role was as commander of the Army of Mississippi, later renamed the Army of Tennessee, from June until December
Bragg, a native of Warrenton, North Carolina, was educated at West Point and became an artillery officer. He served in Florida and then received three brevet promotions for distinguished service in the Mexican–American War, most notably the Battle of Buena Vista. He resigned from the U.S. Army in to become a sugar plantation owner in Louisiana. At the start of the Civil War, Bragg trained soldiers in the Gulf Coast region. He was a corps commander at the Battle of Shiloh, where he launched several costly and unsuccessful frontal assaults but nonetheless was commended fo