jkBluesman
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Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner (b. 1823, d. 1873). Although a Northerner by birth he sided with his wife’s and mother's family and fought for the South. He is best remembered for his staunch defence of Port Hudson. Born in New York City as the son of an army officer Gardner chose the same profession as his father. Graduating from West Point in 1843 (17th out of 39) with future war-hero Ulysses S. Grant, Gardner first served on the frontier. During the Mexican-American War he fought in almost all major engagements and won two brevets. Following that conflict he served again on frontier duty including the Utah expedition in 1857. In the sectional conflict of 1860/1861 he sided with his wife’s Louisiana family. In May 1861 he accepted a commission as lieutenant colonel from the Confederate government. As he had not resigned before he was dismissed from the U.S. army. His first battle was at Shiloh on April 6-7, 1862. He saw no action there, but guarded the flanks of the retreating Confederate army with his cavalry brigade. Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard commanded him for promotion and Gardner was made brigadier general on April 11. He helped to reorganize the Army of the Mississippi’s cavalry following the battle. Under Gen. Braxton Bragg he served through the Kentucky invasion in fall of 1862. After the defeat at Perryville on October 8, the Confederates withdrew. Probably due to his engineering skills he was sent to Port Hudson on the banks of the Mississippi in December. He took command of the Southern forces there and was promoted to major general dating from December 13. Port Hudson was strategically important as it guarded the approach to Vicksburg – the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River that combined the Trans-Mississippi with the main Confederacy – from the South. When Grant started his famous Vicksburg campaign in the spring of 1863 Gardner had to send reinforcements to his superior, Gen. John C. Pemberton. So when Gen. Nathaniel Banks started to encircle Port Hudson he faced only 7500 Confederates with his 30 000 Federals. The siege of Port Hudson started on May 22. Five days later the Southerners beat back an attempt to take the fortress by a direct assault. Another attack on June 14 failed also. The ensuing siege lasted until Vicksburg had fallen on July 4. Gardner who had until then refused to surrender had to face the truth. His unconditional surrender was accepted by Banks on July 9: the longest siege in American history was over. The North had suffered roughly 10 000 casualties while the Confederates suffered only 1000. Gardner and his officers were taken prisoner, his men were paroled. Gardner was exchanged in August 1864 and served in Mississippi for the rest of the war, where his main task was to counter raids by Gen. Benjamin Grierson. After surrendering with the forces of Gen. Richard Taylor, Gardner went home to his plantation in Louisiana. He died there on April 29, 1873 and was buried in Lafayette.
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< Message edited by jkBluesman -- 6/10/2008 11:31:51 AM >
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Maj. Gen. Franklin Gardner - 
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