Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-04-10
WARREN ATFIVE FORKS
CAPT. PERTAINS PAPER READ
BEFORE BURNSIDE POST.
He Contends That the Removal of the
General by Sheridan Was an
Act of Injustice.

At an open meeting of burnside Post, No.
A. S. Perham read an interesting paper on
Warren with the Fifth, Army Corps at
Five Forks Capt Perham served in the
I'D Maine Volunteer Infantry and in the
18th Maine Battery. The speakers theme
was the removal of General Warren from
the command of the 9Th Army Corps at
Five Forks, Va, April 1, 1865, by General
Sheridan. The paper was amply Illustrated
by means OF two large maps and several
small ones, these showing the entire line
OF Notifications of the Union and confeder-
ate forces from the AppomattoX river to
FIVE Forks, and the exact places where
Gen. Dushane and Capt. Wilson were kill
ed, and where Gen. Bennett, Bowerman
and Denison and others of the Maryland
Brigade were wounded
The speaker emphasized the fact that the
Maryland Brigade was an important part
of the 9Th Army Corps, and that Warren
stated that his attention was attracted to
1t from the number of it's brigade COM
battle
The speaker contended that the removal
or Warren by Sheridan, with the approval
OF Grant, was an act ofrcrael injustice to
one OF the best generals of the war, and he
corrected number of erroneous statements
aiiesed to have been made by Grant, Sheri-
dan, Badeau and Newhall with reference to
the 9th Army Corps and Gen. Warren.
HIS paper was made up largely of ex-
tracts from Official reports, records and the
testimony OF the principal officers on the
held and showing that all the charges
iliaue against warren and the 9Th Corps
by Grant and Sheridan were unwarranted
and that Sheridan criticised Warren for his
movements on the night of March 81, when
ne knew OF only one order he (Warren) had
received and did not know of numerous
other contradictory, misleading and con-
fuslng orders he had received from Meade
or that Meade had virtually countermanded
the order which Sheridan expected Warren
to obey.
Sheridan Driven Back by Pickett.
Attention was called to the fact that on
March 81 Sheridan had been driven back
five miles by Gen. Pickett, when Sheridan's
force outnumbered Pickett's by 30 per cent,
and how Warren, without orders, had sent
Bartletts brigade into the rear of Pickett's
force and that it was the presence of this
force of Warren which compelled Pickett
to retire. and was rewarded by Sheridan,
Just tWenty-SiX hours later by being re-
moved from his (Warren's) command
The paper showed also how in all the
terrible struggles around Petersburg War
rem with the 9th Army Corps had been
more successful than any other corps com
mander, that there had been no successful
move to gain ground to the left around
Petersburg which was not either commanded
or led by Warren and the 9Th Army Corps,
while Warren was removed after the battle
OF Five Forks. Grant in his official report
says he was removed about the close of the
battle and in his memoirs says that Warren
was removed before the battle was fought
and won.
Gen. Sheridan, however. it would appear,
removed Warren after the battle of Five
Forks and when by Sheridans own ad-
M q pnf
had been during the engagement, what Or
ders he had issued, or the movements of
two OF Warren's divisions, and that Sheri-
dan. fifteen years later said he had not
read Warrens official report or explana-
lions.
his brother, Badeau and Newhall of timid-
ity and bad behavior OF the 9th Army Corps
in battle the lecturer. placed the magnifi-
cent record of the 9TH A4rmy Corps. it's loss
of more than 25Oo0 men killed and woand-
ed and it's. unbroken series of brilliant
achievements on the battlefield.
What Records Show.
The speaker called attention to the rec
ords, which showed that Sheridan accused
Warren of not being at the front, when his
Warren's) horse had been killed under
him; his orderly, Dennis Ward, killed by
his side and Col. Richardson. who went to
Warren's aid, had been badly wounded.
of both Sheridan and Grant hearing,
which they persistently refused to grant,
and how Grant prevented for many years
an inquiry into the facts Of Warren's re-
moval
Both Grant and Sheridan, it appears.
wrote down in history-long years after
Warren was In his grave-their most Sc
we're condemnations of him. much of which
has turned out to be false history concern
ing Warren and his splendid soldiers.
AS to the charge made by Grant. Sheri-
dan, Newhall and Badeau, that Warren al
lowed two of his divisions to march away
from the battle and did not get into the
battle in time, it was shown that these two
divisions had more than twice the number
of men killed and wounded the other di-
vision, and that there was no break between
the divisions; that Warren marched these
divisions on to the enemy's rear and
crushed them, capturing 3,244 prisoners and
thirteen battle flags.
When r. f. Lee heard of Warrens VIC
tory he ordered the evacuation of Rich
mond and Petersburg.