page_title: Confederate government of West Virginia
section_title: Military
hierarchical_section_title: Confederate government of West Virginia / Confederate leaders / Military
caption_attribution_description: English: A county map of the state as it was formed in 1863 during the American Civil War, showing the percentages of available recruits who were enrolled into Confederate service.
context_page_description: On June 20, 1863 the U.S. government created a new state from 50 western counties of Virginia to be named "West Virginia". This was done on behalf of a Unionist government in Wheeling, Virginia, approved by Congress and President Lincoln, though it was done with a low participation of the citizens within the new state. There remained a large number of counties and citizens who still considered themselves as part of Virginia and the Confederacy which, in turn, considered the new state as part of Virginia and the Confederacy. In 1861 the 50 counties contained a population of 355,823 whites, 2,782 freemen, 18,371 slaves, 79,515 voters and 67,721 men of military age. West Virginia was the 6th most contested state during the war, with 632 battles, engagements, actions and skirmishes.
  Although considered a loyal Union state by the Federal government, the new state nevertheless gave half of its soldiers to the Confederacy and was the only border state which did not give the greater portion of its men to the Union. While the Union army held much of the territory of the new state, large sections remained in the hands of guerrillas and bushwhackers.
context_section_description: Sixteen Confederate general officers were either born in or living in the state at the time of the war. Three of these officers were in command of Virginia militia; Alfred Beckley, James Boggs, and Augustus A. Chapman. The most senior general was Stonewall Jackson of Clarksburg, who achieved the rank of Lt.-General before his death in 1863. In 1861 he had requested assignment to western Virginia, which he described as "bleeding at every pore", but was refused and remained stationed in the Shenandoah Valley. His brigade contained thirteen companies of West Virginia volunteers.
  Generals Albert G. Jenkins of Cabell County and William Lowther Jackson of Wood County were frequently engaged in actions within the state, raiding behind Union lines for material and recruits. Jenkins was killed at the Battle of Cloyd's Mountain in 1864. John McCausland of Mason County became notorious in the north for his actions in Chambersburg, Pa., which resulted in the burning of the town in 1864. John Echols of Monroe County became a Lt. Col. and was placed in command of the 27th Virginia Infantry, half of whose men came from West Virginia. Later, as a brigadier-general, he would be placed in command of a brigade which included many West Virginia volunteers. Edwin Gray Lee of Jefferson County, a cousin of Robert E. Lee, served on the staff of Stonewall Jackson before becoming Lt.-Col. of the 33rd Virginia Infantry. In 1864 he was promoted to brig-general, but left the service due to ill-health soon after.
  
  Other notable military figures were Christopher Q. Tompkins and George S. Patton of Charleston, who were instrumental in the organizing of volunteers in the Kanawha Valley in the summer of 1861. Tompkins resigned from the service in frustration at the chaos caused by generals Floyd and Wise, and Patton was killed at the Third Battle of Winchester in 1864. Angus W. McDonald of Hampshire County became colonel of the 7th Virginia Cavalry defending the bridges of the Potomac River. He also organized the first topographic corps in Virginia. Lt. Col. Vincent A. Witcher of Wayne County was a wide-ranging cavalry officer, moving from West Virginia through Tennessee and participating in the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863 and later at Lynchburg in 1864 during Union Brig-Gen. David Hunter's failed campaign. Lynchburg residents credited the actions of Brig. Gen. John McCausland with saving the city and presented him with a gold sword. Hanse McNeill led a company of Rangers out of Hardy County which operated in the lower Shenandoah Valley, though they also participated in operations around the Gettysburg campaign. After McNeill's death in 1864 his son Jesse took command and achieved fame in a covert operation that resulted in the capture of two Union generals well behind Union lines and sending them as prisoners to Richmond in 1865.
  Large numbers of West Virginia recruits were under the command of John Imboden of Augusta County, Va., which operated in West Virginia and was also part of Lee's Gettysburg campaign; the 18th Virginia Cavalry, the 62nd Virginia Mounted Infantry, four companies of the 25th Virginia Infantry and McLanahan's Battery, with McNeill's Rangers attached to his command.
  West Virginia volunteers contributed notably or significantly to thirteen infantry regiments, three infantry battalions, one mounted infantry battalion, a sharpshooter battalion, twelve artillery batteries, fifteen cavalry regiments, six cavalry battalions, and a company of partisan rangers, while some served in Kentucky Confederate regiments. Altogether 20-22,000 West Virginians were in Confederate service.
caption: Confederate recruitment in West Virginia
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