page_title: George H. Steuart (brigadier general)
section_title: Shenandoah Campaign and the First Battle of Winchester
hierarchical_section_title: George H. Steuart (brigadier general) / Civil War / Shenandoah Campaign and the First Battle of Winchester
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of part of Jackson's Valley Campaign (actions from Front Royal to First Winchester, May 23-24, 1862) of the American Civil War.
context_page_description: George Hume Steuart was a planter in Maryland and an American military officer; he served thirteen years in the United States Army before resigning his commission at the start of the American Civil War. He joined the Confederacy and rose to the rank of brigadier general in the Army of Northern Virginia. Nicknamed "Maryland" to avoid verbal confusion with Virginia cavalryman J.E.B. Stuart, Steuart unsuccessfully promoted the secession of Maryland before and during the conflict. He began the war as a captain of the 1st Maryland Infantry, CSA, and was promoted to colonel after the First Battle of Manassas.
  In 1862 he became brigadier general. After a brief cavalry command he was reassigned to infantry. Wounded at Cross Keys, Steuart was out of the war for almost a year while recovering from a shoulder injury. He was reassigned to Lee's army shortly before the Battle of Gettysburg. Steuart was captured at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, and exchanged in the summer of 1864. He held a command in the Army of Northern Virginia for the remainder of the war. Steuart was among the officers with Robert E. Lee when he surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House.
context_section_description: Steuart was promoted to brigadier general on March 6, 1862, commanding a brigade in Major General Richard S. Ewell's division during Stonewall Jackson's Shenandoah Valley campaign. On May 24 Jackson gave Steuart command of two cavalry regiments, the 2nd and 6th Virginia Cavalry regiments. At the First Battle of Winchester, on May 25, 1862, Jackson's army was victorious, and the defeated Federal infantry retreated in confusion. The conditions were now perfect for the cavalry to complete the victory, but no cavalry units could be found to press home the advantage. Jackson complained: "never was there such a chance for cavalry! Oh that my cavalry were in place!"  The exhausted infantry were forced forward again, while Lieutenant Sandie Pendleton of Jackson's staff was sent to find Steuart.
  Pendleton eventually found Steuart and gave him the order to pursue Banks' retreating army but the general delayed, wasting valuable time on a point of military etiquette. He declined to obey the order until it came through General Ewell, his immediate divisional commander. The proper channels had not been followed. A frustrated Pendleton then rode two miles to find Ewell, who duly gave the order, but "seemed surprised that General Steuart had not gone on immediately".
  Steuart eventually gave chase and overtook the advance of the Confederate infantry, picking up many prisoners, but, as a result of the delay, the Confederate cavalry did not overtake the Federal army until it was, in the words of Jackson's report, "beyond the reach of successful pursuit". Jackson continued: "There is good reason for believing that had the cavalry played its part in this pursuit, but a small portion of Banks' army would have made its escape to the Potomac".
  It remains unclear precisely why Steuart was reluctant to pursue Banks' defeated army more vigorously, and contemporary records shed little light on the matter. It may be that his thirteen years' training as a cavalry officer led him to obey orders to the letter, with little or no room for personal initiative or variation from strict due process. No charges were brought against him however, despite Jackson's reputation as a stern disciplinarian. It is possible that Jackson's leniency had to do with the strong desire of the Confederacy to recruit Marylanders to the Southern cause, and the need to avoid offending Marylanders who might be tempted to join Lee's army.
  Soon after Winchester, on June 2, Steuart was involved in an unfortunate incident in which the 2nd Virginia Cavalry was mistakenly fired on by the 27th Virginia Infantry. Colonels Thomas Flournoy and Thomas T. Munford went to General Ewell and requested that their regiments, the 6th and 2nd Virginia Cavalry, be transferred to the command of Turner Ashby, recently promoted to Brigadier General. Ewell agreed, and went to Jackson for final approval. Jackson gave his consent, and for the remainder of the war Steuart would serve as an infantry commander.
caption: Actions from Front Royal to First Winchester, May 24–25, 1862   Confederate   Union
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