Henry Eugene Davies Henry Eugene Davies ( July 2 , 1836 – September 7 , 1894 ) was an American soldier , writer , public official and lawyer . He served in the Union Army as a brigadier general of volunteers in cavalry service during the American Civil War ( " Civil War " ) and was promoted to the grade of major general of volunteers at the end of the war . Davies was one of the few nonprofessional soldiers in the Union cavalry in the East to be promoted to the grade of general . He led his brigade in several major battles , especially during the Overland Campaign , the Battle of Trevilian Station , the Siege of Petersburg and the Appomattox Campaign at the end of the war . Early life . Henry Eugene Davies was born in New York City , the eldest son of Judge Henry E . Davies . He was educated at Harvard , Williams , and Columbia colleges , and was admitted to the bar in 1857 . On August 10 , 1858 , he married Julia Rich , daughter of John T . Rich and Julia Van Voorhies , at Fishkill - on - Hudson , New York . They had one son , Henry Eugene . Henry Davies was the nephew of Union Army Brigadier General and Brevet Major General Thomas Alfred Davies . Civil War service . At the outbreak of the Civil War , Henry E . Davies became a captain of the 5th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment and fought in one of the first battles of the war , the Battle of Big Bethel , Virginia on June 10 , 1861 . In August 1861 , Davies was appointed major of the 2nd New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment . The regiment was attached to Major General Irvin McDowell ' s corps on the Rappahannock River line during the Peninsula Campaign . The regiment was heavily engaged in the campaign of Second Manassas . Davies was promoted to lieutenant colonel in December 1862 and to colonel in June 1863 . In June 1863 , the 2d New York Cavalry suffered heavy casualties at Beverly ' s Ford , Virginia during the Battle of Brandy Station on June 9 , 1863 and at the Battle of Aldie , Virginia on June 17 , 1863 . The regiment was stationed at the Union Army supply base at Westminster , Maryland during the Battle of Gettysburg . Davies was appointed brigadier general of volunteers on September 16 , 1863 , although his appointment was not confirmed by the United States Senate until April 1 , 1864 . He served with distinction in the Cavalry Corps , Army of the Potomac in brigade and three brief periods of temporary division command until the end of the war . Davies was one of the few nonprofessional soldiers in the Union cavalry in the Eastern theater of the Civil War to be promoted to the grade of general . Davies ' s brigade initially was the 1st Brigade of the 3rd Cavalry Division of the Army of the Potomac . In late 1863 , the brigade participated in the inconclusive Bristoe Campaign . Before the Overland Campaign , it became the 1st Brigade of the 2d Cavalry Division of the Army of the Potomac , commanded until early February 1865 by Brigadier General and later Brevet Major General David McMurtrie Gregg . The brigade included the 1st New Jersey Volunteer Cavalry , the 10th New York Volunteer Cavalry , the 24th New York Volunteer Cavalry , five companies of the 1st Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry and Battery A of the 2d United States Artillery . During the Overland Campaign , Davies ' s brigade participated in cavalry corps commander , Major General Philip Sheridan ' s May 1864 raids toward Richmond , Virginia and in the Battle of Trevilian Station in June 1864 . At the Battle of Haw ' s Shop on May 28 , 1864 , Davies ' s saber was cut in half by a Minié ball and his horse ' s tail was shot off . The brigade was involved in several engagements during the siege of Petersburg , including the defense of the Union position along the Vaughan Road against a much larger force during the Battle of Vaughan Road , which was related to the larger Battle of Peebles ' Farm . Davies ' s brigade participated in raids on the Weldon Railroad in December 1864 . Davies was wounded during the Battle of Hatcher ' s Run on February 6 , 1865 . After Gregg ' s resignation in early February 1865 , the brigade had temporary commanders , including Davies between March 14 and March 27 , 1865 . On March 8 , 1865 , President Abraham Lincoln nominated Davies for the award of the grade of brevet major general of volunteers to rank from October 1 , 1864 for his role in the Battle of Vaughan Road during the Battle of Peebles ' Farm . The U . S . Senate confirmed the award on March 10 , 1865 . On March 26 , 1865 , Major General George Crook was appointed commander of the 2d Cavalry Division of the Army of the Potomac to replace Gregg . Davies ' s brigade was heavily engaged in cavalry operations , including those during the Battle of Dinwiddie Court House on March 31 , 1865 , that contributed to the Union breakthrough at Petersburg and the evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond by the Confederates on the night of April 2 , 1865 . The brigade also was engaged in the Appomattox campaign , including its role as the main Union force in the Battle of Amelia Springs , Virginia in which the brigade , near Paineville , Virginia , destroyed about 200 wagons of a Confederate supply train , captured equipment and animals and took more than 300 and perhaps as many as 1 , 000 prisoners and several battle flags . The campaign ended with the surrender of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House on April 9 , 1865 . A staff officer of Major General Crook , Major Henry E . Tremain , stated that Davies ' s men were " as fine a body of cavalry for their size as could be found in the service . " On June 7 , 1865 , Davies was appointed to the full substantive grade of major general of volunteers to rank from May 4 , 1865 . The promotion was not confirmed by the U . S . Senate , however , until February 23 , 1866 . Following the war , Davies stayed in the army briefly , but resigned on January 1 , 1866 while commanding the military Middle District of Alabama . Later life . General Henry E . Davies subsequently became a prominent New York lawyer and held the public offices of Public Administrator of the City of New York from January 1 , 1866 to January 1 , 1869 and Assistant District Attorney of the United States for the Southern District of New York from July , 1870 to January 1 , 1873 . He then returned to the private practice of law . He later moved to Beacon , New York . Davies was the author of " Ten Days on the Plains " ( 1871 ) , " Davies Memoir " ( 1895 posthumous ) and " General Sheridan " ( 1895 posthumous ) , in the " Great Commander Series . " General Davies died suddenly on September 7 , 1894 while visiting friends in Middleboro , Massachusetts and was buried in St . Luke ' s Churchyard in Beacon , New York . He was survived by his wife and son .