Charles W . Field Charles William Field ( April 6 , 1828 – April 9 , 1892 ) was a career military officer , serving in the United States Army and then , during the American Civil War , in the Confederate States Army . His division was considered as one of the finest in the Army of Northern Virginia . Field was one of a handful of American officers who advised the army of Egypt following the Civil War . Early life . Field was born at the family plantation , " Airy Mount , " in Woodford County , Kentucky . His parents had immigrated from Virginia , and his father was a personal friend of Henry Clay . Through Clay ' s and Andrew Jackson ' s influence , President James K . Polk appointed Field as an " at large " cadet to the United States Military Academy . Field graduated 27th of 43 cadets in the Class of 1849 and accepted a commission as a brevet second lieutenant in the 2nd U . S . Dragoon s . He was assigned to frontier duty for five years at various posts in New Mexico , Texas , and the Great Plains . In 1855 , he was promoted to first lieutenant and assigned to the newly organized 2nd U . S . Cavalry , a regiment under Col . Albert Sidney Johnston that also included Robert E . Lee and numerous other future Civil War generals . In 1856 , Field returned to West Point as Assistant Instructor of Cavalry Tactics . He was promoted to captain in January 1861 . Civil War . With the outbreak of the Civil War , Field resigned his commission on May 30 , 1861 , and left West Point for Richmond , where he offered his services to the Confederacy . His first assignment was to organize a school for cavalry instruction in Ashland , Virginia . In July , he became major of the 6th Virginia Cavalry , becoming its colonel in November . In March 1862 , he was promoted to brigadier general of a brigade of Virginia infantry . He served in what became famed as A . P . Hill ' s " Light Division " of the Army of Northern Virginia during Stonewall Jackson ' s Valley Campaign in the spring of 1862 . Field performed competently during the Peninsula Campaign , but was severely wounded in the leg at the Second Battle of Bull Run in August . At first , it was feared that the mangled leg would require amputation , but doctors managed to save it . However , it took nearly a year for Field to recuperate , although he never fully recovered . During his convalescence , John M . Brockenbrough and Henry Heth commanded Field ' s Brigade , which officially retained his name until the Chancellorsville Campaign . In May 1863 , using crutches to move , Field was able to resume limited military duties , serving as Chief of the Bureau of Conscription in the War Department until July . He continued as a conscription and recruiting officer for nine more months . Finally cleared for field duty , Field rejoined the army in Tennessee in February 1864 , serving on the board of generals appointed to court - martial Lafayette McLaws . Promoted to major general , he commanded the veteran division formerly led by John Bell Hood . In the confused fighting in the Wilderness , Field suffered two minor wounds , but stayed in action throughout the Overland Campaign , including the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House . When Lt . Gen . James Longstreet was wounded during a friendly - fire incident in the Wilderness , Field briefly assumed command of the First Corps , but he was later replaced by Maj . Gen . Richard H . Anderson , who had more seniority and combat experience . Field ' s division continued to perform well during the fighting at Battle of Cold Harbor and Siege of Petersburg . On the afternoon of August 16 , 1864 , at the Battle of Deep Bottom , 5 , 000 Union soldiers under Brig . Gen . Alfred H . Terry broke through the Confederate lines and briefly threatened to rout the defenders . The tide finally turned when Field orchestrated a hard - hitting counterattack that forced the Federals to retreat . In April 1865 , he surrendered with his division at Appomattox Court House . Numbering nearly 5 , 000 men , it was one of the few units still in fighting condition . Postbellum career . After the war , Field pursued business interests in Maryland and Georgia . He traveled abroad in 1875 and served Isma ' il Pasha , the khedive of Egypt , as a colonel of engineers , helping train native officers and supervising several construction projects . He later served as Inspector General . Returning to the United States in 1877 , he was nominated for the position of doorkeeper of the U . S . House of Representatives . His service under a foreign head of state technically resulted in the loss of U . S . citizenship , rendering him ineligible for the post . However , former fellow Confederate general Eppa Hunton argued that Field ' s service was under a private contract and that he had never sworn an oath of allegiance to the khedive . Field was elected to the post . He became a civil engineer from 1881 through 1888 and then served for a time as superintendent of Hot Springs Reservation ( later renamed Hot Springs National Park ) . He died in Washington , D . C . , and was buried in Baltimore , Maryland , in Loudon Park Cemetery . In the 20th century , the commonwealth of Kentucky erected a roadside marker on U . S . Route 62 near Versailles commemorating Woodford County ' s Civil War generals , including Field .