Earl Van Dorn Earl Van Dorn ( September 17 , 1820 – May 7 , 1863 ) was a career United States Army officer , fighting with distinction during the Mexican - American War and against several tribes of Native Americans . He also served as a Confederate general during the American Civil War , noted for his defeats at Pea Ridge and Corinth in 1862 , and his murder by a civilian in the spring of 1863 . Known to be physically short , impulsive , and highly emotional , Van Dorn was also a noted painter , writer of poetry , was respected for his skill at riding a horse , and also known for his love of women . This last trait would lead to his death in 1863 , when his alleged womanizing became public knowledge . A reporter at the time dubbed him " the terror of ugly husbands " shortly before Van Dorn ' s murder . Early life and career . Van Dorn was born near Port Gibson in Claiborne County , Mississippi , to Sophia Donelson Caffery , a niece of Andrew Jackson , and Peter Aaron Van Dorn , who worked as a lawyer and judge . He had eight siblings among whom were two sisters , Emily Van Dorn Miller and Octavia Van Dorn ( Ross ) Sulivane . His sister Octavia , had a son , Clement Sulivane , who was a captain in the CSA forces and served on Earls staff ; he later became a Lt . Colonel . In December 1843 Earl married Caroline Godbold , and they had a son named Earl Van Dorn , Jr . and a daughter named Olivia . In 1838 Van Dorn attended the United States Military Academy at West Point , and graduated four years later , standing 52nd out of 56 cadets . His family relations to Andrew Jackson had secured him an appointment there . He was appointed a brevet second lieutenant in the 7th U . S . Infantry Regiment on July 1 , 1842 , and began his Army service in the Southern United States . Van Dorn and the 7th were on garrison duty at Fort Pike , Louisiana , in 1842 to 1843 , and were stationed at Fort Morgan , Alabama , briefly in 1843 . He did garrison duty at the Mount Vernon Arsenal in Alabama from 1843 into 1844 , and he was ordered to Pensacola harbor in Florida from 1844 to 1845 , during which Van Dorn was promoted to second lieutenant on November 30 , 1844 . War with Mexico . Van Dorn was part of the 7th U . S . Infantry when Texas was occupied by the U . S . Army from 1845 into 1846 , and spent the early stages of the Mexican - American War on garrison duty defending Fort Texas ( Fort Brown ) in Brownsville , the southernmost town in Texas . Van Dorn saw action at the Battle of Monterrey on September 21 – 23 , 1846 , and during the Siege of Vera Cruz from March 9 – 29 , 1847 . He was then transferred to Gen . Winfield Scott ' s command in early 1847 and promoted to first lieutenant on March 3 . Van Dorn fought well in the rest of his engagements in Mexico , earning himself two brevet promotions for conduct ; He was appointed a brevet captain on April 18 for his participation at the Battle of Cerro Gordo , and to major on August 20 for his actions near Mexico City , including the Battle of Contreras , the Battle of Churubusco , and at the Belén Gate . Van Dorn was wounded in the foot near Mexico City on September 3 , and wounded again during the storming of the Belén Gate on September 13 . After the war with Mexico , Van Dorn served as aide - de - camp to Brev . Maj . Gen P . F . Smith from April 3 , 1847 , to May 20 , 1848 . He and the 7th were in garrison at Baton Rouge , Louisiana , from 1848 into 1849 , and then at Jefferson Barracks in Lemay , Missouri , in 1849 . He saw action in Florida against the Seminoles from 1849 to 1850 , and was on recruiting service in 1850 and 1851 . From 1852 to 1855 Van Dorn was stationed at the East Pascagoula Branch Military Asylum in Mississippi , serving as secretary then treasurer of the post . He spent the remainder of 1855 stationed at New Orleans , Louisiana , briefly on recruiting service again , and then in garrison back at Jefferson Barracks . He was promoted to captain in the 2nd Cavalry on March 3 , 1855 . Van Dorn and the 2nd were on frontier duty at Fort Belknap and Camp Cooper , Texas , in 1855 and 1856 , scouting in northern Texas in 1856 , and fought a minor skirmish with Comanche on July 1 , 1856 . He was then assigned to Camp Colorado , Texas , in 1856 to 1857 , scouting duty again in 1857 , returned to Camp Colorado in 1857 to 1858 , and finally stationed at Fort Chadbourne located in Coke County , Texas , in 1858 . Van Dorn saw further action against the Seminoles and also the Comanches in the Indian Territory . He was wounded four separate times there , including seriously when he commanded an expedition against Comanches and took two arrows ( one in his left arm and another in his right side , damaging his stomach and lung ) at the Battle of Rush Spring on October 1 , 1858 . Not expected to live , Van Dorn recovered in five weeks . Van Dorn led six companies of cavalry and a company of scouts recruited from the Brazos Reservation in a spring campaign against the Comanche in 1859 . He located the camp of Buffalo Hump in Kansas in a valley he erroneously identified as the Nescutunga ( or Nessentunga ) , and defeated them on Crooked Creek on May 13 , 1859 , killing 49 , wounding five and capturing 32 women . He served at Fort Mason , Texas , in 1859 and 1860 . While at Fort Mason , Van Dorn was promoted to the rank of major on June 28 , 1860 . He then was on a leave of absence from the U . S . Army for the rest of 1860 and into 1861 . Civil War service . Van Dorn chose to follow his home state and the Confederate cause , and he resigned his U . S . Army commission , which was accepted effective January 31 , 1861 . He was appointed a brigadier general in the Mississippi Militia on January 23 , and replaced Jefferson Davis as major general and commander of Mississippi ' s state forces in February when Davis was selected as the Confederacy ' s President . After resigning from the Mississippi Militia on March 16 , 1861 , Van Dorn entered the Regular Confederate Army as a colonel of infantry on that same date . He was sent west to raise and lead a volunteer brigade within the new Confederate Department of Texas . On April 11 he was given command of Confederate forces in Texas , and was also ordered to arrest and detain any U . S . troops in the state who refused to join the Confederacy . Leaving New Orleans on April 14 and arriving at Galveston , Texas , he and his men succeeded in capturing three Union ships in the town ' s harbor , on April 17 and then headed for the last remaining regular U . S . Army soldiers in Texas at Indianola , forcing their surrender on April 23 . While at Indianola , Van Dorn attempted to recruit the captured U . S . soldiers into the forces of the Confederacy , but was largely unsuccessful . Van Dorn was summoned to Richmond , Virginia , and appointed a colonel in the 1st C . S . Regular Cavalry on April 25 , leading all of Virginia ' s cavalry forces , and then quickly promoted to brigadier general on June 5 . After being promoted to major general on September 19 , 1861 , Van Dorn was given divisional command in the Confederate Army of the Potomac five days later , leading the 1st Division until January 10 , 1862 . Around this time Confederate President Davis needed a commander for the new Trans - Mississippi District , as two of the leading Confederate generals there , bitter rivals Sterling Price and Benjamin McCulloch , required a leader to subdue their strong personalities and organize an effective fighting force . Both Henry Heth and Braxton Bragg had turned down the post , and Davis selected Van Dorn . He headed west beginning on January 19 to concentrate his separated commands , and set up his headquarters at Pocahontas , Arkansas . He assumed command of the district on January 29 , 1862 . Pea Ridge . By late 1861 and early 1862 , Federal forces in Missouri had pushed nearly all Confederate forces out of the state . When Van Dorn took command of the department , he had to react with his roughly 17 , 000 man , 60 gun Army of the West to events already underway . Van Dorn wanted to attack and destroy the Union forces , make his way into Missouri , and capture St . Louis , turning over control of this important state to the Confederacy . He met his now - concentrated force near Boston Mountains on March 3 , and the army began moving north the next day . In the spring of 1862 , Union Brig . Gen . Samuel R . Curtis entered Arkansas and pursued the Confederates with his 10 , 500 strong Army of the Southwest . Curtis collected his four divisions and 50 artillery guns and moved into Benton County , Arkansas , following a stream called Sugar Creek . Along it on the northern side he found an excellent defensive position and began to fortify it , expecting an assault from the south . Van Dorn chose not to attack Curtis ' s entrenched position head on . Instead he split his force into two , one division led by Price and the other by McCulloch , and ordered them to march north , hoping to reunite in Curtis ' rear . Van Dorn decided to leave behind his supply wagons in order to increase their moving speed , a decision that would prove critical . Several other factors caused the proposed junction to be delayed , such as the lack of proper gear for the Confederates ( some said to lack even shoes ) for a forced march , felled trees placed across their path , their exhausted and hungry condition , and the late arrival of McCulloch ' s men . These delays allowed the Union commander to reposition part of his army throughout March 6 and meet the unexpected attack from his rear , placing Curtis ' forces between the two wings of the Confederate army . Plus when Van Dorn ' s advance guard accidentally ran into Union patrols near Elm Springs , the Federals were alerted to his approach . The Battle of Pea Ridge would be one of the few instances in the American Civil War where the Confederate forces outnumbered the Union forces . Just prior to taking command of the district , Van Dorn wrote to his wife Caroline , saying " I am now in for it , to make a reputation and serve my country conspicuously or fail . I must not , shall not , do the latter . I must have St . Louis - - then Huzza ! " After waiting for McCulloch to join him , Van Dorn grew frustrated and decided to act with what he had on March 7 . Around 9 a . m . he ordered Price to attack the Union position close to Elkhorn Tavern , and despite Price being wounded they had succeeded in pushing the Union forces back by nightfall , cutting Curtis ' lines of communication . Meanwhile , McCulloch , under orders from Van Dorn to take a different route and hurry his march , had engaged part of Curtis ' defenses . Early on in the fighting McCulloch and Brig . Gen . James M . McIntosh were killed , leaving no commander there to organize an effective attack . When Van Dorn learned of the problems with his right wing , he renewed Price ' s attacks , saying " Then we must press them the harder , " and the Confederates pushed Curtis back . That night the junction of Price and what remained of McCulloch ' s men was made , and Van Dorn pondered his next move . With his supplies and ammunition away and the Union force between them , Van Dorn maintained his position . The following day , March 8 , showed Curtis and his command in an even stronger position , about a mile back from where they were on March 7 . Van Dorn had his men arranged defensively in front of Pea Ridge Mountain , and when it was light enough he ordered the last of his artillery ' s ammunition fired at the Union position , to see what the Federals would do . The Union artillery answered back and knocked out most of Van Dorn ' s guns . Curtis then counterattacked and routed the Confederates , mostly without actual contact between the opposing infantries . Van Dorn decided to withdraw south , retreating through sparse country for a week and his men living off what little they got from the few inhabitants of the region . The Army of the West finally reunited with their supplies south of the Boston Mountains . In his official report Van Dorn described his summary of the events at Pea Ridge : Casualties from this battle have never been fully agreed upon . The figures given by most military historians are about 1 , 000 to 1 , 200 total Federal soldiers and around 2 , 000 Confederate . However , Van Dorn detailed significantly different numbers in his official reports . He stated losses of about 800 killed with 1 , 000 to 1 , 200 wounded and 300 prisoners ( about 2 , 300 total ) for the Union , and only 800 to 1 , 000 killed and wounded and between 200 and 300 prisoners ( about 1 , 300 total ) from his army . The Confederate defeat at this battle , coupled with Van Dorn ' s army being ordered across the Mississippi River to bolster the Army of Tennessee , enabled the Union to control the entire state of Missouri and threaten the heart of Arkansas , left virtually defenseless without Van Dorn ' s forces . Despite the loss at Pea Ridge , the Confederate Congress would vote its thanks " for their valor , skill , and good conduct in the battle of Elkhorn in the states of Arkansas " to Van Dorn and his men on April 21 . In his report on March 18 to Judah P . Benjamin , then the Confederate Secretary of War , Van Dorn refuted suffering a loss , saying " I was not defeated , but only foiled in my intentions . I am yet sanguine of success , and will not cease to repeat my blows whenever the opportunity is offered . " Second Corinth . The performance of Van Dorn at the Second Battle of Corinth that autumn led to another Union Army victory . As at Pea Ridge , Van Dorn did well in the early stages of the battle on October 1 – 2 , 1862 , combining with Price ' s men and prudently placing his force that now was roughly equal in size to the Federals at about 22 , 000 soldiers . However , Van Dorn failed to reconnoiter the Union defenses , and his attack on Brig . Gen . William S . Rosecrans ' strong defensive position at Corinth , Mississippi , on October 3 was bloodily repulsed . On October 4 – 5 his command was " roughly handled " along the Hatchie River by Union soldiers led by Brig . Gens . Stephen A . Hurlbut and Edward Ord . However , Rosecrans ' lack of an aggressive pursuit allowed what was left of Van Dorn ' s men to escape . Total casualties for the Second Battle of Corinth totaled 2 , 520 ( 355 killed , 1 , 841 wounded , 324 missing ) for the Union , and 4 , 233 ( 473 killed , 1 , 997 wounded , 1 , 763 captured / missing ) for the Confederates . After the battle Van Dorn ordered a retreat , falling back through Oxford and then Coffeeville , and finally reaching Abbeville , constantly skirmishing with Federal cavalry . Along the way Van Dorn and his staff were nearly captured at Water Valley on December 4 . Two days later Van Dorn halted the retreat at Grenada . Following the defeat at Corinth , Van Dorn was sent before a court of inquiry to answer for his performance there . Though he was acquitted of the charges against him , Van Dorn would never be trusted with the command of an army again , and he was subsequently relieved of his district command . Return to cavalry service . Van Dorn proved to be more effective as a cavalry commander ; his action in a raid at Holly Springs , Mississippi on December 20 , 1862 , seriously disrupted Ulysses S . Grant ' s first Vicksburg Campaign plans , capturing 1 , 500 soldiers and destroying at least $ 1 , 500 , 000 USD worth of Union supplies . Van Dorn and his men then followed the Mobile and Ohio Railroad , fought unsuccessfully at Davis ' s Mills , skirmished near Middleburg , Tennessee , passed around Bolivar , and returned to their Grenada base by December 28 . On January 13 , 1863 , Van Dorn was appointed to command all cavalry in the Department of Mississippi & East Louisiana , and then was ordered by Gen . Joseph E . Johnston to join the Army of Tennessee , operating in Middle Tennessee . Van Dorn and his force left Tupelo , Mississippi , went through Florence , and reached the army on February 20 at Columbia , Tennessee . Van Dorn set up his headquarters at Spring Hill , and assumed command of all of the surrounding cavalry from there . He was ordered by the army commander , Gen . Braxton Bragg , to protect and scout the left of the army , screening against Union cavalry . Van Dorn was also successful at Battle of Thompson ' s Station , on March 5 , 1863 . There a Union brigade , under Col . John Coburn , left Franklin to reconnoiter to the south . About four miles short of Spring Hill Coburn attacked a Confederate force composed of two regiments and was repulsed . Van Dorn then sent Brig . Gen . W . H . Jackson ' s dismounted soldiers to make a direct frontal assault , while Brig . Gen . Nathan Bedford Forrest ' s troopers went around Coburn ' s left and into the Federal rear . After three charges were beaten back , Jackson finally carried the Union position as Forrest captured Coburn ' s wagon train , blocking the road to Columbia and the only Union escape route . Nearly out of ammunition as well as surrounded , Coburn surrendered . On March 16 , 1863 , Van Dorn was given command of the cavalry corps of the Army of Tennessee and fought his last fight April 10 at the First Battle of Franklin , skirmishing with the cavalry of Gordon Granger and losing 137 men to Granger ' s 100 or so . This minor action caused Van Dorn to halt his movement and rethink his plans , and subsequently he returned in the Spring Hill area . Death . It was Van Dorn ' s reputation as a womanizer , not a Union bullet , that led to his death . In May 1863 he was shot in his headquarters at Spring Hill in Maury County , Tennessee , by Dr . James Bodie Peters , who claimed that Van Dorn had carried on an affair with his wife Jessie McKissack Peters . Alone in his office at the home of Martin Cheairs ( now known as Ferguson Hall ) Van Dorn was writing at his desk , and Peters entered and shot him once in the back of the head , killing him instantly . Peters was later arrested by Confederate authorities , but was never brought to trial for the killing . In defense of his actions , Dr . Peters stated that Van Dorn had " violated the sanctity of his home . " General Van Dorn is one of the three major generals in the American Civil War who died violently but from private problems . The others were Union Major General William " Bull " Nelson , shot as the result of a feud with then Brigadier General Jefferson C . Davis in September 1862 ; and Confederate Major General John A . Wharton , shot as the result of an argument with Colonel George Wythe Baylor in April 1865 . Van Dorn ' s body was brought back to Mississippi and buried at Wintergreen Cemetery in Port Gibson . His father Peter had also been buried there , and Earl Van Dorn was laid to rest beside him . Assessment . Controversial throughout his life , Van Dorn as a military commander was an able leader of small to medium groups of soldiers , particularly cavalry , but was out of his depth with larger commands . Military historian David L . Bongard described him as " aggressive , brave , and energetic but lacked the spark of genius necessary for successful high command in combat . " Military historian Richard P . Weinert summarized Van Dorn : " A brilliant cavalry officer , he was a disappointment in command of large combined forces . " Military historian and biographer John C . Fredriksen described him as " a brave and capable soldier , but he proved somewhat lacking in administrative ability . " Fredriksen goes on to say that Van Dorn belonged in cavalry command , stating him to be " back in his element " and " demonstrated flashes of brilliance " with that branch of the service . Fredriksen also believed Van Dorn ' s successes at Holly Springs and Thompson ' s Station in the spring of 1863 made him one of the leading cavalry leaders in the Confederacy , and notes that his death cost the service a " useful leader at a critical juncture of the Vicksburg campaign " and also states that Van Dorn was the senior major general in the Confederate States Army at the time of his murder .