John Alexander McClernand John Alexander McClernand ( May 30 , 1812 – September 20 , 1900 ) was an American lawyer and politician , and a Union general in the American Civil War . He was a classic case of the politician - in - uniform coming into conflict with career Army officers , graduates of the United States Military Academy . He was a prominent Democratic politician in Illinois and a representative in the U . S . Congress before the war and then served as a subordinate commander under Ulysses S . Grant in the Western Theater , fighting in the battles of Belmont , Fort Donelson , and Shiloh in 1861 – 62 . A close friend and political ally of Abraham Lincoln , McClernand was given permission to recruit a force to conduct an operation against Vicksburg , Mississippi , which would rival the effort of Grant , his department commander . Grant was able to neutralize McClernand ' s independent effort after it conducted an expedition to win the Battle of Arkansas Post , and McClernand became the senior corps commander in Grant ' s army for the Vicksburg Campaign in 1863 . During the siege of Vicksburg , Grant relieved McClernand of his command for his intemperate and unauthorized communication with the press , finally putting an end to a rivalry that had caused Grant discomfort since the beginning of the war . McClernand left the Army in 1864 and served as a judge and a politician in the postbellum era . Early life and political career . McClernand was born in Breckinridge County , Kentucky , near Hardinsburg , but his family moved to Shawneetown , Illinois , when he was quite young . His early life and career were similar to that of another Illinois lawyer of the time , Abraham Lincoln . He was largely self - educated and was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1832 . In that same year he served as a volunteer private in the Blackhawk War ( Lincoln briefly served as a captain ) . In 1835 McClernand founded the " Shawneetown Democrat " newspaper , which he edited . As a Democrat he served in 1836 and in 1840 – 43 in the Illinois House of Representatives , and in 1843 – 51 and in 1859 – 61 was a representative in the United States Congress , where in his first term he vigorously opposed the Wilmot Proviso , but in his second term was a strong Unionist and introduced the resolution of July 15 , 1861 , pledging money and men to the national government . He was known for his bombastic oratory and his adherence to Jacksonian principles . His dislike of abolitionists generated favor among his constituents , many of whom were originally natives of slaveholding states , as he was . In 1860 he was defeated in a bid for the speakership of the House of Representatives ; the coalition of representatives opposing him objected to his moderate views on slavery and the importance of retaining the Union . As a politician , McClernand remained a staunch Unionist Democrat , much like his mentor , Stephen Douglas . McClernand served as Douglas ' ally and liaison in the House during the Compromise of 1850 debates , and later served as one of his campaign managers in the divisive Democratic presidential nomination convention held in Charleston , South Carolina in 1860 . In November 1842 , McClernand married Sarah Dunlap of Jacksonville , Illinois , a close friend of Mary Todd Lincoln . Sarah was a daughter of James Dunlap , who served as a quartermaster in the Union Army during the Civil War , eventually appointed to the rank of brevet major general . John and Sarah ' s son , Edward John McClernand , was notable as a U . S . Army brigadier general in the Indian Wars and later in the Philippines . Civil War . He resigned from Congress , raised the " McClernand Brigade " in Illinois , and was commissioned brigadier general of volunteers on May 17 , 1861 . His commission as a general was based not on his brief service in the Blackhawk War , but on Lincoln ' s desire to retain political connections with the Democrats of Southern Illinois . He was second in command under Ulysses S . Grant at the Battle of Belmont ( Missouri ) in November 1861 , and commanded the 1st Division of Grant ' s army at Fort Donelson ; his division , whose flank was not properly anchored on an obstacle , was struck by a surprise attack on February 15 , 1862 , and driven back almost two miles before he was able to get reinforcements . On March 21 , 1862 , he was promoted to major general of volunteers for his service at Donelson . At the Battle of Shiloh he commanded a division , which resisted , along with that of William T . Sherman ' s , the strong Confederate assaults around Shiloh Church . McClernand ' s service as a major general was tainted by political maneuvering , well resented by his colleagues . He communicated directly with his commander - in - chief , President Lincoln , offering his criticisms of the strategies of other generals , including Maj . Gen . George B . McClellan ' s in the Eastern Theater and Grant ' s in the West . In October 1862 , McClernand used his political influence with Illinois Governor Richard Yates to obtain a leave of absence to visit Washington , D . C . and President Lincoln , hoping to receive an important independent command . Secretary of War Edwin M . Stanton agreed to order him north to raise troops for the expedition against Vicksburg . Early in January 1863 , at Milliken ' s Bend , McClernand superseded Sherman as the leader of the force that was to move down the Mississippi . On January 11 , 1863 , he took Arkansas Post , an expedition suggested by Sherman . On January 17 , Grant , after receiving the opinion of Admiral David Dixon Porter and General Sherman that McClernand was incompetent to lead further operations , united a part of his own troops with those of McClernand and assumed command in person , and three days later ordered McClernand back to Milliken ' s Bend . During the rest of the Vicksburg Campaign there was much friction between McClernand and his colleagues ; he intrigued for the removal of Grant , spreading rumors to the press of Grant drinking on the campaign . McClernand landed his men on the Mississippi River levee at Young ' s Point , where they " suffered from the heavy winter rains and lack of shelter . Tents were not issued to the troops because they were within range of the [ Confederate ] guns at Vicksburg ; so the more enterprising men dug holes in the levee and covered them with their black rubber blankets . Floundering in knee - deep black mud and still exhausted from recent expeditions , numerous soldiers fell sick . Many cases of smallpox were reported . Hospital tents lined the back side of the levee and were crowded with thousands of sick men . Many died , and soon the levee was lined with new graves . " It was Grant ' s opinion that at Champion Hill ( May 16 , 1863 ) McClernand was dilatory , but Grant bided his time , waiting for insubordination that was blatant enough to justify removing his politically powerful rival . After a bloody and unsuccessful assault against the Vicksburg entrenchments ( ordered by Grant ) , McClernand wrote a congratulatory order to his corps , which was published in the press , contrary to an order of the department and another of Grant . He was relieved of his command on June 18 , two weeks before the fall of Vicksburg , and was replaced by Maj . Gen . Edward O . C . Ord . President Lincoln , who saw the importance of conciliating a leader of the Illinois War Democrats , restored McClernand to a field command in 1864 . On February 20 , 1864 McClernand returned to his old XIII Corps , now part of the Department of the Gulf . Illness limited his role and by the time the Red River Campaign had commenced , McClernand had been replaced in command by Thomas E . G . Ransom . For several days at the end of April McClernand returned to the field to command the detachment of two divisions from the XIII Corps participating in the Red River Campaign . He resigned from the Army on November 30 , 1864 and played a prominent role in the funeral of Lincoln , his old friendly rival . Postbellum life . McClernand was district judge of the Sangamon ( Illinois ) District in 1870 – 73 , and was president of the 1876 Democratic National Convention . McClernand ' s last public service was on a federal advisory board overseeing the Utah Territory . Despite his resignation , he was able to receive an Army pension due to an act of Congress . John McClernand died in Springfield , Illinois , and is interred there at Oak Ridge Cemetery .