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Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 3: (search)
e line of battle, but were nearly all day under fire of the enemy's cannon. General Stuart, accompanied by his Staff and personal escort, pressed forward with his two batteries of horse-artillery, which, under the command of my gallant friend John Pelham, soon did most admirable execution. The enemy at once concentrated the fire of five batteries on this point, and every kind of missile hurtled heavily through the smoky air, spreading death and destruction on all sides. I had many a hot ride, our starting-point. Here we found that the enemy, anticipating our movement, had posted artillery and sharpshooters in advantageous position on the river-bank, and we were accordingly received with a very determined resistance. Soon, however, Pelham came up with his horse-artillery, and, by a well-directed fire, opened a passage for us. The enemy retreated in precipitation, leaving their dead and wounded all along the course of their flight, and we were able to take but a very few prisoners.
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 5: (search)
oolness and energy on the part of our commander, however, soon wrought a great improvement in the situation. Our sharpshooters were quickly dismounted and placed behind a fence, where they received the enemy with a very well-directed fire; while Pelham, who had come up at full gallop with his guns, threw from a favourable position such a deadly shower of grape and canister upon the advancing lines of the foe, as brought them suddenly to a halt. Having been ordered to place the right wing ofough the village, and their track marked by blazing farmhouses to the right and left in the fertile fields around it. The General, justly exasperated at the sight, turned round to me and said, Major, ride as quick as you can, and bring up some of Pelham's guns at full gallop, that we may give a parting salute to these rascally incendiaries. Not less eager than he, I reached the artillery in a few minutes, and, getting the pieces into position without loss of time, we sent several shells with so
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 6: (search)
found, as is usually the case in such sudden alarms, that things were by no means so desperate as they had been represented. Colonel Baker, with the splendid 1st North Carolina regiment, had arrested the bold forward movement of the Yankees. Pelham, with his guns in favourable position, was soon pouring a rapid fire upon their columns. The other regiments of the command were speedily in the saddle. The line of battle having been formed, Stuart gave the order for a general attack, and withnfortunately wounded. General Stuart and his Staff rode to Boonsboroa, which we reached at nightfall, and where we rejoined a portion of Fitz Lee's brigade. Here we were greatly distressed at learning that the leader of our horse-artillery, Major Pelham, who had marched with Fitz Lee, had been cut off, and was a prisoner in the enemy's hands. He turned up, however, the next morning, having cut his way through the Yankee lines, and saved himself by his never-failing coolness and intrepidity.
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 7: (search)
our respective lines. So are courtesies sometimes exchanged in the midst of hostile conflict. During the afternoon, Pelham, who for the present had but little occupation with his artillery, and had been reconnoitring the enemy, rode up to me ann, and sent an orderly with my report to General Stuart, from whom I received orders to transfer my present command to Major Pelham, and join him without delay on the right. Here also the enemy's forces were heavily massed in front of us, and our schis pursuer, and attempts to follow our army into Virginia were for some time abandoned. An old friend and comrade of Pelham's, Captain A., living in Martinsburg, invited the Major and myself to dine, and we spent a delightful evening with him aned our ablutions, and indulged in a change of linen, we felt once more clean, comfortable, and happy. In the evening, Pelham and I, mounting our mules, rode very proudly over to the camp of the 1st North Carolina regiment, where we had been invit
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 8: (search)
there only in time to see the last of the blue-jackets disappearing on the opposite side of the village. Hampton now received orders to occupy Martinsburg and gradually re-establish his pickets, Lee's brigade continuing the pursuit, followed by Pelham with four of his guns, which he posted on a hill a mile beyond the town, and opened with them a rapid and very effective fire upon the dense columns of the enemy. Stuart would have given a great deal to capture the commander of the Federal hooff after the larger game. Nevertheless I enjoyed even my unsuccessful turkey-hunting very much, and was frequently rewarded for my trouble by bagging a pheasant or a hare. But we had other diversions during this period of military inactivity. Pelham and I had got hold of a yellow-painted army waggon, captured from the Yankees, to which we hitched our horses and drove about all over the country, though the rapid motion of the vehicle with its hard springs over the rough rocky roads nearly sho
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 9: (search)
ng of the canal (now dry) and river was effected with all the precision of passing a defile on drill — a section of the artillery being sent with the advance and placed in position on the Loudoun side, another piece on the Maryland heights, while Pelham continued to occupy the attention of the enemy with the other, withdrawing from position to position until his piece was ordered to cross. The enemy was marching from Poolesville in the mean time, but camp up in line of battle on the Maryland bank, only to receive a thundering salutation, with evident effect, from our guns on this side. I lost not a man killed on the expedition, and there were only a few slight wounds. The enemy's loss is not known, but Pelham's one gun compelled the enemy's battery to change its position three times. The remainder of the march was destitute of interest. The conduct of the command, and their behaviour towards the inhabitants, are worthy of the highest praise. A few individual cases only were ex
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 10: (search)
avalry advancing in beautiful lines across an open field on the right. The fight was at once opened with great spirit by Pelham's guns, which met with a furious response from several Federal batteries, and we were soon hotly engaged all along our li in full retreat, by the road they had come, towards Leesburg. Our flying artillery, under the intrepid and energetic John Pelham, whom I have so often had occasion to mention in these memoirs, had, as usual, done admirable service, disabling severthe destruction which cannon-shot and musket-ball were making in their ranks. They were devoted to their young chief, John Pelham, whom an English writer, Captain Chesney, justly styles the boy hero; and as they knew my intimacy with him, and as inion in English, French, or German, to such of them as I knew best, I was always received with loud cheering. They called Pelham and myself, in honourable association, our fighting Majors, and after my dear friend's death, and when I had myself been
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 11: (search)
rtunity here of witnessing one of those daring feats which Pelham was so constantly performing. He had been greatly annoyedwhich completely hid them from view. This they did before Pelham could get a shot at them, and they had already killed or ders, and putting the rest to flight in hopeless stampede. Pelham and his cannoneers now emerged from the wood in a run, briition. The retreat through Union was admirably covered by Pelham with his artillery, and was executed with great steadinesyourself with giving these gentlemen a lesson: take two of Pelham's guns, place them in such position as you think best, and the dusty streets. Too much credit cannot be given to Pelham for the great forethought and coolness with which he had tng in the air, or ricochetting on the hard dry ground. Pelham's guns were now in a very dangerous situation, a squadron apid flight at the murderous volley of the sharpshooters. Pelham was doing his best, in the mean time, to dislodge the bold
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 12: (search)
im, being detained in camp by domestic duties, arranging the interior of my tent, and building the customary fireplace and mud chimney. For the transportation of materials we employed our well-known yellow van captured from the Yankees, to which Pelham and I each harnessed one of our horse. The first time we attached the team, I had occasion to witness with indignation and punish with severity the brutal conduct of Pelham's negro Willis, who, at the moment my horse was making the greatest effoPelham's negro Willis, who, at the moment my horse was making the greatest efforts to pull our heavily-laden waggon out of a mud-hole, struck him in a paroxysm of anger over the head with a hatchet, felling the poor animal to the ground, where it lay for several minutes apparently lifeless. I was fortunately close enough to reward the scoundrel's barbarity at once with his own horsewhip. General Stuart returned in the evening, in time for our slender dinner of coffee and baked potatoes, telling us that on his way back he had called at the headquarters of General Lee,
Heros von Borcke, Memoirs of the Confederate War for Independence, Chapter 13: (search)
General Lee came over to our camp on a short visit, and I was touched by the gentle, sympathising way in which he talked with Mrs Stuart. Our friend Lawley having announced by telegram his coming in this day's train from Richmond, I drove over to the station at Culpepper Court-house to meet so welcome a guest, who had promised to give us the pleasure of his company for several days. To do him proper honour, I substituted on this occasion for the rough-going, yellow-painted waggon in which Pelham and I were accustomed to make most of our journeys, a top-buggy which Stuart had brought from Pennsylvania. On the 12th the General started on a reconnaissance to stir up the Yankees a little, as he expressed himself, in which he was accompanied by Lawley, who desired to get an idea of our mode of cavalry fighting. My orders were to remain at headquarters in the performance of some important duties there. I disliked this exceedingly, but I was soon compensated by the unexpected arrival
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