Posted In: Blog Posts|August 9, 2024
The Battle of Antietam, Maryland, proved to be the bloodiest day of the Civil War, and Union General George B. McClellan had failed to immediately pursue Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s army when it withdrew to Virginia. His reluctance had cost him his job when President Lincoln replaced him with General Ambrose E. Burnside. Burnside immediately put into motion his plan to get to the Confederate capital at Richmond before Lee.
His plan called for the Union army to get to the lower Rappahannock River as quickly as possible, cross the river, and get between Lee and Richmond, effectively blocking the Confederate army. On November 15, 1862 the 120,000 man Federal army left Warrenton, Virginia, for Falmouth. There, Burnside planned to use portable pontoon bridges to cross the river into Fredericksburg, which was occupied by only a few hundred Confederate troops.
Reaching Falmouth, however, Burnside discovered that the bridges had not yet arrived, and they wouldn’t for several more days. As Burnside fumed, Lee moved troops under General James Longstreet and General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson to Fredericksburg, the 78,000 troops putting a dent into the Union’s manpower advantage. Positioned where he could command the river’s logical crossing points, the Southerners further negated any advantage Burnside had planned for.
Using their defensive advantage, Lee’s troops opened fire on the Union engineers as they attempted to assemble the bridges once they arrived. More than 150 Federal guns bombarded the town in response, and the Battle of Fredericksburg was on.
Landing parties are dispatched to cross the river and drive the rebel snipers from their positions, with the remainder of Ambrose’s troops following. The fighting at Fredericksburg was a four-day battle, lasting from December 11 through December 15, 1862, and it proved to be a bloodbath for the Union army. Two of every three casualties among the 18,500 were Union troops. The battle was later described as “a butchery.”
The debacle for the Union proved costly for Burnside, who was relieved of his command just six weeks later and replaced by General Joseph Hooker. The Confederate victory bolstered spirits throughout the South, leading to another major victory at Chancellorsville in May 1863.
Corporal John Shiel
By James Gindlesperger, historical author
Born in Scotland in May 1828, little is known about John Shiel until he earned his Medal of Honor. Even his true name is a mystery, as he is referred to in various sources as either John Shiel or John Shields. For this article, he will be called John Shiel.
Of his personal life, all that is known with any degree of certainty is that he married Ellen J. Barlow in 1874 and the couple would have one son, Arthur. It isn’t known when he and his family came to the United States, nor is his place of residence known for sure. Some sources say he lived in Philadelphia, while others say Cresson, Pennsylvania, 250 miles west of the City of Brotherly Love. Wherever he lived, his actions warrant mentioning him as one of our nation’s most heroic. He earned his Medal at the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, on December 13, 1862.
Shiel joined the 90th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry’s Company E on April 15, 1862, as John Shields, serving as sergeant. He would transfer to Company F of the 11th Pennsylvania on November 26, 1864. He was still a corporal when he earned his Medal of Honor, although he would eventually be promoted to sergeant. Under Colonel William Leech, the 90th PVI was in the First Corps of Major General William B. Franklin’s Left Grand Division, serving in the 2nd Brigade (Colonel Peter Lyle commanding) of Brigadier General John Gibbon’s 2nd Division.
On December 12, 1862, the men of the 90th Pennsylvania crossed the river about two miles south of the town and soon became engaged with rebel skirmishers. They held their position overnight, and on December 13 they moved through the morning fog to form up in the second line of attack against the right of the Confederate line, out of sight in a heavily wooded area. The troops on the right of the 90th PVI would assault the heavily fortified ridgeline known as Marye’s Heights.
Following a lengthy artillery duel, the fighting became heated. Soon, the 2nd Brigade, including the 90th PVI, was ordered to move forward to relieve the 3rd Brigade. When the 2nd Brigade ran out of ammunition it, in turn, was relieved by the 1st Brigade. As soon as the 2nd Brigade was able to reorganize, it was ordered forward again. The early afternoon order was said to be “worse than madness.” With their ammunition already running low, the men of the 90th Pennsylvania were forced to scavenge ammunition from the cartridge boxes of the dead. Many of them made the charge with empty guns after realizing that the gathered ammunition did not fit their guns. It would be an unsuccessful assault, with the 90th Pennsylvania suffering heavy losses in killed, wounded, and missing. The living were forced to use the dead as shields as they lay on the battlefield, waiting until they could safely withdraw. As they pulled back, an aide to General Gibbon rode up and brandished his pistol while admonishing the 90th Pennsylvania as cowards for withdrawing.
Choosing to ignore the aide’s insults, Leech moved his men under the cover of darkness to the extreme left of the Union line. They held that position all day on December 14 and 15 until they withdrew from the battlefield entirely during the night of December 15.
At some point during the assault, Shiel performed his act of heroism that would earn him the Medal of Honor. Seeing a wounded comrade, and knowing that anyone left behind would surely be captured, Shiel picked the man up and carried him to a place of safety as the bullets passed all around him. More than 34 years later, he received word that he was to be awarded the Medal of Honor. His citation reads: The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Corporal John Shiel (Shields), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 13 December 1862, while serving with Company E, 90th Pennsylvania Infantry. In action at Fredericksburg, Virginia, Corporal Shiel carried a dangerously wounded comrade into the Union lines, thereby preventing his capture by the enemy.
Shiel died on June 11, 1908, and was buried in Greenmount Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Further Reading
Bates, Samuel P., History of the Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-1865, (Harrisburg: B. Singerly, state printer) Volume 3, p. 169
Pennsylvania in the Civil War, https://www.penncivilwar.com/post/moh-fredericksburg, accessed May 14, 2024
American Battlefield Trust, Fredericksburg, https://www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/fredericksburg, accessed May 14, 2024
About the Congressional Medal of Honor Society
The Congressional Medal of Honor Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Medal of Honor, inspiring America to live the values the Medal represents, and supporting Recipients of the Medal as they connect with communities across America.
Chartered by Congress in 1958, its membership consists exclusively of those individuals who have received the Medal of Honor. There are fewer than 70 living Recipients.
The Society carries out its mission through outreach, education and preservation programs, including theMedal of Honor Museum,Medal of Honor Outreach Programs, theMedal of Honor Character Development Program, and theMedal of Honor Citizen Honors Awards for Valor and Service. The Society’s programs and operations are funded by donations.
As part of Public Law 106-83, the Medal of the Honor Memorial Act, the Medal of Honor Museum, which is co-located with the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s headquarters on board the U.S.S. Yorktown at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, was designated as one of three national Medal of Honor sites.
Learn more about the Medal of Honor and the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s initiatives atcmohs.org
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