This page is dedicated to enlightening the public on the genius and compassion of Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest. Until recently, most commentary written on Gen. Forrest has been of a negative light, written by a northern press, for schools, libraries and general reading. It is time to turn the tide.
We wish to thank Robert Pittman of SCV Camp #443 of Jasper, Alabama for sending the following information to the SCV Dispatch.
Nathan Bedford Forrest
Gen. Forrest was one of the most incredible stories of the war. A
self-made millionaire planter and slave trader from Memphis, he entered the Confederate
Army a private and left a Lieutenant General of Cavalry. Semi-literate and never formally schooled in military strategy, he is considered by
many to be the greatest general of the War, on either side. His tactics are still
studied to this day.
And he struck fear into the hearts of his enemies. With good reason,
too; he was a powerful and - violent - man, and when he committed to battle, he
fought with a tenacity and ferocity that inspired his troops. Over the course of
the four-year conflict, he had 29 horses shot out from under him and personally killed 30 Yankee soldiers. After it was over, he claimed to have
finished the war "one horse ahead."
But one episode says it all. At a place called Fallen Timbers,
covering the Confederate retreat to Corinth after the battle of Shiloh, Forrest's
cavalry met up with an advance unit of Grant's army. Listen to Shelby Foote relate
the story in "The Civil War, volume 1:"
"Forrest saw his chance. 'Charge!' he shouted, and led his horsemen
pounding down the slope. Most of the skirmishers had begun to run before he struck
them, but those who stood were knocked sprawling by a blast from shotguns and revolvers. Beyond them, the Federal cavalry had panicked, firing
their carbines wildly in the air. When they broke too, Forrest kept on after them,
still brandishing his saber and crying 'Charge! Charge!' as he plowed into the solid ranks of the [infantry] brigade drawn up beyond.
The trouble was, he was charging by himself; the others, seeing the
steady brigade front, had turned back and were already busy gathering up their 43 prisoners. Forrest was one gray uniform, high above a sea of blue.
'Kill him! Kill the goddam rebel! Knock him of his horse!' It was no easy thing to
do; the horse was slashing and kicking and plunging and Forrest was hacking and
slashing; but one of the soldiers did his best. Reaching far out, he shoved the
muzzle of his rifle in to the colonel's side and pulled the trigger.
The force of the explosion lifted Forrest clear out of the saddle,
but he regained his seat and sawed the horse around. As he came out the mass of
dark blue uniforms and furious white faces, clearing a path with his saber, he reached down and grabbed one of the soldiers by the collar, swung him onto
the rear of the horse, and galloped back to safety, using the Federal as a shield against the bullets fired after him. Once he was out of range, he
flung the hapless fellow off and rode on up to the ridge where his men were waiting in open-mouthed amazement."
"Comrades, through the years of bloodshed and many marches you were tried and true soldiers. So through years of peace you have been good citizens, and now that we are again united under the old flag, I love it as I did in the days of my youth, and I feel sure that you love it also. Yes, I love and honor that old flag as much as do those who followed it on the other side; and I am sure that I but express your feelings when I say that should occasion offer and our country demand our services, you would as eagerly follow my lead to battle under that proud banner as ever you followed me in our late great war..."
Forrest stated in his speech to the soldiers of the Seventh Tennessee Cavalry reunion on September 21, 1876, quoted by John A. Wyeth in his biography "Life of General Nathan Bedford Forrest", page 620.
We wish to thank Nathan Knight, of the General William B. Bate SCV Camp # 34 in Gallatin, Tennessee for submitting the above information to the SCV Dispatch.
An Explanation of the Southern View on Reconstruction
From an interview by George H. Thomas, Major General U.S.A., Commanding,
of General Nathan B Forrest
"I have not now," he replied, "and never have had, any opinion on any public or political subject which I would object to having published. I mean what I say, honestly and earnestly and only object to being misrepresented ...."
General Nathan Bedford Forrest
Drawing on information gathered from three books and extensive genealogical work, Henry B. Brackin Jr. offers an intelligent, cogent and insightful explanation of the events surrounding one of the most misunderstood battles of the War of Northern Aggression: Fort Pillow.
"I have never, on the field of
battle, sent you where I was unwilling to go myself; nor would I advise to go a
course which I myself was unwilling to pursue. You have been good soldiers; you
can be good citizens. Obey the laws, preserve your honor, and the Government to
which you have surrendered can afford to be, and will be, magnanimous."
Lt. General Nathan Bedford Forrest,
farewell to Forrest's Cavalry Corps at Gainesville , Georgia , May 9, 1865
Quoted in "As they Saw
Forrest" , 1956
The above quote of the most revered General Nathan Bedford
Forrest was posted on the SCV dispatch by Joseph Alarid, a member of the
Deaderick -Doremus-Thurmond SCV Camp 1631 in Santa Barbara ,CA
The following information, taken from the book Nathan
Bedford Forrest: First With The Most, was furnished by Brian Curtis, a
member of the John C Pemberton SCV Camp 1354 in Vicksburg, Ms. This just gives
confirmation to the fact that Gen Forrest was revered and respected by both
everyone and everything. The setting is central Tennessee in the Fall of 1865
...
He said something about killing a Yankee for each of his horses that they shot. In the last days of the war, Forrest had killed 30 of the enemy and had 30 horses shot from under him. In a brief but savage conflict, a Yankee soldier "saw glory for himself" with an opportunity to kill the famous Confederate General... Forrest tried to dissuade him, but he was determined, and Forrest killed the fellow. Making 31 Yankees personally killed, and 30 horses lost...
He remarked, "I
ended the war a horse ahead."
The above information is courtesy of Robert W Watson, who shares this via the Southern Republic group
July 13, 2001
He may have hated him, but there is no doubt that Sherman respected General Forrest's leadership ability. The following, a brief snippet of history, shows how deep the respect went.
The following are several editorials written about General N B Forrest concerning various subjects. It is interesting to note that each letter addresses heretofore misunderstood aspects of the life and times of a very misunderstood and maligned gentleman.
The following is a thumbnail sketch of the life of
Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest as given by Mr. Lee Millar, President of the General Nathan Bedford Forrest Historical Society, International,
on Oct. 30, 2000 at The University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Mr. Millar graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in American History from Washington & Lee University, in Lexington, VA., and later earned a Masters Degree from the University of Arkansas. Mr. Millar served as a Captain in
the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, and is now Computer Systems manager for the Shelby County (Memphis) Sheriff's Office. He has been a guest lecturer in Civil War history
to several universities as well as the Memphis city &
county school system. Mr. Millar is also on the boards of several national and
regional historical associations, and frequently serves as a historical consultant for major film production companies, including Desert Rose Productions in Las Vegas.
"Nathan Bedford Forrest enlisted in the Confederate Army in 1861 as a private and by war's end had risen to the rank of Lieutenant General. He became a
hero to the South and known world-wide for his highly
successful military tactics, prompting a quote from U.S. General Grant saying that "Forrest did more with
less than any general in the Civil War". Getting there "First With the Most", Forrest was in 54
engagements; and, of those battles in which he was the overall Confederate commander, except the 1865
Battle of Selma at the close of the war, General Forrest won every battle. Forrest, whose command consisted
of both white and black Southerners, employed his cavalry and horse artillery as a highly mobile and deceptive strike force, which routinely achieved stunning victories over superior enemy forces. His tactics are still studied today
and were even employed by American Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf in the Desert Storm war
of just a few years ago. Forrest was involved in the still-controversial 1864 battle of Ft. Pillow in which over half of the Union black and white defenders became casualties, but he was exonerated by a military inquiry conducted by U.S. General William T. Sherman. Forrest was also reputed to be a later leader of the
Ku Klux Klan, which at the time (1868) was organized to combat the carpetbag occupation of the South. He ordered the disbanding of the Klan in 1869. After the war, Forrest worked fervently to help rebuild the South and campaigned for the equal employment of the South's whites and blacks.
Nathan Bedford Forrest, b. July 13, 1821, d. Oct. 29, 1877, is buried with
his wife Mary Ann in Memphis, TN."
Many have attempted to vilify the great Southern Hero, Lt. General Nathan Bedford Forrest as being a racist and hater of black people. The following speech portrays a different man than Forrest's detractors like to attack.
[Nathan Bedford Forrest]
Welcome to The Official Website of the Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest Monument located in Selma, Alabama.
Nathan Bedford Forrest
a North Georgia Notable
Uneducated but not illiterate, Nathan Bedford Forrest was a natural tactician who earned the praise of his enemies. Both Grant and Sherman feared this man who entered the Confederate forces a private and left a general. The stories of him are legend.
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