Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain

From college professor to the defender of Little Round Top, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain became one of the most celebrated Union officers of the American Civil War. He entered the conflict without a professional military education, survived wounds that nearly killed him, rose to brevet major general, received the Medal of Honor, and stood at Appomattox as the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia surrendered its arms. [1, 2, 3]

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was born in Brewer, Maine, on 8 September 1828. He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1852, continued his education at Bangor Theological Seminary, and returned to Bowdoin as a professor of languages and rhetoric. His path appeared firmly academic until the Civil War transformed it. Determined to serve the Union, Chamberlain entered the Army in 1862 as lieutenant colonel of the newly organized 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry. With no previous professional military career, he studied military works and learned the profession of arms while serving in the field. [1, 2]

The 20th Maine joined the Army of the Potomac. Chamberlain was present during the Maryland Campaign and at Antietam, and the regiment later fought at Fredericksburg. By May 1863 he had been promoted to colonel and placed in command of the regiment. Only weeks later, at the Battle of Gettysburg, Chamberlain and the 20th Maine were assigned one of the most critical positions on the Union battlefield. On 2 July 1863 they defended the extreme left of the Union line on Little Round Top against repeated Confederate assaults. With ammunition running dangerously low, Chamberlain ordered his men forward with the bayonet. The counterattack helped drive the attackers from the position and secured the Union flank. [1, 2]

Gettysburg made Chamberlain famous, but it did not end his combat service. He continued through some of the hardest campaigns of the war and suffered multiple battle wounds. During the Petersburg Campaign in June 1864, he was gravely wounded through the hip and groin while leading his brigade. His injury was considered so serious that reports of his death circulated, but Chamberlain survived. He returned to active command as a brigadier general and fought again during the final campaigns against Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. [1, 2]

Chamberlain's military career reached another historic moment at Appomattox. After Lee's surrender, Chamberlain was selected to command the Union troops receiving the formal surrender of Confederate arms and colors on 12 April 1865. As the Confederate troops passed, Chamberlain ordered his men to attention in recognition of their defeated opponents. He remained in military service until 1866 and ultimately held the highest rank of brevet major general. [1, 2, 3]

Three decades after Gettysburg, Chamberlain received the Medal of Honor for his actions at Little Round Top. The award was presented on 11 August 1893 for his conduct on 2 July 1863 while serving as colonel of the 20th Maine Infantry. His official Medal of Honor citation reads: “Daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top.” [3]

Chamberlain's Civil War service also placed him within the qualifying period for the U.S. Army Civil War Campaign Medal , established by War Department General Orders No. 12 in 1907. The medal recognized qualifying service in the U.S. Army and Volunteer forces during the Civil War. Chamberlain had served continuously through the qualifying wartime period and was still living when the medal was established. His entitlement is therefore represented alongside his Medal of Honor in his reconstructed ribbon rack. No personal gallantry citation accompanied the Civil War Campaign Medal because it recognized qualifying campaign service rather than an individual act of valor. [4]

After leaving the Army, Chamberlain returned to Maine and began another distinguished chapter of public service. He served four terms as governor of Maine and later became president of Bowdoin College, holding that position from 1871 to 1883. He remained a prominent speaker and writer on the Civil War and preserved his memories of the final campaigns in *The Passing of the Armies*, published shortly after his death. [1, 2]

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain died in Portland, Maine, on 24 February 1914 at the age of 85. The effects of the severe wound he had received at Petersburg followed him for the rest of his life and contributed to his death nearly half a century after the war. His legacy reaches far beyond a single moment at Gettysburg. Chamberlain's story is that of a scholar who became a soldier, a volunteer who learned command under fire, and a Medal of Honor recipient whose name became inseparable from the defense of Little Round Top and the final days of the American Civil War. [1, 2]

Sources

[1] National Museum of the United States Army, “Joshua L. Chamberlain.”

[2] U.S. National Park Service, “Joshua Chamberlain.”

[3] Congressional Medal of Honor Society, “Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.” The Society records his rank as colonel, highest rank as brevet major general, Medal of Honor action at Gettysburg on 2 July 1863, and presentation on 11 August 1893.

[4] National Archives and War Department regulations concerning the Civil War Campaign Medal , established in 1907 for qualifying Civil War Army and Volunteer service.