John Bell Hood Facts
John Bell Hood Facts
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Interesting John Bell Hood Facts: |
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Although he didn't fight in the Mexican-American War like many of the other officers on both sides of the Civil War, he served in Texas as a lieutenant during the 1850s against the Comanches, which is where he suffered his first battlefield wound - an arrow wound to his hand. |
Because Kentucky stayed in the Union, Hood entered the Confederate Army as a cavalry captain with the state of Texas. |
In March 1862, Hood was promoted to brigadier general of the Texas Brigade, leading the unit in the Peninsula Campaign from March to July 1862. |
Although known for his bravery, he was also reckless, which Union general William T. Sherman used against him in the later stages of the Civil War. |
On July 2, 1863, Hood was wounded by an artillery shell at the Battle of Gettysburg, which left his left arm severely damaged. |
Hood led a brave charge that helped carry the day for the Confederates at the Battle of Chickamauga, but was wounded and nearly killed on September 20, 1863: he had to have his right leg amputated as a result. |
After distinguishing himself at Gettysburg, Chickamauga, and in other battles, Hood was promoted to the rank of full general and commander of the Army of Tennessee on July 18, 1864. |
When he became commander of the Army of Tennessee, Hood was only thirty-three-years-old, which made him the youngest commander on either side of the Civil War. |
After losing Atlanta to the Union forces on July 22, 1864, Hood retreated to Tennessee where he attacked Nashville in a frontal assault on December 15-16, 1864, which ultimately destroyed the Army of Tennessee |
Hood was relieved of his command on January 23, 1865. |
After the war, Hood worked as a cotton broker in New Orleans, which is where he met his wife |
Hood died of yellow fever on August 30, 1879 at the age of forty-eight in New Orleans, Louisiana: his wife also died, leaving their children orphaned. |
The United States Army base, Fort Hood, in Killeen, Texas, is named for John Hood. |
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