Judson Kilpatrick

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BY EDWARD G. LONGACRE

Union General Judson Kilpatrick was flamboyant, reckless, tempestuous, and even licentious. In some respects he made other beaux sabreurs like fellow-cavalrymen George Custer and J. E. B. Stuart seem dull. Because he was a passionate man, Kilpatrick won many admirers and made many enemies during his Civil War career–and not all of his enemies wore gray. Those who knew him usually held one of two opinions. He was either a heroic and noble soldier, or (as one Federal officer wrote) “a frothy braggart without brains.”

Opinions varied because Kilpatrick was complex. He was a hell-for-leather warrior most of the time, but often stood quite as eager to withdraw from a fight as he had been to enter it. He loved to make speeches to his troopers and worked hard to get public notice, but drove his men and horses so roughly, seemingly without regard for their well-being, that he earned the nickname, “Kilcavalry.” And in an army rife with gamblers and drinkers, Kilpatrick touched neither playing cards nor bottle; but he lacked integrity and cherished certain other vices.

Physically, he looked anything but the romantic concept of the cavalryman. He was bantam-sized, with a lantern jaw, pale eyes, and frizzy red sidewhiskers. But being vain, he dressed with a certain flair. He wore carefully tailored uniforms, great boots, and a black felt hat tilted at a rakish angle. A staff officer once remarked that it was hard to look at him without laughing. But Kilpatrick impressed others with his restless energy, for he seemed always to be in a hurry to accomplish some great deed.

He was born Hugh Judson Kilpatrick near Deckertown, New Jersey, on January 14, 1836. His father was a farmer, but in his teens young Kilpatrick decided against agriculture as his own profession. Politics attracted him–an interest which remained with him through the years–and before he reached 20 he was stumping rural New Jersey on behalf of a local Congressman seeking renomination. The Congressman won and rewarded his young supporter by offering him an appointment to the United States Military Academy.

At West Point, Kilpatrick (Class of 1861) dropped his first name, won satisfactory grades, acted in Dialectic Society dramas, and developed his talent for public speaking. When the secession crisis swept the Academy he harangued cadets from the South with his Union sentiments. As a consequence he found himself involved in several fist fights, but despite his size he thrashed his way to victory more than once.

He was so caught up in the clamor to defend the Union that he got up a petition with classmates’ signatures and sent it to the War Department. The petition asked special permission for the Class of ‘61 to graduate some months earlier than usual, so that its members could serve the nation as quickly as possible in this time of crisis. The request was granted.

On the April day on which he graduated (he was the class valedictorian), Kilpatrick married Alice Nailer, of New York, in the West Point chapel. He went to war carrying a silken banner which bore her name.

Although he became a lieutenant in the 1st U.S. Artillery upon graduation, Kilpatrick had no desire to fight the war either in the Regular Army or as an artilleryman. He turned to the volunteer service in a search for high rank and glory, and soon was commissioned captain in Duryée’s Zouaves (5th New York Infantry). At once he hurried south to join the regiment at Fort Monroe, Virginia, where he worked hard to mold his company into an effective fighting unit. But he was humane as well as stern, and able to win his soldiers’ confidence and affection.

His first assignments in the field–minor scouting and foraging expeditions– failed to satisfy his craving for battle. He had to wait until June 10 for his first touch of glory. On that day he became the first Regular Army officer to be wounded during the war, being struck in the thigh by a grapeshot while directing his men during the Battle of Big Bethel. Although this first large land fight of the war was a Confederate victory, Kilpatrick won high praise from the Northern press for his coolness and efficiency. As a result, while on leave to recuperate from his wound, he found himself a lieutenant colonelcy in the Harris Light Cavalry–subsequently designated the 2d New York. He accepted his commission on September 25, as did several other officers from Duryée’s Zouaves.

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