| Birth: | Oct. 31, 1825 | | Death: | Jul. 29, 1896 | 
Professor French & Military Science Virginia Military Institute, Brigadier General Confederate States Army, Colonel Egyptian Army. He was born in Paris, France, coming to the United States in 1842. The adopted son of a Virginia physician, he entered the Virginia Military Institute, graduating 4 years later. He then joined the faculty of his alma mater as a professor of French and Military Science, remaining there until 1861. When the war began, he was appointed Colonel of the 16th Virginia. On December 24, 1861, he received promotion to Brigadier General and command of a brigade of 3 regiments. During the Peninsula Campaign he served in Major General James Longstreet's command. For his service at Williamsburg, he received a mild commendation in the reports, but for his disputed role at Seven Pines, he was mildly rebuked. After Seven Pines he was stricken with a long and obscure illness, leaving the army until December. In Spring 1863 Major General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson chose his old VMI colleague to command Brigadier General William B. Taliaferro's brigade. He was the senior Brigadier of the Stonewall Division and, when its commander, Major General Isaac Trimble, could not return to command because of a crippling wound, he assumed command divisional leadership. With limited combat experience, and having been with the division less than a month, he led it at Chancellorsville. Because of his performance there, he was relieved of his command on May 20, 1863. Assigned to General P.G.T. Beauregard at Petersburg, Virginia, he served under him during the operations there in 1864. At the end of the war, he was commanding Confederate forces at Lynchburg. After the war, he joined the Egyptian army as a Colonel. Badly crippled in a fall from a camel, he returned to the United States in 1879. He died impoverished in the Confederate Soldiers' Home in Richmond, Virginia. (bio by: Ugaalltheway)
Search Amazon for Raleigh Colston | | | Burial:
Hollywood Cemetery
Richmond
Richmond City
Virginia, USA
GPS (lat/lon): 37.5416, -77.45524 |
Maintained by: Find A Grave
Record added: Jun 04, 2000
Find A Grave Memorial# 9860 |
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