Ambrose Burnside Facts Learn About The Governor With Amazing Sideburns

Ambrose Burnside was a renowned United States Senator and the Governor of Rhode Island.He was not just that, however. Ambrose Everett Burnside was an American inventor, politician, military officer, railroad executive, and industrialist from Rhode Island.Ambrose Burnside was born into a Scottish descent family in Liberty, Indiana, and was the fourth child of Edghill and Pamela Brown Burnside out of nine children. Ambrose attended Liberty Seminary as a young child, but his education was cut short when his mother died in 1841. He apprenticed with a local tailor and eventually became a business partner.Ambrose Burnside was the Union General in the US Civil War and the originator of the mustache (later on famously known as sideburns) fashion in the United States.Burnside completed his graduation from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1847. In 1852, Ambrose Burnside was assigned to Fort Adams, Rhode Island.Ambrose Everett Burnside resigned in 1853 and manufactured firearms in Bristol, Rhode Island, for the next five years. Shortly after, he took command, and Burnside served as the governor of the Rhode Island Militia Regiment after the outbreak of the Civil War.If you are enjoying this article full of Ambrose Burnside facts, you could also read about Abraham Lincoln and Ambrose Bierce facts here on Kidadl.Fun Facts About Ambrose BurnsideIn 1887, a statue of a horse by American sculptor Launt Thompson was uncovered at Exchange Place, Providence, and was moved to City Hall Park in 1906. Later on, the park was renamed Burnside Park.Burnside Residence Hall opened in 1966 at Kingston University in Rhode Island.During his deployment to Fort Adams, Rhode Island, Burnside met Mary Richmond Bishop in 1852 and married her.In 1855 Burnside invented the Burnside carbine, one of the first innovative rifles used in the Civil War.Burnside was the United States Senator for Rhode Island from 1875 until he died in 1881.After having graduated from the prestigious United States Military Academy for the Mexican-American War, Burnside traveled to Veracruz but arrived after hostilities ceased and so served primarily in garrison duty in the army in the Mexico City area. He served with Captain Braxton Bragg on the western border, defending postal routes through Nevada and California.One amazing Ambrose Burnside fact is that Burnside, as a young soldier, was engaged to Charlotte ‘Lottie’ Moon, who with her sister Virginia, served as a Confederate spy during the Civil War. Moon was later arrested by Burnside and placed under house arrest.Historical Facts About Ambrose BurnsideIn 1861, Burnside returned to the regular army when long-standing tensions between the northern and southern states of America finally erupted into war.Burnside promoted the first Volunteer Infantry Regiment in Rhode Island and was made its colonel on 2 May 1861. Two companies in this regiment were later armed with Ambrose Everett Burnside carbines.On 6 August, Burnside was promoted to brigadier general in the Union Army and given the task of training a temporary brigade in the Potomac Army.Burnside volunteered to become major general on 18 March 1862, in recognition of his achievements in the Battle of Roanoke Island and then the Battle of New Bern, the Union’s first major victory at the Eastern Theatre. In July, his army was transported north to Newport News, Virginia, and transferred to IX Potomac Army Corps. Burnside led Union forces who were defeated by General Lee’s Confederate forces in December 1862 at the Battle of Fredericksburg, causing Hooker to lose command of the Potomac army.On 1 May 1863, Ohio congressman, Clement L. Vallandigham, a major opponent of the war, held a massive rally in Mount Vernon, Ohio, denouncing Lincoln as a ’tyrant.’ A military court tried and found him guilty of violating General Order 38, although he protested that he was only expressing his opinion in public.General Burnside accepted the Potomac Army’s offer after Major General George B. McClellan failed to campaign on the peninsula. In the Battle of Antietam, Burnside and his men fought valiantly but reacted too slowly. The fight ended in a tactical stalemate.Burnside met Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Fredericksburg and lost badly. President Abraham Lincoln replaced Burnside with General Joseph Hooker.Burnside offered to retire from the Union Army, but President Lincoln sent him to East Tennessee after rejecting his retirement proposal. Burnside did well in East Tennessee, fending off John Hunt Morgan’s attacks. Union Major General William C. Rosecrans was defeated at the Battle of Chickamauga, and Burnside was pursued by Lieutenant General James Longstreet, whose troops he fought at Maris Heights.Burnside defeated Longstreet in the Battle of Campbell Station skillfully and made it to the fort and its safety at Knoxville, where it was briefly besieged until the Confederacy was defeated in the Battle of Fort Sanders just outside the city. The army, under Major General William T. Sherman, came to the rescue of Burnside, but the siege had been lifted. Longstreet retreated and eventually returned to Virginia.Ambrose Everett Burnside fought in the Wilderness and Spotsylvania Court House battles of the Civil War but he didn’t fare well. Burnside was part of an accident in the Battle of Crater where his men ended up suffering heavy losses.After Burnside resigned, he served as several rail and industry directors, including president of the Cincinnati and Martinsville Railroad, Indianapolis and Vincennes Railroad, Cairo and Vincennes Railroad, and Rhode Island Locomotive Factory.Facts About Ambrose Burnside’s Political CareerIn Ambrose Burnside’s political career, he was elected governor of Rhode Island three times.In March 1866, Burnside was nominated governor by the Republican Party, and Burnside was elected as governor on 4 April 1866. This started a political career for Burnside as a Republican; he had been a Democrat before the war. From 1871 to 1872, he was commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) and also served as commander of GAR’s Rhode Island Department. When it was founded in 1871, the National Rifle Association elected him its first president.In 1876, Burnside was elected commander of the New England Battalion of the Centennial Legion, a gathering of 13 militia from 13 native states who took part in a parade in Philadelphia on 4 July 1876, to celebrate the Declaration of Independence.In 1874, Burnside was elected United States Senator from Rhode Island by the Rhode Island Senate and was re-elected in 1880. Burnside continued his ties to the Republican Party, played an important role in military affairs, and chaired the Committee on Foreign Affairs in 1881.Facts About Ambrose Burnside’s LegacyAmbrose Everett Burnside led campaigns successfully in North Carolina and East Tennessee and resisted attacks by Confederate General John Hunt Morgan.He also took significant damage in the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of Crater.He is known for his sideburns.Burnside was always very popular, both in the military and in politics. He was good at making friends and acquaintances, loved to smile, and had a sharp intellect and memory. In 1883, Governor August O. Bourne and President Chester A. Arthur dedicated the Rhode Island Memorial Hall to the legendary warrior Burnside.Ambrose Everett Burnside fought most of the major wars in American history: the American Civil War, First Bull Run, Battle of the Crater, Burnside’s North, Fredericksburg, South Mountain, Antietam, Carolina Expedition, Overland Campaign, and the Knoxville Campaign.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Ambrose Burnside facts: Learn about the governor with amazing sideburns, then why not take a look at Aaron Copland facts or Abraham Maslow facts.

Ambrose Burnside was a renowned United States Senator and the Governor of Rhode Island.