James Ronald Chalmers (January 11, 1831April 9, 1898) was an American politician and senior

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

of the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

who commanded

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

and

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

in the Western Theater of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. After the war, Chalmers served as a state senator in Mississippi and

United States Congressman The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of the ...

for several terms from the state's 6th congressional district, beginning in 1876. He was re-elected in 1880 but the election was contested by his Republican African-American opponent,

John R. Lynch John Roy Lynch (September 10, 1847 – November 2, 1939) was an American writer, attorney, military officer, author, and Republican Party (United States), Republican politician who served as Speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives ...

. Congress awarded the seat to Lynch because of marked election fraud by the Democrats. In 1882 Chalmers ran as an Independent Democrat on a fusionist ticket, with support by Republicans and Greenbackers. He contested the victory of the regular Democrat, and Congress finally awarded the seat to Chalmers, seating him in 1884. He left politics after losing election in the fall of 1884.

Early life, education and career

James Ronald Chalmers was born in

Halifax County, Virginia Halifax County is a county (United States), county located in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 34,022. Its county seat is Halifax, Virginia, Halifax. ...

, January 11, 1831. His father was Joseph Chalmers, who, having moved to

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

with his family when James was a boy, settled in Holly Springs in 1839. He was first appointed by the governor to fill a term, then elected by the state legislature as U. S. Senator. He was prepared for South Carolina College at Columbia, where he was graduated in 1851. Chalmers returned to Holly Springs to read law with an established firm, and was admitted to the bar in 1853. After a few years of practice, Chalmers was elected as

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

in 1858. In 1861 he was elected as a delegate to the convention which passed the

ordinance of secession An Ordinance of Secession was the name given to multiple resolutions drafted and ratified in 1860 and 1861, at or near the beginning of the American Civil War, by which each seceding slave-holding Southern state or territory formally Secession in ...

. Like his father an ardent

States' rights In United States, American politics of the United States, political discourse, states' rights are political powers held for the state governments of the United States, state governments rather than the federal government of the United States, ...

Democrat, he voted in favor of

secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...

American Civil War

Chalmers entered the Confederate States Army as a captain and was soon promoted to Colonel of the 9th Mississippi Infantry in 1861. For a while he commanded at

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only incorporated city, city in Escambia County, Florida, Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...

. On February 13, 1862, he was promoted to brigadier-general, and on April 6 was assigned to the command of Second Brigade, Withers' Division, Army of the Mississippi. He and his command did splendid fighting in the

Battle of Shiloh The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the American Civil War fought on April 6–7, 1862. The fighting took place in southwestern Tennessee, which was part of the war's Western Theater of the ...

. When Bragg was conducting operations in north Mississippi he sent Chalmers with a force of

to make a

feint Feint, a French term that entered English via the discipline of swordsmanship and fencing, is a maneuver designed to distract or mislead. A feint is achieved by giving the impression that a certain maneuver will take place, while in fact another, ...

upon

Rienzi, Mississippi Rienzi is a town in Alcorn County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 317 at the 2010 census. History Rienzi was named for Cola di Rienzo, a medieval Italian politician. The original town was settled in 1830 and was located one mile ...

in order to cover the movement of a body of

Ripley, Mississippi Ripley is a city in Tippah County, Mississippi, Tippah County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 5,395 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Tippah County, Mississippi, Tippah County. Colonel William Clark Falkner, great-grand ...

. In executing this order he encountered Sheridan, July 1, and a stubborn engagement took place. It lasted from about half-past eight in the morning till late in the afternoon. Chalmers, ascertaining that Sheridan had been reinforced by infantry and

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

, retired.Hooker, 1899, pp. 244–45. When Bragg advanced into

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

in the summer of 1862 Chalmers' command was a part of his force, performing its duties with courage and zeal. In the Battle of Murfreesboro he and his men again rendered brilliant service. In April, 1863, at the request of John C. Pemberton, he was transferred to the Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana and placed in command of the Fifth Military District. The district consisted of the top two tiers of counties in Mississippi. In 1864 he was assigned to the command of cavalry brigades of Jeffrey Forrest and McCulloch, forming the first division of Forrest's Cavalry Corps. This cavalry division was subsequently enlarged by the addition of Rucker's Brigade. Chalmers bore a conspicuous part in the

Battle of Fort Pillow The Battle of Fort Pillow, also known as the Fort Pillow Massacre, was fought on April 12, 1864, at Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River in Henning, Tennessee, during the American Civil War. The battle ended with Confederate soldiers command ...

and in all the campaigns of

Forrest Forrest may refer to: Places Australia *Forrest, Australian Capital Territory *Forrest, Victoria, a small rural township *Division of Forrest, a federal division of the Australian House of Representatives, in Western Australia *Electoral distric ...

in north Mississippi, west Tennessee and Kentucky. He also led forces in Hood's Tennessee Campaign. On February 18, 1865, Chalmers was put in command of all the Mississippi cavalry in the Confederate service in Mississippi and west Tennessee.

Mississippi State Senate

In the waning days of the Reconstruction era, Chalmers was elected to the

State Senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

in 1875 and 1876. Democrats regained control of the House of Representatives in 1875 on the national level, for the first time since the Civil War. The campaign seasons in Mississippi were accompanied by increasing violence. Chapters of Red Shirts, a

paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...

group working for the Democratic Party that sought to disrupt and suppress Republican voting, helped Democrats win seats in Mississippi and the Carolinas.

U.S. House of Representatives

In 1876 Chalmers was elected as Representative from Mississippi's 6th congressional district to the

Congress of the United States The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

, serving in the Forty-fifth and Forty-sixth Congresses, from March 4, 1877 – March 3, 1881. His Republican opponent

contested the victory, as he was previously strongly elected from this black-majority district. With Congress dominated by Democrats, the Election Committee refused to hear the case. Chalmers won re-election and received the certificate of election to the Forty-seventh Congress in 1880, serving from March 4, 1881 – April 29, 1882. That time his seat was successfully contested by Republican candidate Lynch. Lynch served the remainder of the term. In the fall of 1882, Chalmers ran as an Independent Democrat as part of a fusion ticket supported by Republicans and the

Greenback Party The Greenback Party (known successively as the Independent Party, the National Independent Party and the Greenback Labor Party) was an Political parties in the United States, American political party with an Competition law, anti-monopoly ideolog ...

, to the Forty-eighth Congress. Democrat Van H. Manning claimed victory, and Chalmers contested the legality of the election. Chalmers finally was verified by Congress as the winner and allowed to take his seat on June 25, 1884. He was unsuccessful in running for re-election in 1884. Chalmers wrote to Republican President

Chester A. Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was the 21st president of the United States, serving from 1881 to 1885. He was a Republican from New York who previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A. ...

in December 1882 about how to defeat the regular Democrats in Mississippi. Independents like him sometimes affiliated with Greenbackers, other men who had left the regular party, and even Republicans in a fusionist ticket. In this period, Senator

William Mahone William Mahone (December 1, 1826October 8, 1895) was a Confederate States Army general, civil engineer, railroad executive, prominent Virginia Readjuster Party, Readjuster and ardent supporter of former slaves. He later represented Virginia in th ...

of Virginia had gathered various factions into what was called the

Readjuster Party The Readjuster Party was a bi-racial state-level political party formed in Virginia across party lines in the late 1870s during the turbulent period following the Reconstruction era that sought to reduce outstanding debt owed by the state. Readj ...

, which was prominent in Virginia politics. Chalmers proposed the same for Mississippi. Neither he nor Mahone were successful in breaking up Mississippi Democrats or the Solid South.Halsell, Willie D. "James R. Chalmers and 'Mahoneism' in Mississippi"
''Journal of Southern History'' 10 (February 1944): 37–58, ; accessed 2 August 2016

Later life

After failing to win election in 1884, Chalmers left politics, returning to full-time

practice of law In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits, and is applied to the profes ...

. He moved his practice to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, where he died in April 1898.Hooker, 1899, pp. 245–46.

References

Citations

Sources

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External links

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James Ronald Chalmers
at

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chalmers, James Ronald 1831 births 19th-century American lawyers 1898 deaths Cavalry commanders Confederate States Army brigadier generals Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi Independent members of the United States House of Representatives Mississippi Greenbacks Mississippi independents Mississippi lawyers People from Halifax County, Virginia People of Mississippi in the American Civil War Tennessee lawyers University of South Carolina alumni 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives