Robert Franklin Beckham (May 6, 1837 – December 5, 1864) was a

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

military officer who commanded a

horse artillery Horse artillery was a type of light, fast-moving, and fast-firing field artillery that consisted of light cannons or howitzers attached to light but sturdy two-wheeled carriages called caissons or limbers, with the individual crewmen riding on h ...

battalion under John B. Hood and in the

Army of Tennessee The Army of Tennessee was a Field army, field army of the Confederate States Army in the Western theater of the American Civil War, Western Theater of the American Civil War. Named for the Confederate States of America, Confederate state of Tenn ...

. He was mortally wounded at Columbia, before the

Battle of Franklin The Battle of Franklin was fought on November 30, 1864, in Franklin, Tennessee, as part of the Franklin–Nashville Campaign of the American Civil War. It was one of the worst disasters of the war for the Confederate States Army. Confederate L ...

on November 29, 1864.

Early life

Beckham was born in

Culpeper, Virginia Culpeper (formerly Culpeper Courthouse, earlier Fairfax) is an incorporated town in Culpeper County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat and part of the Washington–Baltimore–Arlington, DC–MD–VA–WV–PA Combined Statistical ...

. He graduated from the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

at West Point as a member of the class of 1859. Beckham ranked 6th in his class of 22. He then served as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the United States Engineers until 1861 and the outbreak of the Civil War.

Civil War

When the Civil War began, Beckham commanded an artillery battery which he led at the

First Battle of Bull Run The First Battle of Bull Run, called the Battle of First Manassas
. by Confederate States ...

. He then joined the staff of General

Gustavus W. Smith Gustavus Woodson Smith (November 30, 1821 – June 24, 1896), more commonly known as G.W. Smith, was a career United States Army officer who fought in the Mexican–American War, a civil engineer, and a Major General (CSA), major general in ...

in January 1862, playing a key role at the

Battle of Seven Pines The Battle of Seven Pines, also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks or Fair Oaks Station, took place on May 31 and June 1, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. The Union's Army of the Po ...

. Beckham was subsequently elected captain of the Jeff Davis Artillery on March 31, 1862 but did not accept, continuing to serve as an ordnance office at the rank of major. Upon Stuart's request, Beckham was assigned to command the Stuart Horse Artillery on April 8, 1863, after the death of Major John Pelham. Beckham was a personally brave officer who earned the approval of

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern the ...

at the

Battle of Chancellorsville The Battle of Chancellorsville, April 30 – May 6, 1863, was a major battle of the American Civil War (1861–1865), and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville campaign. Confederate General Robert E. Lee's risky decision to divide h ...

and a commendation for gallantry from Stuart at the

Battle of Brandy Station The Battle of Brandy Station, also called the Battle of Fleetwood Hill, was the largest predominantly cavalry engagement of the American Civil War, as well as the largest ever to take place on American soil. It was fought on June 9, 1863, around ...

. He was also a capable administrator, earning the praise of Stuart in administering his batteries and refitting them. In February 1864, Beckham was transferred west to command the artillery of the

II Corps 2nd Corps, Second Corps, or II Corps may refer to: France * 2nd Army Corps (France) * II Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * II Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French ...

of the

. He was promoted to colonel. While in command of the artillery, he was mortally wounded while commanding his guns at Columbia, the day before the Battle of Franklin, on November 29, 1864, dying several days later on December 5. He was buried in St. John's Churchyard in

Ashwood, Tennessee Ashwood is an unincorporated community in Maury County, Tennessee, in the United States. Most of the community has been annexed by the city of Mount Pleasant. Location It is located six miles southwest of Columbia, Tennessee. History Ashwoo ...

References

* Krick, Robert K. ''Lee's Colonels: A Biographical Register of the Field Officers of the Army of Northern Virginia'', Morningside Bookshop, Dayton, Ohio (1979). * Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War'', Facts on File, New York (1988). * Wise, Jennings Croppe. ''The Long Arm of Lee: The History of the Artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia''.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beckham, Robert Franklin 1837 births 1864 deaths Confederate States Army officers United States Military Academy alumni