A critical biography of the best known and least accurately understood Civil War general, including the legends perpetrated by his widow, LaSalle Corbell Pickett.

The leader of the most famous charge in American history, George E. Pickett, was destined for immortality, but the man behind the famous name has remained a mystery. This, the first full-length scholarly biography of the general, reveals the complex personality and explores the contradictory behavior of one of Robert E. Lee's most enigmatic subordinates. What emerges is a portrait of a gallant leader who risked his life on many fields but refused to accompany his troops into the jaws of death at Gettysburg; an incisive, quick-witted tactician who graduated at the foot of his West Point Class; and a chivalrous Virginian who in 1865 barely escaped trial as a war criminal.

*Includes accounts of Pickett's Charge by some of the soldiers who made it. *Includes excerpts of letters Pickett wrote about Gettysburg to his wife Sallie. *Discusses controversies surrounding Pickett's Charge and his relationship with Robert E. Lee. *Includes pictures of important people, places, and events in Pickett's life. *Includes maps of important battles. *Includes a Bibliography for further reading. Before July 3, 1863, George Pickett was best known among his comrades for finishing last in his class at West Point, being a jocular but courageous soldier, and his carefully perfumed locks. As part of West Point's most famous Class of 1846, Pickett was classmates with men like Stonewall Jackson and George McClellan, and despite his poor class standing he distinguished himself fresh out of school during the Mexican-American War. Pickett's reputation for bravery extended into the early years of the Civil War, to the extent that former West Point classmate George McClellan wrote, "Perhaps there is no doubt that he was the best infantry soldier developed on either side during the Civil War." A native Virginian, the impeccably styled Pickett represented all of the antebellum South's most cherished traits, and as such he was a "beau-ideal" Confederate soldier. After proving himself a capable brigadier during the Peninsula Campaign, during which he was wounded and forced to recuperate, Pickett was given command of a division in Longstreet's corps of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, putting him in position for a rendez-vous with destiny. Today Pickett is best remembered for the charge that has taken his name and is now remembered as the most famous assault of the Civil War. Having failed to dislodge the Union Army of the Potomac on either flank during the first two days at Gettysburg, Lee ordered a charge of nearly 15,000 at the center of the lines. The attack is now considered the high water mark of the Confederacy, spelling the South's doom with the failed charge and the loss at Gettysburg. Pickett's division was so decimated by the charge that when Lee asked him to reform his division in case of a Union counterattack, Pickett is alleged to have responded, "I have no division!" Pickett would later become notorious for the loss at the Battle of Five Forks that helped the Union break the siege at Petersburg and force Lee's surrender a week later at Appomattox. Rumors that Pickett and Lee intensely disliked each other have persisted ever since, with Pickett reputed to have said after the war "that man destroyed my division." Ironically, Pickett's Charge was always a sore subject with the general even though it was intended to be a tribute to the soldiers of his division for advancing the furthest during the doomed assault, and Pickett offered one of the most candid quotes after the Civil War on the topic of who was to blame for the loss at Gettysburg: "I've always thought the Yankees had something to do with it." Charging Into Immortality chronicles the life and career of Pickett and examines the controversy and legacy surrounding his Civil War record and the charge named after him. Along with accounts of Pickett's Charge and pictures of important people, places, and events in his life, you will learn about General Pickett like you never have before.

*Includes accounts of Pickett's Charge by some of the soldiers who made it. *Includes excerpts of letters Pickett wrote about Gettysburg to his wife Sallie. *Discusses controversies surrounding Pickett's Charge and his relationship with Robert E. Lee. *Includes pictures of important people, places, and events in Pickett's life. *Includes maps of important battles. *Includes a Bibliography for further reading. Before July 3, 1863, George Pickett was best known among his comrades for finishing last in his class at West Point, being a jocular but courageous soldier, and his carefully perfumed locks. As part of West Point's most famous Class of 1846, Pickett was classmates with men like Stonewall Jackson and George McClellan, and despite his poor class standing he distinguished himself fresh out of school during the Mexican-American War. Pickett's reputation for bravery extended into the early years of the Civil War, to the extent that former West Point classmate George McClellan wrote, "Perhaps there is no doubt that he was the best infantry soldier developed on either side during the Civil War." A native Virginian, the impeccably styled Pickett represented all of the antebellum South's most cherished traits, and as such he was a "beau-ideal" Confederate soldier. After proving himself a capable brigadier during the Peninsula Campaign, during which he was wounded and forced to recuperate, Pickett was given command of a division in Longstreet's corps of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, putting him in position for a rendez-vous with destiny. Today Pickett is best remembered for the charge that has taken his name and is now remembered as the most famous assault of the Civil War. Having failed to dislodge the Union Army of the Potomac on either flank during the first two days at Gettysburg, Lee ordered a charge of nearly 15,000 at the center of the lines. The attack is now considered the high water mark of the Confederacy, spelling the South's doom with the failed charge and the loss at Gettysburg. Pickett's division was so decimated by the charge that when Lee asked him to reform his division in case of a Union counterattack, Pickett is alleged to have responded, "I have no division!" Pickett would later become notorious for the loss at the Battle of Five Forks that helped the Union break the siege at Petersburg and force Lee's surrender a week later at Appomattox. Rumors that Pickett and Lee intensely disliked each other have persisted ever since, with Pickett reputed to have said after the war "that man destroyed my division." Ironically, Pickett's Charge was always a sore subject with the general even though it was intended to be a tribute to the soldiers of his division for advancing the furthest during the doomed assault, and Pickett offered one of the most candid quotes after the Civil War on the topic of who was to blame for the loss at Gettysburg: "I've always thought the Yankees had something to do with it." Charging Into Immortality chronicles the life and career of Pickett and examines the controversy and legacy surrounding his Civil War record and the charge named after him. Along with accounts of Pickett's Charge and pictures of important people, places, and events in his life, you will learn about General Pickett like you never have before.

"The letters composing this book begin in 1861, when the then Captain George Pickett resigned his commission in the United States Army & threw in his lot with the Southern cause. They continue through the war & at the end a few undated ones give glimpses of events & vicissitudes through later years...General Pickett commanded a division of the Confederate Army & his name stands out in the history of the Civil War because of the brilliant charge he made during the Battle of Gettysburg, which failed after his division was almost wiped out. After the battle General Pickett wrote to his wife that if his expected support had come, the South would have won the battle & the Confederate Army would have been in Washington within a few days...The half dozen letters dealing with the Battle of Gettysburg are the most interesting & important section of the volume. General & Mrs. Pickett were married during the war & his letters both during their courtship & after their marriage showed him to have been an ardent & devoted lover & husband, for nothing seems to have been deleted from even their most intimate passages."--New York Times Book Review.