John Bell Hood

John Bell Hood (June 29, 1831 – August 30, 1879) was a Confederate general in the American Civil War. Hood had a reputation for bravery and aggressiveness that sometimes bordered on recklessness. Arguably one of the best brigade and division commanders in the Confederate States Army, Hood gradually became increasingly effective as he was promoted to lead larger, independent commands late in the war, but his career and reputation were marred by his decisive defeats.

Hood's education at West Point led to a career as a junior officer in both the infantry and cavalry of the antebellum U.S. Army in California and Texas. At the start of the Civil War, he offered his services to his adopted state of Texas. He achieved his reputation for aggressive leadership as a brigade commander in the army of Robert E. Lee during the Seven Days Battles in 1862, after which he was promoted to division command. He led a division under James Longstreet in the campaigns of 1862–63. At the Battle of Gettysburg, he was severely wounded, rendering his left arm useless for the rest of his life. Transferred with many of Longstreet's troops to the Western Theater, Hood led a massive assault into a gap in the Union line at the Battle of Chickamauga, but was wounded again, requiring the amputation of his right leg.

Hood returned to field service during the Atlanta Campaign of 1864, and was promoted to command of the Army of Tennessee at the outskirts of Atlanta. There, he dissipated his army in a series of bold, calculated, but ultimately fruitless assaults, and was forced to evacuate the besieged city. Leading his men through Alabama and into Tennessee, his army was severely damaged in a massive frontal assault at the Battle of Franklin and he was decisively defeated at the Battle of Nashville by his former West Point instructor, Maj. Gen. George Thomas, after which he was relieved of command.

After the war, Hood moved to Louisiana and worked as a cotton broker and in the insurance business. His business was ruined by a yellow fever epidemic in New Orleans during the winter of 1878–79 and he succumbed to the disease himself, dying just days after his wife and oldest child, leaving 10 destitute orphans.

John Bell Hood in The Guns of the South
John Bell Hood was defined by the stamp of implacable purpose on his face and a boldness to match, and was unparalleled in his skill at leading a division. However, he was hopeless with any larger command, and would attack whether attack was called for or not. Robert E. Lee had always suspected this weakness in Hood, and received chilling confirmation in the account of the original timeline whence the Rivington Men had come.