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William Lafayette Duckworth (June 29, 1834 - February 2, 1915) was a colonel in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He was under the command of Nathan Bedford Forrest. In March 1864, Duckworth was able to bluff Union Colonel Isaac Hawkins into surrendering his far superior forces at Union City, Tennessee.
Forrest remembered this success at the Battle of Fort Pillow, and decided to issue a surrender ultimatum before the final siege took place. Forrest and his aide-de-camp, Charles W. Anderson, fondly discussed Duckworth's success as they prepared the ultimatum.
The Union garrison remembered this trick as well. When Forrest refused their request for an hour to consider his demands, he only allowed 20 minutes. The garrison in turn demanded proof that Forrest was there, and that the C.S. troops were not simply engaging in the same sort of deception Duckworth had.
The day after Fort Pillow fell, men under Duckworth's command captured Major William Bradford, the Union commander of the Fort. Duckworth took a moment to recognize Bradford. When one of his soldiers offered to kill Bradford, Duckworth refused, knowing the hassle it would cause. Bradford was instead locked away.
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