William Tecumseh Sherman's Nervous Breakdown
The Anxiety and Depression of Cump in Kentucky and Missouri
Aug 21, 2009
The disastrous defeat of union forces at the First Battle of Bull Run revealed to Sherman glaring problems. The undisciplined volunteer soldiers he commanded degenerated into a mob after the battle. Many decided to go home even if their 90 day enlistments were not up. Some went on strike. Sherman saw nothing but anarchy and was fearful of the future. When George McClellan took command of these forces in late July, he noticed Sherman was anxious and depressed.
Department of the Cumberland
Sherman was promoted to brigadier general and transferred to the Department of the Cumberland, which included Kentucky, in August. By October he would command it. Kentucky had both northern and southern ties. However, in recent elections, pro-unionists won comfortably. U.S. Grant took Paducah in retaliation of confederate general Gideon Pillow taking Columbus. With George Thomas and William Nelson also establishing union camps, the union presence in Kentucky was strong.
But Sherman saw confederates everywhere. He believed Simon Buckner's rebel force of 15,000 was about to pounce on Louisville. Buckner had no such plans and had only 6,000. Sherman claimed he needed at least 60,000 men to defend Kentucky and 200,000 to go on the offensive. Secretary of War Simon Cameron was incredulous. Reporters also seemed to be everywhere and Sherman thought they were spies.
Having convinced himself that his inexperienced volunteers were well outnumbered, Sherman displayed erratic behavior. He commonly stayed up till 3 a.m. at the telegraph office and after it closed he would pace the halls of his hotel until dawn. He alienated people with frequent outbursts and threatened to hang a New York reporter. He even contemplated suicide. According to historian John Marszalek, Sherman's eccentric behavior became a major topic of conversation, and by November 13th, he was relieved of command.
Charges of Insanity
Transferred to Missouri, the strange behavior continued. Sent by Department of Missouri commander Henry Halleck to inspect three scattered divisions, Sherman already worried about Sterling Price's confederate army attacking these isolated divisions. Sherman wanted to consolidate the units to a protected area. Halleck doubted Sherman's judgment and sent the department's medical director to examine him. The physician determined he was too nervous for command.
Sherman agreed to a twenty day leave. The rest calmed him but the press went to work. An article in the December 11th Cincinnati Commercial, headlined "General William T. Sherman Insane", accused him in Kentucky of telegraphing the War Department three times in one day for permission to retreat to Indiana. Soon the nation was discussing Sherman's sanity. Even Sherman's son, Tommy, had to confront a schoolmate's charge that "papa was crazy."
Sherman denied the accusations. Stated in letters from Sherman and Thomas Ewing's family to Halleck, Sherman never telegraphed the War Department asking to retreat and never had his orders disobeyed by subordinates in Missouri. As the press continued its attacks, the Ewings wanted Sherman to pursue a slander lawsuit. Halleck and brother John Sherman advised him to ignore the press. Meanwhile, Sherman was ordered to quieter duty at Benton Barracks training soldiers.
Marszalek has concluded that Sherman wasn't crazy, but experienced a terrible bout of anxiety and depression. Halleck even later instituted Sherman's request of consolidation in Missouri. Fortunately for Sherman, he was later transferred to Grant's Department of West Tennessee and benefited under Grant's steady influence.
Source:
Marszalek, John F., Sherman: A Soldier's Passion For Order, Vintage: New York,1993.
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