Thomas Leonidas Crittenden (May 15, 1819 – October 23, 1893) was an American statesman, politician, soldier and lawyer from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He served as a general for the Union during the American Civil War. His family was fairly typical for Kentucky, in that he and his father supported the Union during the war, but his elder brother fought for the Confederacy.
Contents
Early life
Crittenden was born in Russellville, Kentucky, the son of U.S. Senator John J. Crittenden, who later became 17th governor of Kentucky. He was also brother of Confederate general George B. Crittenden, and author Ann Mary Butler Crittenden Coleman, as well as a cousin of Union general Thomas Turpin Crittenden. He married Catherine Todd, the daughter of his father's second wife. Their son, John Jordan Crittenden III, served in the United States Army and died with Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876.
Crittenden was admitted to the bar and served in the United States Army during Mexican–American War as a volunteer aide to General Zachary Taylor and as lieutenant colonel of the 3rd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry from 1847 to 1848. After the war's end, he served as U.S. consul in Liverpool.
Civil War
When the Civil War began in 1861, Kentucky was a state that declared its neutrality and was at risk of supporting the Confederacy. Crittenden and his father remained loyal to the Union, but his brother joined the Confederate Army, a common occurrence in the border states. Crittenden had been a major general in the Kentucky militia since 1860. He was appointed brigadier general of volunteers in September and placed in command of the 5th Division in the Army of the Ohio. He led the division at the Battle of Shiloh in 1862. After Shiloh, he was appointed major general of volunteers and commanded the II Corps in the Army of the Ohio during the Perryville Campaign although his corps was only lightly engaged in the fighting.