Maj Gen George B McClellan - Washington DC
Posted by: sagefemme
N 38° 54.999 W 077° 02.791
18S E 322572 N 4309518
This bronze equestrian statue of Major General George Brinton McClellan is located in a triangular traffic island at the intersection of Connecticut Avenue NW, Columbia Road NW and California Street NW in Washington, DC.
Waymark Code: WMFVWX
Location: District of Columbia, United States
Date Posted: 12/05/2012
Views: 12
McClellan and his horse appear to be slightly larger than life-sized. He is depicted sitting calmly on his horse, holding the reins in his left hand while his right hand is formed into a fist and rests on his right hip. He faces south along Connecticut Avenue towards the Washington Monument. The bronze figures are mounted atop a 12-foot tall limestone pedestal which rests, in turn, on a six-stepped granite base. The statue was created by Frederick MacMonnies in 1907.
George B. McClellan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1826. He was graduated from the US Military Academy at West Point in 1885. During his military career, he was regarded as a brilliant engineer and organizer, and he is credited with creating the Army of the Potomac (the largest Union army during the Civil War). Unfortunately, he was (and still is) regarded as poor field commander. Historians usually cite his excessive caution due to the fact that he consistently over-estimated the strength of his opponents. He fought General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia to a standstill at Antietam (Sharpsburg, Maryland), but was relieved of his command in March 1862 for failing to press his advantage and destroy Lee’s retreating army. He was the Democratic Party’s nominee for president in 1864, and lost badly to the incumbent, Abraham Lincoln. He served as Governor of New Jersey, 1878-1881. He died on October 29, 1885.
Union or Confederacy: Union - North
General's Name: George Brinton McClellan
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