“Little Phil” Sheridan was one of the Union’s shortest soldiers but without a doubt one of its toughest. The 5’5 Sheridan served with distinction as a general of infantry and cavalry, making him one of Grant’s most trusted subordinates in the West and East. Sheridan was so critical that Grant brought him east in 1864 and gave him command of the Union cavalry to face off against the vaunted JEB Stuart.
Sheridan was also in tune with Grant and Sherman’s scorched earth policies, and he was actually the first to truly put it to use in his infamous 1864 campaign in the Shenandoah Valley, which had seen much fighting and Stonewall Jackson’s famous 1862 Valley Campaign. That year Sheridan systematically destroyed the “breadbasket” of Virginia, and the Valley’s people simply referred to the campaign as “The Burning.” Sheridan also played a critical role in the siege of Petersburg, including the crucial Battle of Five Forks that helped break the siege lines of the Army of Northern Virginia, and it was his cavalry that trapped Lee and forced his surrender at Appomattox.
The witty and acerbic Sheridan had cemented his Civil War legacy, but he was also one of the highest ranked officers who fought the Indian Wars in the decades after the Civil War. Enemies rarely got the best of Sheridan, but a life in the military took its toll, and Sheridan began suffering heartattacks in his 50s, finally killing him in 1888. This short essay by Charles H.L. Johnston covers the legendary Civil War general’s entire life.