Betrayed

Betrayed on Kindle

       My book is finally released. To buy the kindle edition follow the link below.

http://www.amazon.com/Betrayed-Tim-Kent-ebook/dp/B00FUS08J0

       The actual book itself is set to release on Friday.

The Mystery General: Brigadier General Robert Charles Tyler

Robert C. Tyler the mystery man of the CSA

       Very little is known of the life of Confederate Brigadier General Robert Charles Tyler. He was born around 1833, but that is also disputed among historians today. Most believe Robert Tyler was born in Baltimore, Maryland, but some claim his birthplace was Jonesborough, Tennessee. 

       Little is known about his early life. No one is sure where he went to school or if he attended college at all. What is known about his life prior to the Civil War is that he went with William Walker in his attempt to overthrow the government of Nicaragua. The attempt was initially a success but was eventually defeated due to the lack of support from the U.S. government. 

       He had gained valuable experience commanding troops in Nicaragua and this would help him during the Civil War. Another Confederate officer that served in the filibustering attempt was Louisiana's Roberdeau Wheat. Tyler would leave Nicaragua and return to Baltimore before settling in Memphis, Tennessee. The only other information we have pertaining to Tyler's life is the fact that he helped form the Knights of the Golden Circle.

       When the war began, Tyler raised a company and became a major in the 15th Tennessee Infantry. Other historians believe he was a major on the staff of General Frank Cheatham. Regardless, he would see action at Shiloh where he would be wounded. He recovered in time to be promoted to colonel of the 15th Tennessee. Confederate General Braxton Bragg liked something about General Tyler because he would make him the provost of the army. 

       

Robert Charles Tyler

       Nothing else is known about Tyler until the Battle of Chickamauga. If he fought at Perryville or Murfreesboro the records have been lost. From his promotion to colonel in June, 1862 until September, 1863, nothing is known of his life or whereabouts. In November, 1863, Colonel Tyler would be shot in the leg during the Battle of Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga. The wound was bad enough to cause the leg to be amputated. 

       Robert Tyler would be out of action for the winter. He would receive a promotion to brigadier general in the Confederate army in March, 1864. Many historians believe that General Bragg secured this promotion for Tyler. He was given William Bate's brigade of Tennessee troops when Bate was promoted to major general. The brigade would be called 'Tyler's Brigade' for the remainder of the war, but Robert Tyler would never recover from his wound enough to take command. 

       He was sent to a military hospital in West Point, Georgia. The area there was guarded by a small redoubt which was named Fort Tyler in his honor. President Jefferson Davis ordered Tyler to take command of this redoubt until he recovered enough to take command of his brigade. He was still in this assignment when Federal cavalry approached on April 16, 1865. It was one week after Robert E. Lee had surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia.

       

Fort Tyler

       The Battle of West Point, Georgia would be the only action where Robert Charles Tyler would command troops as a general officer. The units he commanded there were a few convalescents from the hospital and some Georgia militia. The total number he had to man the redoubt was about 120 men. The fort which was on top of a hill was only thirty-five square yards in size and had just three cannons. 

       One of Tyler's subordinates there looked over the incomplete redoubt and said, "Why, General, this is a slaughter pen!"

       "I know it," Tyler replied, "but we must man and try to hold it."

Artillery piece at Fort Tyler

       An entire brigade of Federal cavalry was on the scene by 10 a.m. and began to shell the redoubt. After two hours the bombardment stopped and the cavalry prepared to charge the fort. There were several houses near the redoubt and Federal sharpshooters took position in those homes. Ironically, Tyler had refused to allow his men to burn the houses because it would cause too much hardship on the family's that lived there. It would prove to be his undoing. 

Bombproof in the center of Fort Tyler

       When the bombardment stopped, General Tyler limped from the bombproof in the center of the fort to see what was occurring. A Federal sharpshooter from one of the houses shot him immediately. A second shot was fired at almost the same incident which clipped his crutch in two. Tyler collapsed on the ground. His men carried him to the flagpole and laid him beneath the Confederate flag. He would be dead within an hour. The flag had been presented to General Tyler by the ladies of West Point, Georgia and he had vowed to defend that flag to the end. 

       

Grave of Robert Charles Tyler

       General Tyler and his second-in-command Captain Gonzales would both be buried near the fort where they both rest today. Robert Charles Tyler would be the last Confederate general killed in action and the most mysterious of all. 

Who is Richard Brooke Garnett

Long believed to be a photo of Richard Brooke Garnett

       Richard Brooke Garnett came from a famous Virginia family. His cousin Robert Selden Garnett was the first Confederate general to die in the Civil War. Like his cousin Robert, Richard attended West Point and was serving in the United States Army when the war began. When Virginia seceded from the Union, he immediately resigned his commission and entered Confederate service.

       He is now known as a hero because of his bravery at Gettysburg, but that wasn’t always the case. Being a Virginian, he rose to take command of the famed “Stonewall Brigade” and his career took a turn for the worse after the Battle of Kernstown. Jackson had received bad intelligence and attacked a Federal force twice the size of his own. Garnett’s brigade found itself being overwhelmed and running low on ammunition. In order to save his men, he ordered a retreat. 

       General Jackson was so infuriated by the action that he had Garnett arrested, accusing him of cowardice in the face of the enemy and neglect of duty. The entire episode is a black mark on the career of Stonewall Jackson. Garnett had undoubtedly done the right thing, but Jackson had accomplished his goal. None of his subordinates would ever retreat again without orders. (Ironically, Garnett didn’t hold a grudge against Jackson. He believed the entire incident was a huge misunderstanding and after Jackson was killed at Chancellorsville he served as a pallbearer in his funeral.)

       General Robert E. Lee released Garnett from arrest and placed him in command of George Pickett’s brigade of Virginians. All  General Garnett wanted was a chance to redeem his honor. In command of his new brigade, he saw minor action at Antietam, was held in reserve at Fredericksburg and missed Chancellorsville entirely. 

       Needless to say, Richard Garnett wasn’t a happy man when he arrived at Gettysburg. He had been kicked by a horse a few days earlier and was unable to walk. He was running a high fever, wearing a coat in the hot July sun because of chills. Lee ordered all officers to walk during “Pickett’s Charge” because of the target a man on horseback would make. Garnett couldn’t walk and refused to miss the battle for fear he would be called a coward again. 

       Richard Garnett would ride his large black horse “Red Eye” to just in front of the clump of trees. Garnett never pulled his sword, but cheered his men forward with the black felt hat he wore. At some point    he was hit by canister fire, some say in the waist. His blood covered horse was seen galloping toward the rear. 

Death site of Richard Garnett

       Richard Brooke Garnett was never seen again. Years later, his sword was found in a Baltimore pawn shop by Confederate General George Hume Steuart.

Garnett's sword

       The mystery of General Garnett only began with the finding of his sword. There is a picture long thought to be that of Richard Brooke Garnett, but many believe that picture is of his cousin Robert Selden Garnett who was killed at Corrick’s Ford. According to a family member Garnett was the opposite of his cousin, having blonde hair, blue eyes and no beard. This family member wrote this description in 1908 and many historians believe he never met Richard Garnett. Interestingly, the family of Richard Garnett identified the original photograph as that of the general at the time of the war. Why would they identify the original photograph as Richard if the photograph is indeed Robert. 

Robert Selden Garnett

       To further complicate the matter, many believe that a photograph labeled as Confederate Major General Franklin Gardner is actually a picture of Richard Garnett. The matter became even more complicated a couple of years ago when a photograph surfaced with Richard Garnett’s name on the back. It shows a blonde haired gentleman that looks nothing like Robert Selden Garnett. Another historian believes this photograph is actually Confederate congressman Muscoe Russell Hunter Garnett of Virginia. 

Confederate General Franklin Gardner

Photograph labeled Franklin Gardner that many believe is that of Richard Garnett

Mystery Photograph with Richard Garnett's name on the back

       Prior to the Civil War, Garnett had a son by an Oglala Souix woman. They named the boy William “Billy” Garnett and there are several photographs of him in existence. Many historians try to take this photograph and compare them to the three photographs claimed by many to be Richard in order to figure out which is the famed general. 

Billy Garnett

       Garnett’s body was never found following the grand charge and many believe he was probably reinterred with the Confederate dead of Gettysburg in Hollywood Cemetery. The question still remains, which of these three are Richard Brooke Garnett or is it possible he never had a photograph taken that survived. We may never know. 

Monument in Hollywood Cemetery for Richard Brooke Garnett