KEAKNY
KEARNY
Mo., on frontier duty, 1837-39 ; serving part of
the time on tiie stiitf of Gen. Henry Atkinson.
Under orders from Secretary Joel Roberts Poin-
sett, he was selected witii William Eustis and
Henry S. Tui-nej', both 1st lieutenants. U.S.A.,
to stud}' cavalry tactics at the Royal Cavalry
school, Saumur, France, and they sailed from
New York in August, 1839. Kearny was made an
honorary aide-de-camp on the staff of the Duke
of Orleans under Marshal Vallee in Algiers, and
was present in several notable exploits while
attached to the first Chasseurs d'Afrique in
the campaign agair-st Abd-el-Kader, the Arab
chief. On returning to the United States in the
fall of 1840 he was made aide-de-camp to Gen.
Alexander Macomb, commander-in-chief of the
U.S. army, and to his successor. Gen. Winfield
Scott, 1840-44. He was at Fort Leavenworth
and accompanied the expedition through South
Pass, 1844-46 ; and resigned his commission, April
2, 1846. On the outbreak of the war withJIexico,
he was reinstated, April 15, recruited his com-
panj- up to the war footing at Springfield, 111.,
where he was assisted by Abraliam Lincoln ; and
purchased iron-gray horses in Illinois which he
equipped at his own expense. He transported
his men and horses by waj^ of the Jlississippi
river to New Orleans, but he was not despatched
to Mexico until October, 1846. On reaching the
Rio Grande he joined General Taylor after the
capture of Monterey and was commissioned cap-
tain in December, 1846. When General Scott
landed at Vera Cruz, Captain Kearny's troop,
with a large part of Taylor's army, was ordered
by Scott to join the army of invasion, and on
arriving took up the march to tiie Mexican
capital, his company of cavalry serving as a body-
guard to the commanding general. He distin-
guished himself at Contreras and at Cliurubusco
and at the latter place received a wound that
cost him his left arm. After the charge of the
dragoons he dismounted and was the first Amer-
ican officer to reach the gate of San Antonio,
Aug. 20, 1847, but could not gain an entrance in
the city, and as he fell back his left arm was
shattered by a grape or canister shot. One of his
comrades. Major Mills, was killed, and Capt.
A. F. McReynolds and Lieut. John L. Graham
were wounded. He was brevetted major for his
gallantry in this charge, and on liis return from
Mexico, the Union club of New York citj' pre-
sented him with a splendid sword. On recovering
fi-om his injury he was stationed in New York
on recruiting .service, 1848-50 ; and in 1851 en-
gaged in the campaign against the Rogue River
Indians in California, commanding t»vo com-
panies of U.S. dragoons under Captains Stewart
and Walker, which resulteil in securing peace in
the territory of Oregon, He resigned from the
army in October, 1851, in order to carry out a
long-ciierished plan of making a tour of the world.
He sailed on the U.S.S. Vincenncs by way of tl.e
Sandwich Islands to China, and thence to the
East Indies, Egyjit and the Mediterranean. On
liis return to tiie United States he .settled on
and beautified his estate " Belle Grove," near
Newark. He attended the coronation of Em-
peror Alexander at Moscow in 1856 ; and re-
sided in France, 1859-60, where he greatly
aided the Federal government by ojiposing thfr
cause of secession. In 1859 he I'ejoined his com-
rades of the 1st Chasseurs d'Afiique at Alex-
andria, and was attached to the cavalry of the
guard, under Napoleon III. in the war in Italj',
being present on the field of Solferino where his
services were rewarded by the decoration of the
cross of the Legion of Honor for the .second time,
he being the first American thus honored for
military service. In 1861 he retired to the United
States and proceeded to Washington, whei-e he
offered his services to the government of the
United States and subsequentlj' to the govern-
ment of his native state, but no command was
conceded for liim. He then entered the volun-
teer service as commander of the 1st New Jer.sey
brigade, composed of the 1st, 2d and 3d regi-
ments, which brigade had reported to General
Scott, June 29, 1861, and was joined by the 4th
New Jersey regiment, August 21, just after
Kearny had assumed command. He was com-
missioned by President Lincoln, Aug. 7, 1861,
brigadier-general of volunteers, to date from May
17, 1861. He encamped his brigade around the
Episcopal seminary a few miles west from Alex-
andria, Va., and on the very outskirts of tiie Fed-
eral front, and there began a course of disci-
pline that resulted in the " best brigade in the
whole army," and the first to occup}' IManassas,
Va., on March 11, 1862, as a result of his brilliant
advance on Fairfax Court House, March 7, and
Burke's Station, March 9, which as a military
movement led to the hasty evacuation of ]\Ianas-
sas Junction and Centerville by General John-
ston. McClellau tendered him the command of
Sumner's division, but he declined the promotion
unless his own brigade should be made part of
liis command. This was not deemed expedient
by General Franklin and he remained with his
brigade, much to their joy. On May 2, 1862, he
accepted the command of the 3d division of the
3d corps. He took part in the battle of Williams-
burg, May 5, 1802, after 2.30 P.:\r., when he
reinforcH'd Hookers division, already exhausted
in a stubliorn fight all the morning, and he recov-
ered the ground lost, and made Williamsburg a
victor}' for the Federal army. His force at this
time included only five regiments, from which
many men had straggled, and comprised net
