Just before the start of the Civil War, Thomas was promoted to colonel and adjutant general of the U.S. Army on March 7, 1861. On August 10, 1861, U.S. PresidentAbraham Lincoln appointed Thomas a brigadier general in the regular army, to rank from August 3, 1861, the date Lincoln sent the nomination to the U.S. Senate for confirmation.[1] The Senate confirmed the appointment on August 5, 1861.[1]Camp Thomas, a Regular Army training base in Columbus, Ohio, was named in his honor in July 1861. He held the position of adjutant general until he retired in 1869, except for a special assignment to recruit African-American troops in the Military Division of the Mississippi from 1863 to 1865.
Thomas did not get along well with Secretary of WarEdwin M. Stanton and this assignment outside of Washington, D.C., was considered a form of banishment. Many historians have claimed Thomas was banished in disgrace after conspiring to defame Union General William T. Sherman as insane.[2] Thomas was replaced by Maj. Gen. Edward D. Townsend as Adjutant General, who would serve until 1880.[3]
From March 17 to July 23, 1862, he served as the chairman of the War Board, the organization that assisted U.S. PresidentAbraham Lincoln and Secretary Stanton in the management of the War Department and the command of the Union armies during the period in which there was no general-in-chief.
On April 6, 1863, General Thomas was sent by the War Department to Helena, Arkansas to recruit freedmen into the U.S. Army. He created the first black troop in Arkansas, fighting for Union side as part of Bureau of Colored Troops, which was created by the War Department on May 22, 1863.[4][5]
The Situation A Harper's Weekly cartoon gives a humorous breakdown of "the situation". Secretary of WarEdwin Stanton aims a cannon labeled "Congress" on the side at Thomas and President Andrew Johnson to show how he was using congress to defeat the president and his unsuccessful replacement. He also holds a rammer marked "Tenure of Office Bill" and cannonballs on the floor are marked "Justice". Ulysses S. Grant and an unidentified man stand to Stanton's left.
On February 21, 1868, President Johnson attempted to replace Stanton by appointing Thomas as Secretary of War ad interim. Thomas, still stinging from his bad treatment by Stanton, boasted of his ability and determination to oust him from office by force, if necessary. Some historians believe that it was this attitude in his testimony at Johnson's impeachment trial in the Senate that was partially responsible for Johnson's acquittal. Thomas retired from the Army on February 22, 1869, ten days before Johnson left office. He died in Washington, D.C.[citation needed] He is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, Georgetown.[7]
Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher. Civil War High Commands. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN0-8047-3641-3.
Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Blue: Lives of the Union Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1964. ISBN0-8071-0822-7.
Further reading
Eggleston, Michael A. President Lincoln's Recruiter: General Lorenzo Thomas and the United States Colored Troops in the Civil War. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2013. ISBN978-0-7864-7217-8
