5fish
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2019
- Messages
- 10,708
- Reaction score
- 4,559
Col. Hans Christian Heg, He was an acting Brigadier General when he fell in battle.
en.wikipedia.org
snip...
Hans Christian Heg (December 21, 1829 – September 20, 1863) was a Norwegian American abolitionist, journalist, anti-slavery activist, politician and soldier, best known for leading the Scandinavian 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment on the Union side in the American Civil War. He died of the wounds he received at the Battle of Chickamauga.
snip...
At twenty years old, lured by the discovery of gold in the Sacramento Valley, he and three friends joined the army of "Forty-Niners". He spent the next two years prospecting for gold in California.[3][4] Upon the death of his father, he returned to the Muskego area in 1851.[3][4] He married Gunhild Einong (1833–1922), daughter of a Norwegian immigrant.[4]
Heg was a major in the 4th Wisconsin Militia, and became a rising young politician who found slavery abhorrent.[6][7] He was an outspoken anti-slavery activist and a leader of Wisconsin's Wide Awakes, an anti-slave catcher militia.[8][9] He became an ardent member of the Free Soil Party,[10] and soon joined the recently formed Republican Party. In 1859, Heg was elected commissioner of the state prison in Waupun, and served there for two years.[3] He was the first Norwegian-born candidate elected statewide in Wisconsin.[4] Heg spearheaded many reforms to the prison, believing that prisons should be used to "reclaim the wandering and save the lost."[11] On August 1, 1860, at great risk to his career, he provided shelter to Sherman Booth, a man who was made a federal fugitive after inciting a mob to rescue an escaped slave.
Snip...
With the outbreak of the Civil War, Heg was appointed by Governor Alexander Randall as colonel of the 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment. Appealing to all young "Norsemen," he said, "the government of our adopted country is in danger. It is our duty as brave and intelligent citizens to extend our hands in defense of the cause of our Country and of our homes.
snip...
On September 18, 1863, Heg led his brigade at the Battle of Chickamauga, where he was mortally wounded. Heg was shot in the abdomen and died on September 20.[4][15] Upon hearing of his death, Rosecrans expressed regret, saying he had intended to promote Heg to brigadier general. Heg was one of five Wisconsinite colonels killed as a result of combat during the Civil War.[16] "Colonel Hans C. Heg was Acting Brigadier General of the Third Brigade, Davis' Division, and therefore the highest ranking officer from Wisconsin killed in the Civil War."[
Here some more tidbits... there is more links at the link below...
www.wisconsinhistory.org
snip...
On December 30, 1862, at the battle of Stones River, Heg's regiment lost more than 100 men. His horse was shot out from under him and his general called him "the bravest of the brave." In February 1863 Heg was put in command of the entire brigade and pursued retreating Confederate troops through Tennessee, briefly into Alabama, and across the state line to Chickamauga, Georgia
At Chickamauga, Georgia, 10 miles south of Chattanooga, the Confederates made a stand. On September 19-20, 1863, Heg's brigade was outnumbered and the 15th Infantry again lost more than 100 soldiers. On the afternoon of September 19, 1863, Heg was charging forward at the front of his troops when he was shot in the abdomen. He managed to stay in the saddle for a short time, but loss of blood compelled him to leave the field and move to a hospital behind the lines where he died the next morning.
Here is a link details his death in battle...
Hans Christian Heg - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
snip...
Hans Christian Heg (December 21, 1829 – September 20, 1863) was a Norwegian American abolitionist, journalist, anti-slavery activist, politician and soldier, best known for leading the Scandinavian 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment on the Union side in the American Civil War. He died of the wounds he received at the Battle of Chickamauga.
snip...
At twenty years old, lured by the discovery of gold in the Sacramento Valley, he and three friends joined the army of "Forty-Niners". He spent the next two years prospecting for gold in California.[3][4] Upon the death of his father, he returned to the Muskego area in 1851.[3][4] He married Gunhild Einong (1833–1922), daughter of a Norwegian immigrant.[4]
Heg was a major in the 4th Wisconsin Militia, and became a rising young politician who found slavery abhorrent.[6][7] He was an outspoken anti-slavery activist and a leader of Wisconsin's Wide Awakes, an anti-slave catcher militia.[8][9] He became an ardent member of the Free Soil Party,[10] and soon joined the recently formed Republican Party. In 1859, Heg was elected commissioner of the state prison in Waupun, and served there for two years.[3] He was the first Norwegian-born candidate elected statewide in Wisconsin.[4] Heg spearheaded many reforms to the prison, believing that prisons should be used to "reclaim the wandering and save the lost."[11] On August 1, 1860, at great risk to his career, he provided shelter to Sherman Booth, a man who was made a federal fugitive after inciting a mob to rescue an escaped slave.
Snip...
With the outbreak of the Civil War, Heg was appointed by Governor Alexander Randall as colonel of the 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment. Appealing to all young "Norsemen," he said, "the government of our adopted country is in danger. It is our duty as brave and intelligent citizens to extend our hands in defense of the cause of our Country and of our homes.
snip...
On September 18, 1863, Heg led his brigade at the Battle of Chickamauga, where he was mortally wounded. Heg was shot in the abdomen and died on September 20.[4][15] Upon hearing of his death, Rosecrans expressed regret, saying he had intended to promote Heg to brigadier general. Heg was one of five Wisconsinite colonels killed as a result of combat during the Civil War.[16] "Colonel Hans C. Heg was Acting Brigadier General of the Third Brigade, Davis' Division, and therefore the highest ranking officer from Wisconsin killed in the Civil War."[
Here some more tidbits... there is more links at the link below...
Heg, Col. Hans Christian (1829-1863) | Wisconsin Historical Society
Read about the Norwegian immigrant who became colonel to the predominately Norwegian 15th Wisconsin Infantry during the Civil War.
www.wisconsinhistory.org
snip...
On December 30, 1862, at the battle of Stones River, Heg's regiment lost more than 100 men. His horse was shot out from under him and his general called him "the bravest of the brave." In February 1863 Heg was put in command of the entire brigade and pursued retreating Confederate troops through Tennessee, briefly into Alabama, and across the state line to Chickamauga, Georgia
At Chickamauga, Georgia, 10 miles south of Chattanooga, the Confederates made a stand. On September 19-20, 1863, Heg's brigade was outnumbered and the 15th Infantry again lost more than 100 soldiers. On the afternoon of September 19, 1863, Heg was charging forward at the front of his troops when he was shot in the abdomen. He managed to stay in the saddle for a short time, but loss of blood compelled him to leave the field and move to a hospital behind the lines where he died the next morning.
Here is a link details his death in battle...
