Death and Funerals of Bishop-General Leonidas Polk

In the early part of Tuesday, June 14, 1864, Leonidas Polk, Lieutenant General in the Army of the Confederate States and Episcopal Bishop of Louisiana, was killed by a three inch cannon shot at Pine Mountain, Georgia, while surveying the position of the enemy from a vantage point near the position of the Washington Artillery of New Orleans, beyond the Confederate lines. [1] He and his associates, General Joseph E. Johnston, Lieutenant General William J. Hardee, and Brigadier General W. H. Jackson, along with their staffs, rode to Pine Mountain to make a military reconnaissance. [2] Having left their horses at the bottom of the hill, they proceeded the rest of the way on foot, reaching the knoll at about 11 o'clock. [3] The group of officers was standing on the crown of the knoll making their observations of a federal battery which had just been planted at a distance of 900 yards. [4] Someone suggested that a gathering of so many officers at such an exposed point might draw enemy fire. [5]

At that moment, a shell from the federal battery landed nearby, indicating that the enemy had discovered their position. The group dispersed: Generals Johnston and Polk withdrawing to the left, and the others withdrawing to the right rear. [6] They stood for a moment in conversation. As they rejoined the others, Johnston made his way along the brow of the hill, while Polk proceeded across the top of the knoll, stopping in the center. Entirely exposed, he stood with his arms folded across his chest, in order to get one last look. [7] It was at this moment that an unexploded shell from the same battery struck him in the chest, killing him instantly. [8]

Seeing that Polk had fallen, Colonels Jack and Gale, and others of his staff, raced to his side, "but life was already extinct." [9]
There was a slight tremor of the lower jaw, but the eyes were fixed and the pulses ceased. A three inch rifle ball or shell had taken effect in the left arm, above the elbow, crushing it and passing through the body, and also through the right arm, just below the shoulder joint, having it in the same mutilated condition as the left, portions of the integuments serving to secure the arms still to the frame. The opening in the chest was indeed a frightful one, and in all probability, from the direction of the missile, involved the heart and lungs in its course. [10]

Under heavy fire, Polk's escort carried the mangled body down the mountain to the shelter of a ravine where his fellow officers gathered around. Hardee, kneeling beside the body, said to Johnston: "This has been a dear visit…little did I think this morning that I should be called upon to witness this." Johnston replied, "I would rather anything but this.” [11]

The body was then taken by ambulance to the Relief Committee ward of Dr. J. N. Simmons in Marietta, where the remains awaited a coffin. [12] Polk's faithful horse, "Jerry," was led riderless behind the ambulance. [13]

At the hospital, Dr. Simmons found the Book of Common Prayer for the Service of the Protestant Episcopal Church in Polk's left breast pocket. In his right pocket were four bloodstained copies of Dr. Charles T. Quintard's tract, "Balm for the Weary and Wounded." [14] The first four copies of this tract to come off the press had been sent directly to Polk in the field. [15] Three of these were inscribed to Generals Johnston, Hardee, and Hood, "with the compliments of Lieut. Gen Leonidas Polk, June 12, 1864." [16] Two days later, Assistant Adjutant General Douglas West delivered them. [17] The fourth copy, Polk intended for himself.

The afternoon of Polk's death, General Johnston issued the following address:
General Field Orders No.2.
HDQRS. Army of Tennessee In the field, June 14, 1864
Comrades, you are called to mourn your first captain, your oldest companion in arms. Lieutenant General Polk fell to-day at the outpost of this army, the army he raised and commanded, in all of whose trials he shared, to all of whose victories he contributed. In this distinguished leader we have lost the most courteous of gentlemen, the most gallant of soldiers. The Christian patriot soldier has neither lived nor died in vain. His example is before you; his mantle rests with you.
J. E. Johnston. General. [18]

The members of Polk's staff sent telegraphic dispatches to Polk's eldest son, Alexander Hamilton Polk, in Montgomery, Alabama, and to the Bishop of Georgia, Stephen Elliott, in Savannah, informing them of their intention of escorting the body to Augusta, a hospital center with excellent railroad connections and a safe distance from the front, until such a time that Polk's family could be gathered to determine a burial site. [19]

During the afternoon, the body was taken to the Atlanta train. The General's faithful horse followed behind the ambulance. [20] Among Polk's staff officers who escorted the body to Atlanta, and on to Augusta, were Major Douglas West, Acting Adjutant General; Colonel W. Dudley Gale, Aide and son-in-law; Captain Henry Yeatman, Aide and nephew by marriage; and Captain Mecklenburg Polk, the General's son. [21]

They reached Atlanta at 2:00 A.M., and were met at the railway station by a committee of citizens appointed by "His Honor Mayor Calhoun." [22] Here, the body was placed in the chancel of St. Luke's Church on Walton Street, where it lay in state for twelve hours. [23] Thousands of citizens came to pay their last respects. [24] So many came, that it was almost impossible to be admitted into the church. [25] The coffin was "profusely decorated" with flowers and was open. [26] The General, dressed in uniform and wrapped in his martial cloak, had a cross of white roses upon his chest, and by the coffin's side was laid his sword. [27]

Funeral services were held at noon before a large congregation, with the Reverend John Beckwith reading the prayers. [28] The eulogy was delivered by the Reverend Dr. Charles T. Quintard, Chaplain-at-large for the Army of Tennessee and Rector of St. Luke's Church: [29]
The tears of his commanding general were mingled with those of his privates when he fell. And oh! beloved, we are all smitten--the army, the country, and the Church. [30]

When the service ended, the pall bearers, Major General Gustavus W. Smith; Brigadier Generals Daniel Ruggles, Marcus J. Wright, and A. W. Reynolds; and Colonels Benjamin S. Ewell and Crawford, met the coffin at the door of the church and placed it in a field ambulance. [31] With an escort consisting of the "city military, the officers of the post, the personal staff and relatives of the General, and a large number of citizens on foot," they proceeded to the noon train to Augusta. The coffin was placed on carpet in the center of a special car, which had been provided by the Georgia
Railroad. Beside the open coffin were laid his side arms and sword. [32]

Early the following morning, the members of Polk's family and staff, and the committee representing Atlanta, were met at the depot by the Rectors, Wardens and Vestries of St. Paul's Church and the Church of the Atonement. [33]

After consulting with the members of Polk's family, Stephen Elliott, Bishop of Georgia and Senior Bishop of the Church in the Confederate States, decided to "commit his remains to the keeping of the Diocese of Georgia…until the Church of Louisiana should claim them as her rightful inheritance." [34]

The date was set for the 29th day of June, to allow as many members of Polk's family as possible, as well as, members of the Episcopal Clergy to be present. [35]

After the funeral arrangements were made, Colonel Gale left Augusta for Asheville, North Carolina, were Polk's wife, Frances Devereaux Polk; and her daughters, Sue, Lucia, and Katherine; were residing to be safe from Union troops. With Gale as escort, they proceeded to Augusta to await the funeral. [36]

Bishop Elliott issued this invitation:
The Bishops, Clergy, and Laity of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the Confederate States, the officers of the Army and Navy of the Confederate States, and the citizens generally, are invited to attend the funeral services of the Rt. Rev. Leonidas Polk, D.D., from the City Hall of Augusta, Georgia, on Wednesday, the 29th day of June. The procession will move from the City Hall to St. Paul's Church. His remains will be deposited in the church-yard of St. Paul's until the war closes.
Stephen Elliott
Senior Bp. of Prot. Epis. Ch. in C.S.A. [37]

One citizen who visited St. Paul's Church, found his body "resting in a large square box, the outer covering of a finer coffin." Over the coffin was "thrown a Confederate flag, and resting upon this were flowers beautifully arranged." The flowers were carefully kept fresh until the day of the funeral. [38]

After lying in state at St. Paul's for two days, Polk's body was placed in a leaden coffin and transferred to the Grand Jury Room of the City Hall with a guard of honor, under the direction of Colonel Rains, Commander of the Post. [39] A portrait of the General was hung over the coffin. [40]

On the day of the funeral, June 29th, all places of business were closed. [41] The flags in the city, and at the Government Works were at half mast, and the guns were fired on the half hour from the City Hall, beginning at sunrise and continuing until the procession moved. [42] The bell at St. Paul's tolled at regular intervals. [43]

The funeral procession, under the direction of Acting Marshall, Colonel C. A. Platt, began lining up in Telfair Street, opposite the City Hall, between nine and ten o'clock. The military escort, headed by the Palmetto Band and commanded by Major I. P. Girardy, led the procession. The escort consisted of "the Wheeler Dragoons, the Battery of Light Artillery, and the first regiment of Local Troops. [45]

Next in procession were the citizens and officers, including the Commander of the Post, Colonel Rains, and His Honor the Mayor R. H. May, immediately preceding the hearse, which was draped with the flag of the Confederate States, decorated with wreaths of laurel and bay, and drawn by four plumed horses. [46] On either side of the hearse were the pall bearers, made up by the Wardens and Vestrymen of St. Paul's Church, Augusta, St. John's Church, Atlanta {? Savannah}, and the Church of the Atonement, Augusta. [47] The remainder of the cortege proceeded in the following order: "the military family of General Polk, with the clergy and citizens of Louisiana; clergy of the Protestant Episcopal Church; clergy of other denominations; officers of the Army and Navy, in uniform; the City Council; civil officers of the Confederate Government; members of the medical and legal profession; and citizens." [48]

At about 9:30, the body was brought to the front of the military escort, saluted, and placed in the hearse by the guard of soldiers. [49] The procession moved up Telfair Street to Campbell Street, down Broad Street to McIntosh, and onto Reynolds Street to St. Paul’s. [50] The streets were crowded with "a multitude who had come to pay loving homage to the Christian soldier." [51]

The body was met at the gates of the church by the Bishops of Georgia, Arkansas, and Mississippi; the Rector of St. Paul's; and other members of the clergy, all in full vestments. [52]

As the casket was removed from the hearse and brought in front, the military escort presented arms. [53] The bishops and clergy turned, and in the proper order, preceded the coffin into the church, with the Senior Bishop repeating:
I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die. [54]
A special escort made up of the Company of Silver Greys {militia volunteers older than age 45, exempt from service} detached themselves from the military escort, and followed immediately behind the body, into the church. [55] After the body entered the front gates, the remaining infantry and cavalry escorts marched down the street and were dismissed, while the artillery took position in the battery on the bank of the Savannah River to prepare to fire as the body was lowered into the grave. [56]

Inside the church, all pews on the center aisle were reserved for the family and friends of General Polk, and "for those having assigned places in the procession." All ladies were requested to go immediately to the church, without witnessing the procession. [57] All who could entered the church, but many who had followed the cortege, remained in the churchyard. [58] The only adornment within the church were snow-white flowers in the Baptismal font. [59]

The procession passing up the aisle presented an impressive sight. [60] As they proceeded, Bishop Elliott continued:
I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though this body be destroyed, yet shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself and mine eyes shall behold, and not as a stranger. [61]

The Rector of St. Paul's, and the three bishops, took their places inside the chancel rail, while the other members of the clergy remained outside. [62] The body was placed at the bottom of the steps leading to the chancel. [63] The choir, with the accompaniment of the organ, sang the anthem,
Lord, let me know mine end, and the number of my days; that I may be certified how long I have to live. [64]

Bishop Lay, of Arkansas, read the lesson from I Corinthians
O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. [65]

Following the lesson, the choir and the congregation sang the first three verses of "I would not live alway.” [66]

Bishop Elliott then gave a powerful sermon; at first admonishing Bishop Polk for taking up the sword, but later paying great tribute to Polk as a great soldier of Christ. At one point, Elliott left the pulpit and faced northward toward the altar and said:
And now, ye Christians of the North, and especially ye priests and bishops of the Church who have lent yourselves to the fanning of the fury of this unjust and cruel war, do I this day, in the presence of the body of this my murdered brother, summon you to meet us at the judgment-seat of Christ--that awful bar where your brute force shall avail you nothing; where the multitudes whom you have followed to do evil shall not shield you from an angry God; where the vain excuses with which you have varnished your sin shall be scattered before the bright beams of eternal truth and righteousness. I summon you to the bar in the name of that sacred liberty which you have trampled under foot; in the name of the glorious constitution which you have destroyed; in the name of our holy religion which you have profaned; in the name of the temples of God which have been desecrated; in the name of a thousand martyred saints whose blood you have wantonly spilled; in the name of our Christian women which you have violated; in the name of our slaves whom you have seduced and then consigned to misery; and there I leave justice and vengeance to God...May God have mercy upon you in that day of solemn justice and fearful retribution! [67]

The coffin, preceded by the Silver Greys and bishops and clergy, was carried out the front door, and around to the rear of the church, where a grave had been prepared beneath the chancel window. [68]

At the grave side, Bishop Elliott continued the service:
Man that is born of a woman, hath but a short time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh up, and is cut down, like a flower; he fleeth as it were a shadow, and never continueth in one stay.

Next, he committed the body to the earth by saying:
Unto Almighty God we commend the soul of our brother departed, and we commit his body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection unto eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ; at whose corning in glorious majesty to Judge the world, the earth and the sea shall give up their dead; and the corrupt bodies of those who sleep in him shall be changed, and made like unto his own glorious body; according to the mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all things unto himself. [69]

As Bishop Elliott pronounced the words "earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust," the Bishops of Arkansas and Mississippi, and Lieutenant General James Longstreet, of the Army of Northern Virginia, cast earth upon the body. While the artillery stationed on the river at the foot of Washington Street fired three salvos, the Rector of St. Paul's, Mr. William H. Clarke, waved a white flag over the grave. [70]

The service continued with Bishop Elliott saying:
I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, Write, From henceforth blessed are the dead who die in the Lord: even so saith the Spirit; for they rest from their labours. [71]

Bishop Green, of Mississippi, ended the service by saying the Lord's Prayer; the first prayer in the order for the burial of the dead; the prayer, "O God, whose days are without end;" the prayer for persons in affliction; and the apostolic benediction. [72]

Among the distinguished guests who came to the funeral were Reverend George W. Leftner, who represented the Diocese of Louisiana, and Lieutenant General James Longstreet. Some clergymen were discouraged from coming when several newspapers, including the Savannah Republican and the Macon Daily Telegraph, mistakenly reported that the burial would take place in North Carolina. [74] Other friends and fellow Southerners were unable to attend because of the war. President Jefferson Davis sent his regrets to Bishop Elliott:
I did not know until your letter reached me, on the very day of the funeral, when or where that ceremony would be performed. It was therefore impossible for me to be present with you. And if I had received the notice in time to undertake the journey, I very much doubt whether my pressing public duties would have allowed me to leave Richmond then for the purpose of gratifying even such feelings as that solemn occasion elicited. [75]

Lieutenant General Leonidas Polk was revered and respected by generals and privates alike. As a young graduate from West Point, he resigned his commission in favor of service to the church. [76] When Louisiana seceded from the Union, Polk believed that the North would not support a war, but rather that the South would "be permitted to go in peace." Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Polk's classmate from West Point, requested that he accept a commission as brigadier general in the Confederate Army. After much thought, he accepted. [78] For as much as his men loved him, there is no proof that Polk possessed great military ability. [79] He was greatly appreciated for his ecclesiastical influence. In the field, he had baptized many Confederates, including Generals Johnston, Hardee, and Hood. [80] He considered himself a man of God first. When congratulated for the honor of his high military position, he said, "Honor Sir! Honor! There is no honor on earth so great as that of Bishop of the Church of Christ." [81]

As a tribute to their beloved General, Polk's staff placed a monument made in Caen, France, in St. Paul's Church, to the left of the altar. [82] Even though the third Church of St. Paul's was destroyed by fire in 1916, the same marble monument was salvaged and placed, once again, to the left of the altar when the fourth church was built. At the time of reconstruction, the chancel was enlarged, taking in the area of Polk's grave, and that of his wife, who was buried there in 1875. At this time, a crypt was built beneath the new chancel rail, to hold the remains. [83]

Finally, in 1945, Louisiana came to claim "her rightful inheritance." On May 2, 1945, Polk and his wife were laid to rest beneath the chancel of Christ Church Cathedral in New Orleans. During the service, the two bodies laid side by side beneath a purple robe bearing a silver cross. The Right Reverend Frank A. Juhan, D.D., Bishop of Florida and Chancellor of the University of the South, delivered the sermon. In all, six bishops joined in the service recommitting the remains of Bishop-General Polk to his final resting place. [84]

Footnotes

Bibliography

• Augusta Chronicle, May 1945.
  
• Daily Chronicle and Sentinel (Augusta, Ga.), June-July 1864.
  
• Daily Constitutionalist (Augusta, Ga.), June-July 1864.
  
• Diary of Ella Gertrude Clanton Thomas. Duke University Library. Durham, N.C.
  
• Funeral Services at the Burial of the Right Rev. Leonidas Polk, D.D. Columbia, S.C.: Evans and Cogswell, 1864.
  
• Gale, Katherine. "Recollections of Life in the Southern Confederacy, 1860-1865." Southern Collection of the University of North Carolina.
  
• Macon Daily Telegraph (Macon, Ga.), June-July 1864.
  
• New York Times, July-August 1864.
  
• Polk, William M. Leonidas Polk: Bishop and General. 2 vols. Vol. 2. New York: Longmans, Green and Co., 1915.
  
• Leonidas Polk Papers. University of the South Archives. Sewanee, Tenn.
  
• Quintard, C.T. Doctor Quintard, Chaplain C.S.A. and Second Bishop of Tennessee, Being his Story of the War, 1861-1865, Rev. Arthur Howard Noll, ed.. Sewanee, Tenn.: The University Press, l905.
  
• The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Washington, 1880-1901.

II. Secondary Sources

• The Book of Common Prayer According to the Use of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. New York: The Seabury Press, l928.
  
• Corley, Florence Fleming. Confederate City: Augusta, Georgia, 1860-1865. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, l960.
  
• History of St. Paul's Churches, 1750-1928 (unpublished manuscript). Microfilm, Richmond County Historical Society.
  
• LaBree, Ben, ed. The Confederate Soldier in the Civil War. Louisville, Ky.: The Courier-Journal Job Printing Co., 1895.
  
• Parks, Joseph H. General Leonidas Polk: The Fighting Bishop. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1962.
  
• Williams, Chauncey C. Story of St. Paul's Church, Augusta, Georgia, A.D. 1750-1906. Augusta: Chronicle Job Printing Office, 1906.

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