Today In History...........

May 10th 1863.....

General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson died as the results of wounds received on May 2nd 1863 at the battle of Chancellorsville VA.

Jackson who was attempting to exploit the Confederate successes at Chancellorsville was personally leading a night reconnaissance mission between the Federal and Confederate lines when he and his party came under fire from his own forces (18th North Carolina Regiment) who were under the impression that Jackson's group was Federal cavalry. Jackson's injuries led to the amputation of his left arm . Based on the medical records I have reviewed, this was a survivable wound, and Jackson did well during and after the operation. However, he had complained of chills the night of the 2nd so he might have been coming down with a cold, or because of the medical theories of the time, he was made to rest and not move around. He was heavily sedated with opium products such as laudanum and he developed pneumonia. This was what killed him, not the gunshot wound. 

The Army of  Northern Virginia was never the same after the death of Jackson. I am not one of the school that believe that if Jackson had lived the south would have won the war. I don't believe the south COULD have won, but with Jackson alive, the war might have gone on longer or there might have been a negotiated settlement. Who knows for sure?