George B. McClellan Trivia Quiz

Answer: Brinton

George Brinton McClellan was born in 1826 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father was a wealthy doctor; George's grandfather was Samuel McClellan, an American general during the Revolutionary War. Perhaps George McClellan was destined to be a military general.

Answer: University of Pennsylvania

George McClellan was undoubtedly a gifted student. He entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1840 in order to study law. However, he left Penn after two years because he wanted to pursue a military career. McClellan was admitted to the U.S. Military Academy in 1842, and he graduated from West Point in 1846.

Answer: French

George McClellan was able to read, write and speak French quite well. He published a manual on French bayonet tactics in 1852 which he translated by himself. Due to his ability in French, McClellan received a position as an official U.S. observer of European armies in the Crimean War of 1855.

After the U.S. Civil War had ended, McClellan and his family lived in Europe for about three years; his knowledge of English and French certainly proved to be beneficial.

Answer: Jefferson Davis

From 1853 to 1861, McClellan worked as a surveyor and a railroad engineer in military and civilian life. While he was in the army, his boss was Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, who served in the Franklin Pierce Administration. Davis, of course, would later become the president of the Confederated States. John Floyd (1857-1861) and Joseph Holt (1861) were secretaries of war during the James Buchanan Administration. Edwin Stanton was the secretary of war from 1862 to 1868, working for Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson.

Answer: Stephen A. Douglas

George McClellan considered himself a member of the Democratic Party, and he opposed the candidacy of Abraham Lincoln, a Republican. He supported Stephen Douglas, a Northern Democrat. Douglas, like McClellan, was vigorously pro-Union but not necessarily in favor of equality for blacks. John Breckinridge, the sitting U.S. Vice-President, spoke for the Southern Democrats in the election, and John Bell represented what was left of the defunct Whig Party.

In the end, Lincoln received 180 electoral votes, Breckinridge got 72 votes and Bell picked up 39 votes. Douglas was only able to get 12 electoral votes. Apparently, President Lincoln didn't hold a grudge against McClellan, for he later chose "Little Mac" to replace Winfield Scott as general-in-chief of the Union Army in 1861.

Answer: Henry W. Halleck

George McClellan served as general-in-chief of the Union Army from 1861 to March 11, 1862. During that time, President Lincoln grew increasingly frustrated with McClellan's "dilatory" military tactics; the president wanted a man of action to lead the Union against the Rebel forces.

Henry "Old Brains" Halleck, from New York, was chosen as McClellan's successor, and he held the post of general-in-chief for about two years. McClellan was directed to Trenton, NJ, to await further orders. Burnside, Pope and Sherman also served as Union generals during the Civil War.

Answer: He was overly cautious.

The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest day of the Civil War: approximately 25,000 soldiers were killed or wounded. At first, McClellan claimed a "complete" victory for the Union side. He argued that General Lee's attempted Rebel thrust into Maryland had been repelled.

Many military historians, however, contend that the Battle of Antietam was actually a stalemate. These historians argue that McClellan failed to use his Union troops effectively; they say he missed a golden opportunity to gain a decisive victory over the Confederates because he was too cautious.

These critics claim that McClellan should have tried to destroy Lee's army before it escaped back into Virginia.

Answer: George H. Pendleton

George McClellan and George Hunt Pendleton made a rather strange combination. Although McClellan was not opposed to the Civil War, he campaigned against President Lincoln on an anti-war platform. Pendleton, born in Cincinnati, believed in seeking peace with the South; he apparently was not very friendly with McClellan. Clement Vallandigham, the author of the Democratic Party platform, was not a firm supporter of McClellan, either.

The deeply divided Democratic ticket was soundly defeated by President Lincoln in the 1864 electoral vote. Hannibal Hamlin had been Lincoln's first vice-president, but he was replaced by Andrew Johnson. Schuyler Colfax, a representative from Indiana, would later become Ulysses Grant's first vice-president (1869 to 1873).

Answer: New Jersey

McClellan served as governor of New Jersey from 1878 to 1881. As a Democratic Party candidate, he defeated the Republican William A. Newell in the 1877 N.J. election. McClellan apparently didn't do very much to "rock the boat" of the Democratic-controlled state Senate, and thus accomplished very little during his three-year term.

After completing his stint as governor, McClellan retired from politics.

Answer: Trenton, NJ

McClellan died suddenly in 1885 in Orange, New Jersey, after suffering from chest pains. His body was then taken to Trenton, the state capital. McClellan is buried in Riverview Cemetery- with "a big monument to match a big ego", charge some critics. After his death, his memoirs, entitled "McClellan's Own Story", were published; this book gives an honest portrayal of the triumphs and the failures of his military career.