Few characters came out of the American Civil War with quite as infamous reputation as Benjamin Franklin Butler.
Butler was a successful lawyer and politician before the start of the American Civil War. After establishing a successful criminal practice, Butler would go onto serve in the House of Representatives and then the Senate. He would attend the Democratic convention while in office and vote for the future Confederate President Jefferson Davis to be the United States President. In 1839 he joined the Massachusetts militia, and in 1855 he was promoted to brigadier general even though he had no formal military training. This role would prove fateful for Butler at the outbreak of the American Civil War.
Butler and the men of the 8th Massachusetts would be some of the first troops to arrive in Washington DC to help defend the Union capitol as tensions began to explode between the North and South. He would be appointed a major general in 1861 by Abraham Lincoln, one of the first appointed by Lincoln.
While being commander of Fort Monroe, Butler would force the slavery issue to the forefront of the Union War aims. When 3 enslaved people escaped to Fort Monroe, Butler refused to return them to the slave holder who came for them based on the theory that they enslaved people were property (Confederate's description) who were being used to wage war against the Union, and therefore he would not return them. This policy would be confirmed by Federal Government when they passed the First Confiscation Act. This essentially said that if enslaved people were in fact property, and if that person (property) was owned by someone in rebellion against the Federal Government, if confiscated that person (property) became the property of the Federal Government. At the time, no one really considered what would happen to the persons (property) who came into the Union lines after the war, but Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, and the 13th amendment in 1865 would decide the answer forever.
His refusal to return enslaved people to their owners certainly did not make Butler popular in the Confederacy, but his reputation was about to get even more infamous in the South. In May of 1861, Butler leads a successful amphibious assault on the Hatteras Island, before heading to New Orleans in May after it had surrendered to Admiral Farragut. He would set himself up as military governor, and despite successfully bringing order to the city, his successes would be overshadowed by his actions that would gain him two famous nicknames.
While military Governor of New Orleans, it was said that Butler would set himself up in the finest houses in the city, and would pilfer valuable items from the homes he was watching, thus giving him the nickname "Spoons". His more famous nickname, would come from his infamous Order #28, and essentially replace his middle name in the history books. He no longer would be known as Benjamin Franklin Butler, but would be referred to as Benjamin "Beast" Butler.
Although the city of New Orleans had surrendered to Union forces, there was no love lost between the cities inhabitants and the occupying forces. This was particularity evident from the women of the city. Women were known to cross the street so as not to be on the same side as Union soldiers, they spit on soldiers, called them names and in the last straw emptied a chamber pot on the head of Admiral Farragut as he walked passed a house on the street.
This incident caused General Butler to issue Order #28 which stated that since the so called ladies of New Orleans were not acting as such, they should not be treated as such and any woman who was seen disrespecting a soldier should be treated as a "woman of the town plying her avocation" (aka the solicitation of prostitution). Despite how it sounds, this order had no sexual connotation to it, but instead said a lady did not need to be treated as a lady. For example, if a woman punched a soldier, he would be justified to punch her back under this order, instead of the usual expectation that a man did not lay a hand on a lady.
Whether Butler meant it in with a sexual connotation or not, this order was very controversial both home and abroad as it was often interpreted as legalizing rape. This order caused Jefferson Davis to label Butler and outlaw, and his nickname of Beast to be given. The anger over this order caused Southerners to start putting Butler's image on the bottom of chamber pots as target practice. The outrage was so strong that in December 1862, Butler was removed from command of New Orleans.
After being removed from New Orleans, he would be given the command of the department of Virginia and North Carolina. However, he would perform poorly and after failing at Fort Fisher North Carolina he was ordered by General Grant to return home and await orders. He would resign his commission in November 1865.
After the war he would return to politics and become Governor of Massachusetts. He would be elected to congress in 1878 and would even be a candidate for President in 1884. He would die in 1894.
To this day, Butler is more notable for his time as military commander of New Orleans and his infamous order #28. Despite his role in bringing about the emancipation of slaves in America and private success during the antebellum period, he would die in 1893 never able to outlive his nicknames and reputation as "Spoons" and " the Beast".
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