Iowa Brevet General Promotions

A brevet rank was an honorary promotion given to an officer (or occasionally, an enlisted man) in recognition of gallant conduct or other meritorious service. They served much the same purpose that medals play today (our modern system of medals did not exist at the time of the Civil War).

A brevet rank was almost meaningless in terms of real authority. For example, a major who was a brevet colonel collected the pay of a major, wore the uniform of a major, could not give orders to lieutenant colonels, and was only eligible for commands that normally fell to majors. But he was allowed to use the title of colonel in his correspondence.

In addition, there were some unusual circumstances where brevet rank carried authority. For instance, when a force consisted partly of Regular troops and partly of state militia, command would go to the officer with the highest brevet rank (who might neither be the highest ranking regular officer nor the highest ranking volunteer!). This came up during the Mexican War on some occasions, and seems to have been designed to allow Regular officers with brevets (implying experience) to assume command over higher-ranking militia officers who had neither experience nor brevets.

An officer could also claim his brevet rank when serving on court-martial duty. Since an officer cannot be tried by officers ranking lower than himself, using brevet ranks allowed more people to qualify as possible court members.

During the war itself, brevets were very difficult to get and were a sign of valor, but on March 13, 1865, the War Department gave one brevet and sometimes two to nearly every officer on duty with the army. This angered many officers and men, who saw it as trivializing the efforts of men who won brevets in combat. (J.L. Chamberlain mentions this in his memoirs, for instance.)

Like regular ranks, brevets were kept separately for the U.S. Volunteers and the U.S. Army. Thus one man could have four ranks: an actual Volunteer rank, a brevet Volunteer rank, an actual Regular rank, and a brevet Regular rank. Brevets in the Regular army were sometimes used to honor men who had already been brevetted Major General in the Volunteers and could not be brevetted again (in the Volunteers), as no brevet Lieutenant Generals were created during the war (Winfield Scott had been made Brevet Lieutenant General [of Regulars] during the Mexican War).

Brevet ranks were authorized for the Regular Army in the Articles of War of 1806; they were authorized for the US Volunteers on March 3, 1863. Partly as a result of dissatisfaction with the end-of-war brevet giveaway, brevet promotions were discontinued in 1869; although officers who had been given brevets before that date continued to use them. They were reinstated for the Spanish-American war and continued in use until after World War I.

The Confederate army did not award brevet promotions.

Benton, Thomas Hart Jr. - Col., 29th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. December 15 1864

Bruce, John - Lt. Col., 19th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Chambers, Alexander - Col., 16th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Clark, George Washington - Col., 34th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Coon, Datus Ensign - Col., 2nd Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 8 1865

Drake, Francis Marion - Lt. Col., 36th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. February 22 1865

Dye, William McEntire - Col., 20th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Geddes, James Loraine – Col., 8th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. June 5 1865

Glasgow, Samuel Lyle – Col., 23rd Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. December 19 1864

Graham, Harvey – Col., 22nd Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. July 25 1865

Heath, Herman H. – Maj., 7th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865, Brevet Maj. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Hedrick, John Morrow – Lt. Col., 15th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Hill, Sylvester G. – Col., 35th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. December 15 1864
Killed at Nashville December 15 1864

Hillis, David Burke – Col., 17th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Hudnutt, Joseph O. – Lt. Col., 38th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Leake, Joseph Bloomfield – Lt. Col., 20th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Lowe, William Warren – Col., 5th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865, Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.A. March 13 1865

Sanders, Addison Hiatt - Lt. Col., 16th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Stibbs, John Howard - Lt. Col., 12th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Stone, George Augustus - Col., 25th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Stone, William Milo - Col., 22nd Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Thompson, William - Col., 1st Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Trumbull, Matthew Mark - Col., 9th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Weaver, James Baird - Col., 2nd Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Wever, Clark Russell - Col., 17th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. February 9 1865

Williams, John - Capt., 6th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Wilson, James - Col., 13th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Winslow, Edward Francis - Col., 4th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. December 12 1864

Wright, Edward - Lt. Col., 24th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

McQueen, Alexander G. – Lt. Col., 1st Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Noble, John Willock – Col., 3rd Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

O'Brien, George Morgan – Maj., 7th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Parrott, James Corner – Lt. Col., 7th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Pattee, John – Lt. Col., 7th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Patterson, Robert Franklin – Lt. Col., 29th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 26 1865

Pollock, Samuel McLean. – Col., 6th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

Pomutz, George – Maj., 15th Regt. Iowa Volunteer Infantry
Brevet Brig. Gen. U.S.V. March 13 1865

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