Two Wars: An Autobiography of General Samuel G. French: Mexican War

In Short

Published at the dawn of the twentieth century, this memoir records the long military and civilian life of Samuel Gibbs French, a New Jersey–born West Point graduate who married into the South, became a Mississippi planter, and ultimately served as a Confederate Major General. French outlines his early service in the U.S. Army during the Mexican War, his subsequent resignation to manage his estates, and his eventual command of troops from Virginia to Georgia during the Civil War. His account blends meticulous diary entries and military orders with fiery defense of his tactical choices at key engagements like Allatoona and Franklin. Lasting as a candid, partisan primary source, it offers an unvarnished view of high-level military friction and the bitter resentment of Southern Reconstruction.

The Story

Samuel Gibbs French begins his life story with childhood memories of antebellum New Jersey and his appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, from which he graduates in 1843. As a young officer in the U.S. Army, he mingles in high political and social circles in Washington and Baltimore, forming friendships with figures like Chief Justice Roger B. Taney. His peacetime routine vanishes with the outbreak of the Mexican War. French marches south under General Zachary Taylor, participating in early battles like Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, where he observes the horrors and triumphs of field artillery warfare firsthand. At the siege of Monterey, he is wounded, later receiving brevet promotions for gallantry. Between conflicts, French travels widely on military duty, buys horses in Kentucky, and considers various specialized assignments before resigning his commission to settle down as a planter in Mississippi.

When political divisions tear the nation apart, French’s adopted regional ties take precedence. Having built a life in Mississippi, he tenders his services to his adopted home state long before the Confederacy establishes its national army, initially managing artillery and ordnance supplies. Promoted to Brigadier General and later Major General in the Confederate army, French takes on crucial commands. He directs the blockade of the Potomac River at Evansport, oversees the complex fortification of coastal North Carolina and Petersburg, Virginia, and participates in General Longstreet’s siege of Suffolk.

French's narrative shifts to the Western Theater as he is transferred to Mississippi under General Joseph E. Johnston. He becomes deeply involved in the desperate efforts to hold the deep South against advancing Federal forces. As Johnston falls back toward Atlanta, French’s division endures relentless skirmishing and heavy artillery duels, fighting in grueling clashes such as New Hope Church, Peachtree Creek, and Kennesaw Mountain. Throughout these grueling campaigns, French keeps meticulous personal records, frequently criticizing strategic blunders made by superior officers, particularly General John Bell Hood.

The tragic climax of French's combat service occurs in late 1864 during Hood’s disastrous Tennessee campaign. At the Battle of Allatoona, French commands the assault against fortified Federal positions, suffering devastating casualties before withdrawing to avoid approaching Union reinforcements. Weeks later, at the Battle of Franklin, he witnesses the near-destruction of his division in a brutal, full-frontal assault against entrenched Union lines—a charge he considers a reckless, unnecessary sacrifice of brave men.

Following the collapse of the Confederacy, French returns to a devastated home. The final chapters detail his arduous transition back to civilian life during Reconstruction. Stripped of his wealth, dealing with the loss of former slaves who scatter or stay under new legal realities, and facing local political corruption, French views the Reconstruction era with intense hostility. He fiercely defends the Southern cause to his final days, writing his memoirs to vindicate his soldiers, set the record straight against postwar histories, and leave an unbowed personal legacy for his children.

How It Unfolds

The formative years Young French grows up in New Jersey, admiring old family heirlooms like a 1776 grandfather clock, before attending West Point and entering elite social circles in Washington and Baltimore.

Into the Mexican War Deployed to the Rio Grande under Zachary Taylor, French experiences intense artillery duels at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, where he captures enemy officers and mourns fallen West Point classmates.

Service and resignation After recovering from wounds received at Monterey, French embarks on various military details—including purchasing cavalry horses in Kentucky—before resigning his commission to manage his Mississippi plantation.

Taking up Confederate arms With the onset of the Civil War, French organizes Mississippi's initial defense supplies before receiving a Confederate general's commission to blockade the Potomac River and fortify Petersburg.

The siege of Suffolk Operating under General Longstreet in Virginia, French participates in complex surrounding maneuvers against Union forces, though internal command disagreements frustrate tactical opportunities.

Defending Mississippi and Georgia Transferred west under Joseph E. Johnston, French leads his division through relentless skirmishing, constant artillery bombardment, and miserable trench warfare during the retreat toward Atlanta.

The bloody assault at Allatoona Ordered to cut Union communications north of Atlanta, French attacks heavily fortified positions at Allatoona Pass, sustaining severe casualties before deciding to pull back to protect his exhausted troops.

The disaster at Franklin French’s division is shattered in Hood’s desperate, suicidal charge across open fields at Franklin, an agonizing battle that French explicitly blames on Hood's ignorance of the enemy's strength.

Bitterness in Reconstruction Returning home to poverty and political disenfranchisement, French navigates the chaotic postwar South, constantly clashing with Carpetbagger administration judges while recording his final vindication.

The People

• Samuel Gibbs French: The author and narrator, a West Point-trained artillery officer whose career spans two major American wars. Driven by professional pride, personal honor, and tactical meticulousness, he fights to defend his military reputation against postwar criticisms and vindicate his Confederate command.
• Zachary Taylor: The commanding General during French's service in the Mexican War. Plain-spoken and direct, he serves as an early model of field leadership for young French during the campaigns along the Rio Grande and at Monterey.
• Joseph E. Johnston: General of the Army of Tennessee. Respected by French for his defensive caution, Johnston faces intense political pressure from Richmond and is eventually replaced by Hood, a move French considers a catastrophic mistake.
• John Bell Hood: The Confederate General who assumes command of the Army of Tennessee. Headstrong and aggressive, his flawed tactical decisions at Allatoona and Franklin result in devastating losses for French's division and the near-destruction of the army.
• Jefferson Davis: President of the Confederacy. A staunch personal supporter of French, Davis defends French's Northern birth against internal army politics, though French openly questions Davis's decision to remove Johnston from command.

In Its Own Voice

When news of the Mexican War spreads across the country, French observes the sudden rush of inexperienced military volunteers with dry, cynical humor:

"As over two hundred thousand men offered their services, it may be, as Mark Twain once observed, that many persons 'persuaded their wives' relations' to avail themselves of this unique occasion to visit the land of the Aztecs..."

Enduring continuous shellfire during the Georgia campaign, French vividly captures the mental exhaustion of protracted trench warfare:

"Owing to the condition of the atmosphere, the roar of the guns was increased, and the sound of bursting shells overhead was like near by thunder, while the glare makes night hideous, consequently I got no sleep."

Reflecting on the senseless carnage at the Battle of Franklin, French condemns the frontal assault on entrenched positions:

"Festus assigned a reason for St. Paul's madness, but no one attributed Hood's madness to that cause when this order was given."

What It's Really About

Beneath its chronological narrative of marches, battles, and civilian life, Two Wars is a passionate argument about personal loyalty and historical accuracy. French writes to defend his military honor against postwar histories that he feels misrepresent his combat decisions, particularly at Allatoona and Cassville. The book explores the complex identity of a Northern-born West Point officer who adopts the South as his home and feels duty-bound to defend it, exposing the intense internal friction between Confederate generals over birth, strategy, and political influence. At its core, the memoir addresses the profound bitterness of defeat, contrasting the martial pride of the Confederate soldier with what French views as the tragic, unjust political realities of the Reconstruction era.

Why Read It Today

Readers drawn to military history and unvarnished primary sources will find Two Wars a captivating, deeply personal narrative. Unlike polished, generalized histories, French’s account places you directly inside the headquarters tent and the front-line trench. His writing blends precise, matter-of-fact military reporting with biting wit, vivid social observation, and uncompromising personal opinions. It offers an irreplaceable, firsthand perspective on how nineteenth-century officers thought, planned battles, and viewed their comrades under extreme pressure.

The book is not without its difficulties for a modern reader. It relies heavily on official dispatches, long operational lists, casualty reports, and detailed postwar arguments that require patience to navigate. Furthermore, French’s unyielding defense of the Confederacy and his sharp, period-typical hostility toward Reconstruction present raw, unedited nineteenth-century political attitudes that can be jarring. Yet these very flaws make the memoir authentic. What stays with you is the sheer human cost of the conflict—the stark casualty numbers, the tragic waste of life at Franklin, and the uncompromising voice of a old general fighting his final battles on the printed page.

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