The Flight of Gideon Pillow

Cowardice during the American Civil War

Gideon J Pillow. Public domain image

During the American Civil War there was a surprisingly large number of acts of coward­ice by commanding officers. Perhaps the worst case was during the siege of Fort Donelson in Tennessee in 1862. Besieged by Union forces led by Ulysses S. Grant, the Confederate commanders decided that they had no choice but to try to cut their way out and reach…