Lost a leg at the 1862 battle of Groveton, Virginia

(1817-1872) Born in Georgetown, Washington, D.C., he was raised in Prince William County, Virginia, from the age of 3, at an estate near Manassas known as "Stony Lonesome." He was the grandson of Benjamin Stoddert, the first United States Secretary of the Navy; the grandson of Revolutionary War Colonel Jesse Ewell; and the younger brother of Benjamin Stoddert Ewell, an 1832 West Point grad, and a U.S. and Confederate army officer. Richard graduated in the West Point class of 1840, and fought in the Mexican War, serving under General Winfield Scott, and he was promoted to captain for his courage at the Battles of Contreras and Churubusco. At Contreras, he was praised for a nighttime reconnaissance he conducted with Captain Robert E. Lee, his future commander in the Confederate army. He was wounded in a skirmish with the Apaches under Cochise in 1859. When Virginia declared secession, Ewell resigned from the U.S. Army, on May 7, 1861, to join the Provisional Army of Virginia. He was appointed a colonel of cavalry on May 9th, and was the first officer of field grade wounded in the war at a May 31st skirmish at Fairfax Court House where he was hit in the shoulder. He was promoted to brigadier general on June 17th, and he commanded a brigade in the the First Battle of Manassas. Ewell was promoted to major general and division command on January 24, 1862. He fought with distinction under General Stonewall Jackson in the 1862 Shenandoah Valley campaign, in the 7 Days battles of Virginia, and in the 2nd Manassas campaign, where he lost a leg at the battle of Groveton. After the death of General Jackson, in May 1863, he was promoted to rank of lieutenant general and he commanded the 2nd Corps, Army of Northern Virginia from Gettysburg to Spotsylvania. He was subsequently in charge of the Richmond defenses, and was captured at Sayler's Creek, Va., on April 6, 1865 during the Appomattox Campaign. He was a prisoner of war at Fort Warren in Boston Harbor until July 1865. After his parole, Ewell retired to work as a "gentleman farmer" on his wife's farm near Spring Hill, Tennessee. Ewell and his wife both came down with pneumonia in January 1872, and died within a few days of each other. They were buried in Old City Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee.

Wet plate, albumen carte de visite photograph, mounted to 2 3/8 x 4 card. Chest up view wearing a double breasted Confederate uniform coat with rank of major general. Back mark: E. & H.T. Anthony, 501 Broadway, New York. Light age toning. Very fine. Important Gettysburg related general.