George W. Randolph
|
|
George Wythe Randolph (March 10 1818–April 3 1867), the Secretary of War for the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War, was born in Charlottesville, Virginia at Monticello to Thomas Mann Randolph Jr. and Martha Jefferson Randolph (daughter of U.S. President Thomas Jefferson). He was a relative of Edmund Randolph, who served in George Washington's cabinet as the first Attorney General of the United States.
Randolph briefly attended school in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and served as a midshipman in the United States Navy. He attended the University of Virginia before moving to Richmond and becoming a lawyer. On April 10 1852, he married Mary Elizabeth Adams (1830–1871).
He joined the Confederate army serving as Major in the Battle of Big Bethel, and was promoted to Brigadier General on February 12 1862. Randolph was appointed by Jefferson Davis as Secretary of War on March 18 1862, and he took office on March 24 1862, but on November 17 1862, Randolph resigned.
Randolph is buried in the Jefferson family graveyard at Monticello.