The Rise and Fall of George McClellan

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George B. McClellan is famous in history because of his involvement with the civil war. He was a powerful general who was hired, and fired by Abraham Lincoln. George was born on December 3rd in 1826, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was born the son of a prominent surgeon, and a caring mother. He was also the grandson of the Revolutionary War General, Samuel McClellan. He married the daughter of a powerful Pennsylvania family. They had 5 children, two girls and three boys. When George McClellan attended the University of Pennsylvania at age 13 in 1840, he was studying law. Two years later he changed direction, and decided to go into the military. He asked his father to write a letter to the President of the United States, a referral of sorts and he did. With the letter, George was able to join the army at age 14, younger than the minimum age of 16. George went on to attend West Point, a very prestigious military academy in New York. He was energetic and eager to learn. In college, he became friends with Southerners who expressed their thoughts and ideas to him which helped ...

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