Robert Hoke

{{Short description|Confederate Army general}} {{Distinguish|Robert Hooke}} {{Use American English|date=February 2023}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2023}} {{Infobox military person |name= Robert F. Hoke |birth_date= {{birth date|1837|5|27}} |death_date= {{death date and age|1912|7|3|1837|5|27}} |image= RFHokecommons.jpg |caption= Robert Frederick Hoke<br/>photo taken in 1862 |nickname= |birth_place= [[Lincolnton, North Carolina]], U.S. |death_place= [[Raleigh, North Carolina]], U.S. |burial_place= [[Historic Oakwood Cemetery]] |burial_label= Place of burial |allegiance= {{Flagicon|CSA}} [[Confederate States of America]] |branch= {{army|CSA}} |service_years= 1861-1865 |rank=[[File:Confederate_States_of_America_General-collar.svg|35px]] [[History of Confederate States Army Generals#Major general|Major General]] |unit= |commands= |battles= [[American Civil War]] *[[Battle of Big Bethel]] *[[Battle of New Bern (1862)|Battle of New Bern]] *[[Peninsula Campaign]] *[[Northern Virginia Campaign]] *[[Second Battle of Bull Run]] *[[Battle of Antietam]] *[[Battle of Chancellorsville]] *[[Battle of Plymouth (1864)|Battle of Plymouth]] *[[Siege of Petersburg]] *[[Battle of Cold Harbor]] *[[Carolinas campaign]] *[[Battle of Bentonville]] |awards= |relations= |other_work= iron mine manager then chairman,<br/>water company president, real estate agent, railroad president }}

'''Robert Frederick Hoke''' (May 27, 1837 &ndash; July 3, 1912) was a [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] major general during the [[American Civil War]]. He was present at one of the earliest battles, the [[Battle of Big Bethel]], where he was commended for coolness and judgment. Wounded at [[Battle of Chancellorsville|Chancellorsville]], he recovered in time for the defense of [[Siege of Petersburg|Petersburg]] and [[Richmond in the American Civil War|Richmond]]. His brigade distinguished itself at the [[Battle of Cold Harbor]]. Hoke was later a businessman and railroad executive.

==Early life and career== Robert Frederick Hoke was born in [[Lincolnton, North Carolina]], the son of Michael and Frances Burton Hoke. He had a younger sister Mary. Their father was a lawyer, orator, and unsuccessful Democratic nominee for [[Governor of North Carolina]] in 1844. Michael Hoke died shortly after losing that election.<ref>[http://www.monumentalbattlefields.com/LD_childs_page2.htm Monumental Battlefields] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509165342/http://www.monumentalbattlefields.com/LD_childs_page2.htm |date=May 9, 2008 }}</ref> His death "had lasting effects" on Robert Hoke's political viewpoint.

The son disliked politics and avoided involvement, later rejecting the offer of the governor's position. Robert Hoke was educated at the [[Pleasant Retreat Academy]]. He next studied at the [[Kentucky Military Institute]], graduating in 1854. Hoke returned to Lincolnton, where he managed various family business interests for his widowed mother, including a cotton mill and iron works.<ref name=Dupuy342-3>Dupuy, pp. 342-3.</ref>

==Civil War service==

===1861&ndash;63===

With [[North Carolina in the American Civil War|North Carolina]]'s [[secession]] from the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]], Hoke at age 24 enlisted in Company K of the [[1st North Carolina Infantry Regiment (6 months)]] and was commissioned as a [[second lieutenant]]. Within months, he was promoted to [[Captain (land)|captain]] and was commended for "coolness, judgment and efficiency" in [[D. H. Hill]]'s report of the [[Battle of Big Bethel]].<ref name=Wert114>Wert, p. 114.</ref> He was subsequently promoted to [[Major (rank)|major]] in September.<ref name=Dupuy342-3/>

Following the reorganization of the 6-month term North Carolina troops, Hoke was appointed as the [[lieutenant colonel]] of the [[33rd North Carolina Infantry Regiment]]. He was cited for his gallantry at the [[Battle of New Bern (1862)|Battle of New Bern]] in March 1862, where he assumed command of the regiment following the capture of its colonel, [[Clark Moulton Avery|C. M. Avery]]. He led the 33rd throughout the [[Peninsula Campaign]] as a part of [[Lawrence O. Branch]]'s [[brigade]]. Hoke was promoted to colonel before the [[Northern Virginia Campaign]] and fought at the [[Second Battle of Bull Run]], in addition to the [[Maryland Campaign]] at the [[Battle of Antietam]].<ref name=Eicher300>Eicher, p. 300.</ref>

Upon Colonel Avery's return from captivity, Hoke was assigned as commander of the [[21st North Carolina Infantry Regiment]] in [[Isaac Trimble]]'s brigade in [[Jubal A. Early|Jubal Early's]] division. Hoke commanded the brigade at the [[Battle of Fredericksburg]] and helped repulse an attack by [[Union Army|Union]] forces under [[Major general (United States)|Maj. Gen.]] [[George G. Meade]].

Hoke was promoted to [[Brigadier General (CSA)|brigadier general]] on January 17, 1863,<ref name=Eicher300/> and assigned permanent command of Trimble's brigade, which was composed of five North Carolina regiments. He was severely wounded defending Marye's Heights while the majority of the armies fought at the [[Battle of Chancellorsville]] and was sent home to recuperate. Command of his brigade passed to Col. [[Isaac E. Avery]]. Hoke missed the rest of the year's campaigns.

===1864&ndash;65===

Hoke resumed command of his brigade at [[Petersburg, Virginia]], in January 1864, and led it to North Carolina, where he organized attacks on [[New Bern, North Carolina|New Bern]] and [[Plymouth, North Carolina|Plymouth]]. In February, troops under Hoke's command executed twenty two Union soldiers of the [[2nd North Carolina Union Volunteer Infantry Regiment]] by [[hanging]] at [[Kinston, North Carolina]].<ref name=Woodworth>{{cite book |last1=Woodworth |first1=Steven E. |title=The Art of Command in the Civil War |date=1998 |publisher=University of Nebraska Press |pages=52-66 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZH63_gUdUaEC}}</ref> These men had been captured in the [[Battle of New Bern (1864)|Battle of New Bern]], and were found to have previously served in North Carolina [[Partisan Ranger Act|Partisan Ranger]] units. General [[George Pickett]] ordered that they should be court martialed for desertion from the Confederate Army, and the subsequent hangings were carried out by the 54th Regiment, North Carolina Troops of Hoke's brigade. In the [[Battle of Plymouth (1864)|Battle of Plymouth]] on April 17, Hoke captured a garrison of 2,834 Union soldiers.<ref name=Wert114/> The [[Congress of the Confederate States|Confederate Congress]] voted May 17 to extend its thanks for the action of Hoke and his men at Plymouth.<ref>Eicher, p. 301. "for the brilliant victory over the enemy at Plymouth, North Carolina..."</ref> Hoke was promoted to [[Major General (CSA)|major general]] on April 23, 1864 (ranking from April 20),<ref name=Wert114/> and was given command of what was called Hoke's [[Division (military)|Division]] in the Department of North Carolina and Southern Virginia.<ref name=Eicher300/> He and his troops were summoned to Virginia in May when the Union [[Army of the James]] threatened [[Richmond in the American Civil War|Richmond]] and [[Siege of Petersburg|Petersburg]].<ref name=Dupuy342-3/> Given command of six brigades of infantry, Hoke served with distinction in several actions, including the [[Battle of Cold Harbor]], where his division played an important role in stopping several Union attacks.

In December, Hoke's division was sent to North Carolina when the state was threatened by Union forces. Hoke fought at the defense of Fort Fisher on January 13–15, 1865. He also fought in the [[Carolinas campaign]] and the [[Battle of Bentonville]], where he repulsed several attacks by forces under Maj. Gen. [[William T. Sherman]] before overwhelming numbers began to push the Confederates back.<ref name=Dupuy342-3/>

Hoke surrendered along with [[Joseph E. Johnston]]'s army at [[Bennett Place]] near [[Durham, North Carolina|Durham]] and was paroled on May 1, 1865. He was pardoned by the U.S. government on June 14, 1865.<ref name=Eicher301>Eicher, p. 301.</ref>

==Postbellum activities== [[File:Portrait of Robert Frederick Hoke from Biographical History of North Carolina from Colonial Times to the Present, Volume I, 1905.png|thumb|left|Hoke in later years]] ===Marriage and family=== Hoke developed Northern ties when on January 7, 1869, he married Lydia Van Wyck, who was of a prominent political family from [[New York City]]. One of his brothers-in-law, [[Robert Van Wyck]], was [[Mayor of New York City]] and another, [[Augustus Van Wyck]], was an unsuccessful candidate for [[Governor of New York]], losing to [[Theodore Roosevelt]].

The Hokes had six children. Their son [[Michael Hoke]] became a famous [[orthopedist]] in [[Atlanta, Georgia]] and a founder of the Shriner's Children Hospital.

===Later career=== After the war, Hoke returned to civilian life and engaged in various businesses, including insurance and gold mining. He became principal owner of an iron mine near [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina]], and another one in [[Mitchell County, North Carolina|Mitchell County]]. He also served as the director of the [[North Carolina Railroad]] for many years. Railroad construction was creating new networks across the South, and new opportunities for business.<ref name=Dupuy342-3/>

Hoke owned a [[resort]] and a [[bottled water]] company at Lithia Springs in [[Lincoln County, North Carolina|Lincoln County]]. Such areas were popular summer retreats.<ref>"Inventory of the Robert F. Hoke Papers", University of North Carolina</ref>

With his success in the war and business, politicians tried to recruit Hoke to office, even offering him the position of governor of the state. He declined, having permanently turned away from politics as a child after his father's death. His nephew [[Hoke Smith]] served as [[United States Secretary of the Interior|secretary of the interior]], and then as governor and a senator from Georgia.

Hoke died in [[Raleigh, North Carolina]], and was buried with full military honors in Raleigh's [[Historic Oakwood Cemetery|Oakwood Cemetery]].

==Legacy and honors== *[[Hoke County, North Carolina]] was named in his honor in 1911.<ref name= vocci>{{cite web| url = https://www.ncpedia.org/geography/hoke| title = Hoke County| last = Vocci| first = Robert Blair| date = 2006| website = NCPedia| publisher = North Carolina Government & Heritage Library| access-date = April 13, 2022}}</ref> *The Robert F. Hoke Chapter #78 of the [[United Daughters of the Confederacy]] was named for the former general, as was Camp #1616 of the [[Sons of Confederate Veterans]].

==See also== {{portal|American Civil War|Biography}} *[[List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)]]

==Notes== {{Reflist}}

==References== *[[Clement A. Evans|Evans, Clement A.]], ''Confederate Military History'', Volume III. Atlanta: Confederate Publishing Company, 1899. * Dupuy, Trevor N., Johnson, Curt, and Bongard, David L., ''[[Harper Encyclopedia of Military Biography]]'', Castle Books, 1992, 1st Ed., {{ISBN|0-7858-0437-4}}. * Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher|Eicher, David J.]], ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, {{ISBN|0-8047-3641-3}}. * [[Ezra J. Warner (historian)|Warner, Ezra J.]] ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. {{ISBN|978-0-8071-0823-9}}. * [[Jeffry D. Wert|Wert, Jeffry D.]], "Robert Frederick Hoke", ''The Confederate General'', Vol. 3, [[William C. Davis (historian)|Davis, William C.]], and Julie Hoffman (eds.), National Historical Society, 1991, {{ISBN|0-918678-65-X}}. * Obituary of Robert F. Hoke, published in a [[Charlotte, North Carolina]], newspaper on July 6, 1912.

==Further reading== * Barefoot, Daniel, ''General Robert F. Hoke: Lee's Modest Warrior'', John F. Blair Publisher, 2001, {{ISBN|978-0-89587-237-1}}.

==External links== {{commons category}} *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070819111609/http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/inv/ead2/01121.xml Inventory of Robert F. Hoke's papers], University of North Carolina Library *[https://web.archive.org/web/20080619085152/http://www.salisburypost.com/Opinion/061708-edit-martin-hoke D.G. Martin column: "A question for Civil War buffs"], ''Salisbury Post'', June 16, 2008 * {{Find a Grave|10041}} {{Hoke County, North Carolina}} {{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoke, Robert}} [[Category:19th-century American business executives in rail transportation]] [[Category:1837 births]] [[Category:1912 deaths]] [[Category:Burials at Historic Oakwood Cemetery]] [[Category:Confederate States Army major generals]] [[Category:People from Lincolnton, North Carolina]] [[Category:People of North Carolina in the American Civil War]] [[Category:People pardoned by Andrew Johnson]] [[Category:Van Wyck family]] [[Category:Hoke County, North Carolina]]