XIV Corps (Union Army)

XIV Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was one of the earliest corps formations in the Western Theater of the American Civil War.

Creation
The XIV Corps, along with the XIII Corps, were both created in October 1862 with the passing of General Orders No. 168. The order directed that all the troops of the Department of the Cumberland be organized into the XIV Corps with, General William Rosecrans in command.

The troops of this corps had previously been styled the Army of the Ohio, under the command of Don Carlos Buell. Buell's Army of the Ohio had already been divided into three unofficial corps designated I, II and III Corps. When Rosecrans took command the army was renamed the Army of the Cumberland and was made up of twelve divisions. This included 155 regiments of infantry, 1 regiment of engineers, 35 batteries of artillery, and 6 regiments of cavalry.

Stones River
The Army of the Cumberland and XIV Corps were virtually synonymous and therefore command of the corps was divided into three "wings" with the same basic formation as in the former Army of the Ohio. The old I Corps became the Right Wing under Alexander M. McCook. The II Corps became the Left Wing under Thomas L. Crittenden. The III Corps became the Center Wing under George H. Thomas, replacing Charles C. Gilbert. In this formation the corps fought at the battle of Stones River losing over 25% in killed, wounded or missing.

Battle of Chickamauga
On January 9, 1863, in the immediate aftermath of Stones River, the XIV Corps wings were given their own official corps designations. McCook's Right Wing became the XX Corps. Crittenden's Left Wing became the XXI Corps. Thomas' Center Wing remained as the XIV Corps. Thomas led the corps to distinction at a decisive battle fought in the vicinity of Chickamauga Creek.

Chattanooga to Bentonville
Following Chickamauga, Thomas was given command of the Army of the Cumberland and John M. Palmer led the corps at the battle of Missionary Ridge and during the Atlanta Campaign. Richard W. Johnson briefly commanded the corps after Palmer's resignation in August 1864. Jefferson C. Davis took command of the corps and led it during the battle of Jonesboro. Following the fall of Atlanta, the XIV Corps was detached from the Army of the Cumberland and assigned to what became the Army of Georgia. Davis remained in command of the corps and fought at the Battle of Bentonville in 1865.

Corps Badge origin
This Corps's distinctive badge was in the shape of that of an acorn. The acorn was chosen to remind the men of their tough times in late 1863 when they were left in the wilderness without supplies and forced to survive on acorns.