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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Major General · U.S. Army

Daniel Edgar Sickles

Major General Daniel Edgar Sickles, Army, received the Medal of Honor for actions on July 2, 1863 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War July 2, 1863

Major General Daniel Edgar Sickles, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on July 2, 1863 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with U.S. Volunteers. Sickles was 43 years old.

27 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on October 30, 1897, 34 years after the action.

Sickles was born on October 20, 1819 in New York, New York, New York. Sickles died on May 3, 1914 in New York, New York, at the age of 94. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

Sickles is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 678 credited to New York.

Official Medal of Honor citation

Displayed most conspicuous gallantry on the field vigorously contesting the advance of the enemy and continuing to encourage his troops after being himself severely wounded.

Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.

Battles and campaigns

Also served in: American Civil War.

Life beyond the battlefield

Source: Wikidata.

Places

  • Born: Manhattan — map
  • Died: Manhattan — map
  • Buried: Arlington National Cemetery — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in New York →

Timeline

  1. October 20, 1819
    Born in New York, New York, New York
  2. July 2, 1863
    Act of valor — Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
    Age 43. U.S. Volunteers
  3. October 30, 1897
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. May 3, 1914
    Died in New York, New York
    Age 94.
  5. Resting place
    Arlington National Cemetery
    Arlington, Virginia

Biography

Daniel Edgar Sickles (October 20, 1819 – May 3, 1914) was an American politician, Civil War veteran, and diplomat. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives both before and after the war. Sickles was involved in a number of scandals, most notably the 1859 homicide of his wife's lover, U.S. Attorney Philip Barton Key II. He was acquitted after using temporary insanity as a legal defense, the first time it was successfully used in United States history.

From the Wikipedia article “Daniel Sickles”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →

Further reading

Also honored for actions on July 2, 1863

Nathaniel M. Allen Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 CC Casper R. Carlisle Private · Army Civil War · 1863 Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Colonel · Army Civil War · 1863 Harrison Clark Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 John Barclay Fassett Captain · Army Civil War · 1863 Chester S. Furman Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 RG Richard J. Gage Private · Army Civil War · 1863 JH John William Hart Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 LH Lemuel F. Holland Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 TH Thomas Horan Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 GH George L. Houghton Private · Army Civil War · 1863 WJ Wallace W. Johnson Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863

See all 28 recipients for July 2, 1863 →

Same unit

Absalom Baird Brigadier General · Army Civil War · 1864 Daniel Adams Butterfield Brigadier General · Army Civil War · 1862 Newton Martin Curtis Brigadier General · Army Civil War · 1865 Lewellyn Garrish Estes Captain & Assistant Adjutant General · Army Civil War · 1864 Manning Ferguson Force Brigadier General · Army Civil War · 1864 GG George Edward Gouraud Captain & Aide-de-Camp · Army Civil War · 1864 Gabriel Grant Surgeon · Army Civil War · 1862 Oliver Otis Howard Brigadier General · Army Civil War · 1862

More Civil War recipients from New York

AP Alfred Peterson Seaman · Navy Civil War · 1862 Henry Sartwell Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 Edgar Pierpont Putnam Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 AB Andrew Bringle Corporal · Army Civil War · 1865 RS Richard Smith Private · Army Civil War · 1864 RJ Robert Jordan Coxswain · Navy Civil War · 1863
Sources. Service and award details compiled from the recipient record of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, Wikidata and Wikipedia. The narrative summary is generated from these records. Spotted an error? Send a correction.