Love Him or Hate Him - Dan is the Man

Think what you want about General Daniel E. Sickles. But you cannot deny that the man lived a storied life. A few highlights: he murdered his wife's lover in broad daylight in Washington City, then escaped punishment by utilizing a "temporary insanity" defense - the first in legal history. He nearly destroyed (or totally saved, depending on perspective) the Army of the Potomac on July 2, 1863 at Gettysburg by marching his corps way way out in front of the Union line of battle without orders - he lost his leg, and later won the Medal of Honor for gallantry. The one-legged Lothario even had a romantic tryst with Queen Isabella II of Spain...and may have dabbled with a few other ladies of the royal Spanish court - ¿Quien es mas guapo del mundo? Senior Dan. Today, May 3, is the 100th anniversary of Sickles's death. I was recently reading Glenn LaFantasie's book on Little Round Top and he made note of the ambiguous wording of one of Sickles's obituaries: "No one with warm blood flowing through his veins can read the obituary notices of Gen Sickles without a certain thrill of admiration." One cannot not readily tell whether the author celebrated the general's life or applauded his death. I'll leave it for you to decide.

With compliments,

Keith