Battle of Cedar Mountain - Civil War - Northern Virginia Campaign

Battle of Cedar Mountain - Civil War - Northern Virginia Campaign Battle of Cedar Mountain - Conflict Date: The Battle of Cedar Mountain was fought August 9, 1862, during the American Civil War (1861-1865). Armies Commanders Union Major General Nathaniel Banks8,030 men ​Confederates Major General Thomas Stonewall Jackson16,868 men Battle of Cedar Mountain - Background: In late June 1862, Major General John Pope was appointed to command the newly formed Army of Virginia. Consisting of three corps, this formation was tasked with driving into central Virginia and relieving pressure on Major General George B. McClellans beleaguered Army of the Potomac which was engaged with Confederate forces on the Peninsula. Deploying in an arc, Pope placed Major General Franz Sigels I Corps along the Blue Ridge Mountains at Sperryville, while Major General Nathaniel Banks II Corps occupied Little Washington. An advance force from Banks command, led by Brigadier General Samuel W. Crawford, was posted to the soth at Culpeper Court House. In the east, Major General Irvin McDowells III Corps held Falmouth. With the defeat of McClellan and the Union withdrawal to the James River after the Battle of Malvern Hill, Confederate General Robert E. Lee turned his attention to Pope. On July 13, he dispatched Major General Thomas Stonewall Jackson north with 14,000 men. This was followed by an additional 10,000 men led by Major General A.P. Hill two weeks later. Taking the initiative, Pope began driving south towards the key rail junction of Gordonsville on August 6. Assessing the Union movements, Jackson elected to advance with the goal of crushing Banks and then defeating Sigel and McDowell in turn. Pushing towards Culpeper on August 7, Jacksons cavalry swept aside their Union counterparts. Alerted to Jacksons actions, Pope ordered Sigel to reinforce Banks at Culpeper. Battle of Cedar Mountain - Opposing Positions: While waiting for Sigels arrival, Banks received orders to maintain a defensive position on the high ground above Cedar Run, approximately seven miles south of Culpeper. Favorable ground, Banks deployed his men with Brigadier General Christopher Augers division on the left. This was composed of Brigadier Generals Henry Prince and John W. Gearys brigades which were placed on the left and right respectively. While Gearys right flank was anchored on the Culpeper-Orange Turnpike, Brigadier General George S. Greenes under-strength brigade was held in reserve. Crawford formed to the north across the turnpike, while Brigadier General George H. Gordons brigade arrived to anchor the Union right. Pushing across the Rapidan River on the morning of August 9, Jackson advanced with three divisions led by Major General Richard Ewell, Brigadier General Charles S. Winder, and Hill. Around noon, Ewells lead brigade, led by Brigadier General Jubal Early, encountered the Union line. As the remainder of Ewells men arrived, they extended the Confederate line south towards Cedar Mountain. As Winders division came up, his brigades, led by Brigadier General William Taliaferro and Colonel Thomas Garnett, deployed on Earlys left. While Winders artillery rolled into position between the two brigades, Colonel Charles Ronalds Stonewall Brigade was held back as a reserve. The last to arrive, Hills men were also retained as a reserve behind the Confederate left (Map). Battle of Cedar Mountain - Banks on the Attack: As the Confederates deployed, an artillery duel ensued between Banks and Earlys guns. As the firing began taper around 5:00 PM, Winder was mortally wounded by a shell fragment and command of his division passed to Taliaferro. This proved problematic as he was ill-informed as to Jacksons plans for the impending battle and was still in the process forming his men. In addition, Garnetts brigade was separated from the main Confederate line and Ronalds troops had yet to come up in support. As Taliaferro struggled to take control, Banks began an assault on the Confederate lines. Badly beaten by Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley earlier in the year, he was eager to obtain retribution despite being outnumbered. Surging forward, Geary and Prince slammed into the Confederate right prompting Early to return from Cedar Mountain to take personal command of the situation. To the north, Crawford attacked Winders disorganized division. Striking Garnetts brigade in the front and flank, his men shattered the 1st Virginia before rolling up 42nd Virginia. Advancing into the Confederate rear, the increasingly disorganized Union forces were able to push back the lead elements of Ronalds brigade. Arriving on the scene, Jackson attempted to rally his former command by drawing his sword. Finding that it had rusted in the scabbard from lack of use, he instead waved both. Battle of Cedar Mountain - Jackson Strikes Back: Successful in his efforts, Jackson sent the Stonewall Brigade forward. Counterattacking, they were able to drive back Crawfords men. Pursuing the retreating Union soldiers, the Stonewall Brigade became overextended and was forced to retreat as Crawfords men regained some cohesion. Despite this, their efforts permitted Jackson to restore order to the entire Confederate line and bought time for Hills men to arrive. With his full force on hand, Jackson ordered his troops to advance. Pushing forward, Hills division was able to overwhelm Crawford and Gordon. While Augers division mounted a tenacious defense, they were forced to retreat following Crawfords withdrawal and an attack on their left by Brigadier General Isaac Trimbles brigade. Battle of Cedar Mountain - Aftermath: Though Banks attempted to use Greenes men to stabilize his line, the effort failed. In a last gasp attempt to rescue the situation, he directed part of his cavalry to charge the advancing Confederates. This attack was repulsed with heavy losses. With darkness falling, Jackson elected not to conduct a long pursuit of Banks retreating men. The fighting at Cedar Mountain saw Union forces sustain 314 killed, 1,445 wounded, and 594 missing, while Jackson lost 231 killed and 1,107 wounded. Believing that Pope would attack him in force, Jackson remained near Cedar Mountain for two days. Finally learning that the Union general had concentrated at Culpeper, he elected to withdraw back to Gordonsville. Concerned about Jacksons presence, Union general-in-chief Major General Henry Halleck directed Pope to assume a defensive posture in northern Virginia. As a result, Lee was able to take the initiative after containing McClellan. Coming north with the remainder of his army, he inflicted decisive defeat on Pope later that month at the Second Battle of Manassas. Selected Sources Civil War Trust: Battle of Cedar MountainFriends of Cedar Mountain CWSAC Battle Summaries: Battle of Cedar Mountain

How to Find the Gemini Constellation

How to Find the Gemini Constellation The Gemini constellation is one of the most ancient known star patterns. People have been observing it since earliest human history, and it was first charted by the Greek-Egyptian astronomer Claudius Ptolemy as part of his sky mapping activities. The name Gemini is the Latin word meaning twins, and most star-chart makers depict the stars in this constellation as a pair of twin boys.   Finding Gemini Constellation Look for Gemini in the sky near the constellations Orion (which has some fascinating sights of its own) and Taurus. For northern hemisphere viewers, its a winter star pattern and its two brightest stars, Castor and Pollux, are part of an unofficial asterism called the Winter Hexagon. That pattern contains six bright stars from the constellations Gemini, Orion, Canis Major, Canis Minor, and Taurus. Gemini looks like two long strings of stars extending down from Castor and Pollux, which are the heads of the twins. The easiest way to find it is to look for Castor and Pollux east of the vee-shaped Hyades cluster, which makes up the face of Taurus the Bull. The best views of this star pattern are available when it is straight overhead early in the new year. It remains visible until late spring, when it disappears into the sunset glow.   The Winter Hexagon is made up of the brightest stars from the constellations Orion, Gemini, Auriga, Taurus, Canis Major and Canis Minor. Carolyn Collins Petersen The Story of Gemini The mythology of the ancient Greeks and the Babylonians concerned a pair of twins in the sky.  For the Babylonians, these boys were in the realm of the gods, and they called them Meshlamtea and Lugalirra. They were related to a more important god, named Nergal, who presided over the Underworld and was thought to bring about all kinds of misfortune, disease, and other ills. The Greeks and Romans called these stars after the twin sons of Zeus and the maiden Leda. The Chinese saw a bird and a tiger in these stars. The modern constellation of the twins was set by Ptolemy and formalized by later stargazers. The formal area of the sky that contains the twins was set by the International Astronomical Union and contains other stars beyond the main ones, plus nearby deep-sky objects.   The Stars of Constellation Gemini Gemini constellation is dominated by the bright stars Castor and Pollux. These are also known as ÃŽ ± (alpha) Geminorum (Castor) and ÃŽ ² (beta) Geminorum (Pollux). Castor may look like only one star, but in reality, it contains six stars in orbit with each other. It  lies some 52 light-years from Earth. Twin brother Pollux is an orange giant star that lies about 34 light-years away from the Sun. Pollux also has at least one planet in orbit around it.   The official chart showing the stars of the constellation Gemini, provided by the IAU. IAU/Sky Telescope.com   Stargazers who want to explore other stars in Gemini might find ÃŽ µ (epsilon) Geminorum, which is interesting since its a binary star that can be seen through telescopes. One member of the pair is also a Cepheid variable star that brightens and dims with a period of about 10 days.   Deep-Sky Objects in Gemini Constellation Gemini isnt enriched with a lot of deep-sky objects. This is because its situated away from the plane of the Milky Way, where most of the clusters and nebulae exist. However, there are a few things that observers can search out in the constellation. The first is a star cluster called M35.  Its what astronomers call an open cluster. That means that its stars are fairly scattered through space but are still traveling together. There are about 200 stars in M35, and this cluster can be seen with the naked eye from dark-sky sights. Its also a lovely sight through binoculars or a telescope. Look for it near Castors foot.   The open star cluster M35 (lower right) in the constellation Gemini. 2MASS/NASA.   Skygazers up for a challenge can also search out two dim planetary nebulae in Gemini. These are clouds of gas that have formed around dying sun-like stars. The first is the Eskimo Nebula (also known as NGC 2392).  It has been imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope and is about 4,000 light-years from Earth.  Search it out by looking just to the left of Polluxs waist (marked 2392 on the chart). The other object is called the Medusa Nebula, and its a real challenge to see.  Search for it along the border with Canis Minor, below Polluxs knee. The Eskimo Nebula in Gemini, as seen by Hubble Space Telescope. NASA/ESA/STScI   Finally, meteor shower fans spend each December 13-14 observing the Geminid Meteor shower. Its a shower created by a stream of material left behind by the asteroid 3200 Phaethon as it orbits the Sun. The meteors are not actually from Gemini, but they appear to radiate from the constellation. In a good year, observers can spot upwards of 100 or so meteors per hour from this shower.   Gemini in Modern Culture As a starry constellation, Gemini has appeared in both space science and astronomy, as well as science fiction. NASAs Gemini missions were named for this star pattern because they each carried two astronauts to space. The Gemini Observatory has two domes, one in Hawaii and one in Chile, both inspired by the starry twins. Finally, science fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein named two of his teenaged characters after the two bright stars Castor and Pollux.

Executive Briefing Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Executive Briefing Paper - Essay Example Mentorship is not new to Burberry, although its experience is largely external, philanthropic, and along the line of corporate social responsibility. Presently, the Company is a corporate sponsor of IntoUniversity, a charity organisation dedicated to educating the youth through mentoring. Through its local learning centres, some of Burberry’s employees and managers are already dedicating time and effort as volunteers mentors and e-mentors, to Britain’s poor but deserving ‘young people [who] are inspired to learn’ (IntoUniversity, 2010). In 2011 alone, Burberry associates volunteered 5,500 hours of mentoring. For one particular Burberry associate, more than 200 young students were mentored globally in programmes ranging from three months to three years (Burberry Annual Report 2011/12, p. 64). Recent studies have highlighted the use of internal mentoring, as a technique to improve performance and enhance competitiveness. It is believed that by adopting intern al mentoring, the firm will benefit competitively. II. Proposition This paper proposes that Burberry engage in internal mentoring throughout the organisation until the highest levels, in order to enhance its competitiveness. Mentoring is seen as a tool not only for implementing social development programs external to the firm, but is also perceived as an effective instrument in pursuing the company’s strategic goal of remaining competitive. The viability of mentoring in Burberry will be discussed. III. Theoretical background Mentoring is ‘an intense and complex relationship where the mentor plays the role of peer and parent’ and functions as ‘teacher, advisor, sponsor, and friend’ (Ehrich & Hansford, 1999, p.93). Academic literature states that mentoring improves individual behaviour and performance, particularly in the training and encouragement of the young. However, the impact of mentoring on firm behaviour and outcomes has not been established, p articularly in the highest policy levels. Offstein, Shah and Gnyawali (2011) propose a model whereby the board of directors (BOD) mentors the chief executive officer (CEO), for the purpose of improving the CEO’s ability and motivation to ‘competitively engage the firm’ (p. 75). In the diagram that follows, the mentoring role of the BOD is depicted in terms of sponsorship, protection, and coaching or counselling. By providing legitimacy, a proper sense of discretion and risk-taking, and knowledge and learning, the mentoring exercise is expected to lead towards a greater firm competitiveness. Competitive behaviour is defined by their magnitude and complexity. Source: Offstein, Shah and Gnyawali, 2011, p. 80 According to the theory by Offstein, et al. (2011), competitive actions are ‘purposefully directed, specific, and observable.’ The model adheres to the principle that companies that undertake bold and complex competitive actions benefit as a result, because such actions disturb the status quo and establish new rules by which the competitive stage is reset. According to Schumpeter (1934) in his seminal study, first mover advantage (i.e., the advantage of being the first firm to undertake an innovation that defines a new competitive environment) generates abnormally high profits, until such time as other firms catch up and themselves pursue innovative actions in an effort to overcome the market leader. From the executive levels, mentoring by CEO to his division heads, and from them to the

ORGANISATIONS, PEOPLE AND PERFORMANCE POST MODULE ASSIGNMENT

ORGANISATIONS, PEOPLE AND PERFORMANCE POST MODULE - Assignment Example By achieving these HR competencies, it will then be easy for Samsung to overcome most of the issues it is having. Talent management Talent management is a central part of any strategic business management (Deb, 2005). Samsung should include this as part of its HR strategy. Talent management will be managed by a process of hunting for talent and nurturing talent as a way to make sure that the firm will have a good pool of talent with regard to all its human resource areas. This will be important especially for the technical departments such as engineering in order to guarantee that Samsung will always be ahead of its competitors in producing the best technologies. It will also be important for the other departments because as Silzer and Dowell (2009) say, a formidable human resource is necessary for an organization to be competent in any industry. Training Training is the base of any human strategy and should be taken seriously if the organization is to be able to manage its employees (Brewster, Mayrhofer and Morley, 2004). It is training and recruitment that offers the organization an opportunity to get the kind of employees that they want. It also helps in training ordinary employees into competent managers and this means that the organization does not have to look outside for managers (Pynes and Lombardi, 2011). Figure 1.1, from: http://www.hrps.org/blogpost/736528/HR-Management-Strategies Samsung needs to look at the various ways in which it can develop its training program in order to get the best employees. Well planned training will help Samsung to have employees who will; Be ethical in their conduct thus avoiding issues such as copyright infringement. One of the issues that Samsung has had in the past is the fact that it has been involved in copyright infringement. This is something that reduced the strategic position of the organization due to the legal issues and the negative publicity which the firm gets from such. As a result, recruitment and trainin g of employees in the firm should be done with this in mind. Issues such as copyright infringement are as a result of inadequate human resource. It is also an indication that the firm is having poor talent and therefore not being able to develop its own portfolio (Nejati et al, 2008). This has also been seen in the fact that Samsung does not have an operating system for most of its products. As a result, this makes Samsung to have a weaker strategic position compared to its major competitor, Apple, that has an own operating system for its product and never has to use third-party products. By training the right people, it will be easier for Samsung to be able to have people who can be innovative and productive enough to deal with these issues. There are other issues which need to be considered with regard to Samsung’s human resource. These include the commitment of the employees. As Kumar (2010) says, it is hard for an organization to be able to have a competent human resource if the employees are not highly committed to the organization. In this case, Samsung will have to focus on increasing the commitment of the employees. This will help the organization to be able to improve its talent management and to make sure that there is enough talent in the organization

Learning to Listen in James Baldwins Sonnys Blues Essay -- Sonnys B

Learning to Listen in James Baldwin's Sonny's Blues In James Baldwin's "Sonny's Blues", the verb, to listen, is employed many times in varying contexts. This theme is developed throughout the story as the narrator learns to listen more closely to the aural stimuli (or sounds) which enter his ears. In order to understand the narrator's heightened degree of perception as it unfolds in "Sonny's Blues", it is necessary to begin with a thorough discussion of hearing and listening in general, and then as they relate to the story. First, one must understand the distinction between hearing and listening. Hearing is simply the reception of sound waves by the ears. This may happen unconsciously, as is usually the case with soft background noise such as the whoosh of air through heating ducts or the distant murmur of an electric clothes dryer. Sometimes hearing is done semi-consciously; for instance, the roar of a piece of construction equipment might momentarily draw one's attention. Conscious hearing, or listening, involves a nearly full degree of mental concentration. A familiar i...

Great Gatsby Point of View Analysis Essay

A narrator, by definition, is how an author chooses to portray information to readers in their work. An author’s choice, in how to tell a story is ideal to the effect it has on readers. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s timeless classic The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway tells the entire story as a first-person, peripheral narrator. Fitzgerald purposefully chooses Nick as a partially removed character, with very few emotions and personal opinions. By doing so, readers experience the same ambiguity of other character’s thoughts, are carried smoothly throughout the plot, and Nick’s nonjudgmental character lets readers form opinions of their own. To begin with, because Nick is merely another character in the unfolding tragedy readers can never see into other characters’ minds. Other characters’ thoughts and opinions are completely unknown. Readers are forced to use their imaginations to figure out what characters are thinking. For example, readers are left just as clueless and curious as Nick himself when Gatsby declares: â€Å"I’m going to make a big request of you to-day, so I thought you ought to know something about me. I didn’t want you to think I was just some nobody. You see, I usually find myself among strangers because I drift here and there trying to forget the sad thing that happened to me. You’ll hear about it this afternoon. † (67) This is an effective example of the narrator giving the story depth and suspense because readers are left intrigued by this statement and no hints, given by thoughts of characters, is revealed. Carraway being ignorant to other character’s thoughts is effective in the portrayal of Gatsby’s tale; because half of the intrigue of the story of Gatsby’s downfall is his mysterious manner. If readers were able to understand Daisy’s or Gatsby’s personal thoughts, there would be no suspense in the outcome of the novel. Nick happens to be rather clueless about Daisy, Tom, and Gatsby’s true feelings, which is why he makes such an excellent narrator The fact that Nick is a legitimate character in the story, who is present at all the key events in the novel, helps carry the plot along smoothly and in a timely manner. It also allows readers to better understand how one would feel if placed in these situations. Nick provides an intimate relationship between readers and the setting, because although he rarely provides personal opinions, it is understood that he feels awkward in the majority of the dramatic scenes he is involved in. To continue, all of the action in the book occurs in a few, key scenes, all of which Nick witnesses, it helps Fitzgerald portray action in a straight-forward way; there is no need to go in-depth about emotions, he simply uses dialogue between characters and details about the setting to help readers understand what’s going on, and let them infer how certain characters are feeling. The best example of Nick’s aloof description of a key even is at the Manhattan apartment, when tom hits myrtle, â€Å"Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand. The there were bloody towels upon the bathroom floor, and women’s voices scolding, and high over the confusion a long broken wail of pain. Mr. McKee awoke from his doze and started in a daze toward the door. When he had gone halfway he turned around and stared at the scene—his wife and Catherine scolding and consoling as they stumbled here and there among the crowded furniture with articles of aid, and the despairing figure on the couch, bleeding fluently, and trying to spread a copy of Town Tattle over the tapestry scenes of Versailles. Then Mr. McKee turned and continued on out the door. Taking my hat from the chandelier, I followed. † (37) Clearly, by using Nick as an involved, yet aloof, and purely logical narrator, the author is able to concisely tell the story without confusing or overwhelming readers; and is able to give as much information as necessary while giving readers space for imagination. Besides ignorance to thought, Nick being a practical, peripheral narrator, provides little to no, personal opinion. Although it could be argued that this is a negative quality for a narrator, Fitzgerald made sure he gives nothing away, nor forces any opinions on the readers. He leaves all final opinions in the hands of readers, which makes the novel such an interesting topic because of the variety of interpretations available. Nick never judges any of the characters for their immoral actions and poses as an innocent, reserved bystander. This leaves final judgment open to opinion, which is why The Great Gatsby can appeal to so many different audiences. At the end of the novel, Fitzgerald includes the statement â€Å"one gentleman to whom I telephoned implied that he had got what he deserved† (169) in reference to Gatsby’s death, which leaves readers to choose a side, whether readers should pity Gatsby, or if one has the right to believe that his unlawfulness lead to his own demise. Overall, Fitzgerald obviously put a great amount of thought in choosing Nick Carraway, and innocent, exclusive, yet completely ever-present character as the narrator of the story. Because of Nick’s circumstance and character, the novel is most effective in entertaining readers because the readers are left curious about character’s feelings, are shown the plot in a smooth manner, and are capable of forming individual opinions. In the end, point of view is extremely important in the appeal of a novel and F. Scott Fitzgerald shows his talent by choosing Nick Carraway to tell the traumatic tale of The Great Gatsby.

The Cape Cod House Style in Pictures and Text