Gutzon Borglum
Sheridan Circle on
Massachusetts Ave. & 23rd Street. Despite taking five years to
graduate West Point and an undistinguished career until the beginning of
the Civil War, Sheridan's first combat command led him to win the
critical Battle of Chattanooga in 1863. General Ulysses S Grant put him
in charge of cavalry for the Army of the Potomac in 1864 and he led the
raid on Richmond that ended in the death of Confederate general Jeb
Stuart. He defeated the Confederate troops in the Shenandoah Valley and
he destroyed the economic infrastructure of the Valley; the tactic he
used was called "the burning" and was one of the first uses of "scorched
earth" tactics used in war. In this capacity he led the army
to battle at Appomattox and, with Grant, compelled Gen. Robert E. Lee to
surrender, ending the Civil War. In 1884, he succeeded Sherman as
commander in chief of the Army. This statue is considered one of the
most dramatic in DC and was designed by Borglum, who is more famous for
conceiving of and executing the presidential memorials at Mount
Rushmore. The horse is Rienzi, later renamed Winchester in honor of
Sheridan's victory in Virginia against the Confederate Army. Rienzi is
stuffed and on display at the American History Museum.
Sheridan Drive in Arlington National
Cemetery partially encircles the area that contains the general's
gravesite.
That statue is free and open to the public 365 days a year.