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Ernst von Vegesack

Ernst von Vegesack (18 June 1820-12 January 1903) was a Swedish nobleman, politician, and Brigadier-General in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Biography[]

Ernst von Vegesack was born in Hemse, Gotland, Sweden in 1820 to an aristocratic family of German descent. He served in the Swedish Army and as a land surveyor in Saint Barthelemy in the Caribbean before traveling to the United States in 1861 to serve in the American Civil War. He served in the 58th Ohio Infantry Regiment before serving as an aide-de-camp to Daniel Butterfield during the Peninsula Campaign and distinguishing himself at the Battle of Gaines' Mill. Afterwards, he was given command of the 20th New York Infantry Regiment, and he distinguished himself at the Battle of Antietam. He resigned in June 1863, a month after the Battle of Chancellorsville, and he returned to Sweden and was awarded Sweden's highest medal for bravery. He rose in the ranks of the Swedish military before serving in the Riksdag from 1878 to 1887, and he died in Stockholm in 1903.

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