James Chesnut | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States from South Carolina | |
| In office February 4, 1861 – February 17, 1862 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Constituency abolished |
| United States Senator from South Carolina | |
| In office December 3, 1858 – November 10, 1860 | |
| Preceded by | Arthur P. Hayne |
| Succeeded by | Thomas J. Robertson (1868) |
| President of the South Carolina Senate | |
| In office December 10, 1856 – December 3, 1858 | |
| Preceded by | Robert F. W. Allston |
| Succeeded by | William Porter |
| Member of the South Carolina Senate from the Kershaw County district | |
| In office November 22, 1852 – December 3, 1858 | |
| Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from the Kershaw County district | |
| In office November 25, 1850 – December 16, 1851 | |
| In office November 23, 1840 – December 15, 1845 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 18, 1815 Camden, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | February 1, 1885 (aged 70) Camden, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
| Other political affiliations | Conservative |
| Spouse | |
| Education | Princeton University (LLB) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Confederate States |
| Branch/service | Confederate States Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1865 |
| Rank | Brigadier General |
| Battles/wars | |
James Chesnut Jr. (January 18, 1815 – February 1, 1885) was an American lawyer and politician, and a Confederate functionary.
Chesnut, a lawyer prominent in South Carolina state politics, served as a Democratic senator in 1858–60, where he proved moderate on the slavery question. But on Lincoln's election in 1860, Chesnut resigned from the U.S. Senate and took part in the South Carolina secession convention, later helping to draft the Confederate States Constitution. He was Deputy from South Carolina to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1862. He also served as a senior officer of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.
As aide to General P.G.T. Beauregard, he ordered the firing on Fort Sumter and served at First Manassas. Later he was aide to Jefferson Davis and promoted to Brigadier-General. Chesnut returned to law practice after the war.
His wife was Mary Boykin Chesnut, whose published diaries reflect the Chesnuts' busy social life and prominent friends such as John Bell Hood, Louis T. Wigfall, Wade Hampton III, and Jefferson Davis.