Editing Albert Rust

{{Short description|American politician}}
{{for|the French footballer|Albert Rust (footballer)}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2017}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2017}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name            = Albert Rust
| image           = Albert Rust (Arkansas Congressman).jpg
| office          = Delegate from [[Arkansas]]<br />to the [[Provisional Congress of the Confederate States|Provisional Congress<br />of the Confederate States]]
| alongside       = {{unbulleted list|[[Robert Ward Johnson|Robert W. Johnson]]|[[Hugh French Thomason|H. F. Thomason]]|[[William Wirt Watkins|W. W. Watkins]]|[[Augustus Hill Garland|A. H. Garland]]}}
| term_start      = May 18, 1861
| term_end        = February 17, 1862
| predecessor     = ''New constituency''
| successor       = ''Constituency abolished''
| office2         = Member of the [[U.S. House of Representatives]] from [[Arkansas]]'s [[Arkansas's 2nd congressional district|2nd]] District
| term_start2     = March 4, 1859
| term_end2       = March 3, 1861
| predecessor2    = [[Edward A. Warren]]
| successor2      = ''None'' (1861–1868)<br />{{nowrap|[[James M. Hinds]] (Jun.–Oct. 1868)}}
| term_start3     = March 4, 1855
| term_end3       = March 3, 1857
| predecessor3    = Edward A. Warren
| successor3      = Edward A. Warren
| office4         = Member of the<br />[[Arkansas House of Representatives]]<br />from [[Union County, Arkansas|Union County]]
| alongside4      = {{unbulleted list|T. Bustian|A. T. Raney|D. Ross}}
| term_start4     = November 1, 1852
| term_end4       = November 6, 1854
| predecessor4    = {{unbulleted list|L. Murph|C. L. McRae|Shelton Watson}}
| successor4      = {{unbulleted list|B. R. Matthews|G. Newton|W. E. Powell|John Prince}}
| office6         = Member of the<br />[[Arkansas House of Representatives]]<br />from [[Union County, Arkansas|Union County]]
| term_start6     = November 7, 1842
| term_end6       = November 4, 1848
| predecessor6    = Hiram Smith
| successor6      = {{unbulleted list|M. Kesse|J. Reynolds|Shelton Watson}}
| order5          = 7th
| office5         = Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives
| governor5       = [[Thomas Stevenson Drew|Thomas S. Drew]]
| term_start5     = November 2, 1846
| term_end5       = November 4, 1848
| predecessor5    = [[John Selden Roane|John S. Roane]]
| successor5      = Edward A. Warren
| birth_date      = {{circa|1818|lk=yes}}
| birth_place     = [[Fauquier County, Virginia]], U.S.
| death_date      = {{death date and age|1870|04|04|1818}} 
| death_place     = [[Pulaski County, Arkansas]], U.S.
| death_cause     = [[Brain abscess]]
| party           = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| relatives       = Dr. [[George W. Rust]] (brother)
| allegiance      = [[Confederate States of America|Confederate States]]
| branch          = [[Confederate States Army]]
| branch_label    = [[Military branch|Branch]]
| rank            = [[Brigadier general|Brigadier-General]]
| serviceyears    = 1861–1865
| commands        = {{unbulleted list|[[3rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment (Confederate States)|3d Arkansas Infantry Regiment]] (1861–62)|Rust's Brigade (1862–63)}}
| battles         = {{tree list}}
* [[American Civil War]]
** [[Battle of Cheat Mountain]]
** [[Battle of Hancock]]
** [[Battle of Cotton Plant|Action at Hill's Plantation]]
** [[Second Battle of Corinth|Battle of Corinth]]
{{tree list/end}}
| battles_label   = Battles
}}
'''Albert Rust''' ({{circa|1818|lk=yes}}{{spaced ndash}}April 4, 1870) was an American politician and slaveholder,<ref name="WaPo 012022">{{cite news |last1=Weil |first1=Julie Zauzmer |last2=Blanco |first2=Adrian |last3=Dominguez |first3=Leo |title=More than 1,700 congressmen once enslaved Black people. This is who they were, and how they shaped the nation. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/interactive/2022/congress-slaveowners-names-list/ |access-date=30 January 2022 |newspaper=[[Washington Post]] |date=20 January 2022}}</ref> who served as a delegate from [[Arkansas]] to the [[Provisional Congress of the Confederate States]] from 1861 to 1862. A member of the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]], he was the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. representative]] from {{ushr|AR|2}} (1859–1861). He also served as a senior [[Officer (armed forces)|officer]] of the [[Confederate States Army]] who commanded [[infantry]] in the [[Eastern Theater of the American Civil War|Eastern]], [[Western Theater of the American Civil War|Western]], and [[Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War|Trans-Mississippi]] [[Theater (warfare)|theater]]s of the [[American Civil War]].

== Early life and career ==
Albert Rust was born [[Wiktionary:circa|circa]] 1818 in [[Fauquier County, Virginia|Fauquier County]], [[Virginia]], to William Rust and his wife Elizabeth; his exact birth date is not known. He was admitted to the bar in 1836 and the following year moved from Virginia to Arkansas, settling in [[Union County, Arkansas]].<ref>{{cite book |last=McPheeters |first=William M. |editor1-last=Pitcock |editor1-first=Cynthia DeHaven |editor2-last=Gurley |editor2-first=Bill J. |date=2005 |title=I Acted From Principle: The Civil War Diary Of Dr. William M. Mcpheeters, Confederate Surgeon In The Trans-Mississippi |publisher=[[University of Arkansas Press]] |page=353 |isbn=9781557287953 |ol=8598822M}}</ref> He bought land and a store near the river in 1837. By 1838, he held the U.S. government contract to survey land in the new state.<ref name="EoA">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Bridges |first=Kenneth |title=Albert Rust (1818–1870) |url=http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2552 |access-date=April 22, 2020 |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopedia of Arkansas]] |date=April 18, 2017 |publisher=[[Central Arkansas Library System|CALS]] |id=2552}}</ref> In 1839, the county seat was moved present day Champagnolle. His storehouse there, the only suitable building, became the courthouse.<ref name="EoA" />

Rust then read law and was admitted to the Arkansas bar. In 1842, he won a seat in the [[Arkansas House of Representatives]], where he was re-elected twice, and also elected 1852–1854. He ran in a special election for an open congressional seat in 1846. He won fourteen counties, yet got only third place. In 1852 he was elected Speaker Pro-Tempore of the Arkansas House of Representatives, a very powerful position. Two years later. [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrats]] nominated him for [[United States Congress]].<ref name="EoA" /> He won the general election and went to [[Washington, D.C.]]

In 1856, Rust drew public attention for his efforts to oppose [[Nathaniel P. Banks]] of Massachusetts, who appeared likely to become Speaker of the House. Banks opposed further extension of slave territory, unlike Rust and his constituents. According to the Rust family history, he introduced a resolution that he said was meant to enable a compromise in the speakership contest, but ''[[New York Tribune]]'' newspaperman [[Horace Greeley]] characterized Rust's resolution instead as an attempt to mislead the public about the principles involved and to oppose Banks's candidacy. After Congress adjourned, on the day the ''Tribune'' reached Washington, Rust accosted Greeley on the Capitol grounds and felled him with his cane. A few days later, Rust again struck Greeley again on the streets of Washington. According to longtime journalist [[Benjamin Perley Poore]], Rust, at his arraignment in court, "appeared to glory in what he had done," after which Greeley's "more stalwart friends took care that he should not be unaccompanied by a defender when he appeared in public."<ref name=Poore>[https://archive.org/details/perleysreminisce00poor/page/n464/mode/1up?view=theater Poore, Ben. Perley, ''Perley's Reminiscences of Sixty Years in the National Metropolis'', Vol.1, p.455 (1886)].</ref>

Rust showed little interest other than in military matters. He was not renominated; [[Edward A. Warren]] succeeded him. After working to regain his political reputation, Rust once again won a seat in the [[United States House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] in 1858. His interest in military affairs continued in his second term. A supporter of [[Stephen A. Douglas]] in the 1860 Presidential election and strong advocate for Union, Rust shifted his position after Lincoln's call for troops. In May 1861 [[Arkansas]] seceded from the Union, and he was named a delegate to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States.<ref name="EoA" />

== American Civil War ==
[[File:3rd Arkansas, Army of Northern Virginia Flag.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Military colours, standards and guidons|Regimental Color]] of the [[3rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment (Confederate States)|Third Arkansas]] (1862–1863)]]
Returning to Arkansas, Rust received a commission as  [[colonel]] on July 5, 1861, and assisted [[Van H. Manning]] in recruiting and organizing the [[3rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment (Confederate States)|3d Arkansas Infantry Regiment]].<ref name="Evans1899">{{cite book |last1=Harrell |first1=Col. John M. |author-link1=John M. Harrell |last2=Dimitry |first2=John |editor-last=Evans |editor-first=Clement A. |editor-link=Clement A. Evans |date=1899 |title=Confederate Military History: A Library of Confederate States History |url=https://archive.org/details/confederatemilit0010unse |volume=X |location=Atlanta |publisher=Confederate Publishing |pages=[https://archive.org/details/confederatemilit0010unse/page/414 414]-416 |oclc=833588}}</ref> The Third Arkansas would become Arkansas's most celebrated Civil War regiment and the only Arkansas regiment to be permanently assigned to General [[Robert E. Lee]]'s [[Army of Northern Virginia]].<ref name="Evans1899"/> In the fall of 1861, Rust and the Third Arkansas traveled to Western Virginia and took part in the [[Battle of Cheat Mountain]] under Lee. During that winter, he and the regiment were under the command of General [[Thomas J. Jackson|Stonewall Jackson]]. They would go on to serve in almost every major battle fought in the east, including the [[Battle of Gettysburg]], although mostly after Rust's promotion and transfer from the regiment.<ref name="Eicher2001">{{cite book |last=Eicher |first=David J. |author-link=David J. Eicher |date=2001 |title=The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War |url=https://archive.org/details/longestnightmili00eich |url-access=registration |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |pages=[https://archive.org/details/longestnightmili00eich/page/115 115]-116 |isbn=978-0-684-84944-7 |lccn=2001034153 |ol=3947143M}}</ref>

On March 4, 1862, Rust was promoted to brigadier-general and transferred back to Arkansas, where he was assigned to Lieutenant-General [[Earl Van Dorn]]'s [[Army of the West (1862)|Army of the West]].<ref name="Evans1899"/> He led troops at the [[Battle of Hill's Plantation]] in July 1862. After the [[Battle of Pea Ridge]], most Confederate States forces were removed from Arkansas and transferred east of the [[Mississippi River]].<ref name="Evans1899"/>

Rust fought at the [[Second Battle of Corinth|Battle of Corinth]], Mississippi in October. In April 1863, he was once again transferred back to Arkansas and placed under Major-General [[Sterling Price]] in the Trans-Mississippi Department.<ref name="Evans1899"/> He later served under Major-Generals [[Thomas C. Hindman]] in Arkansas and [[John Pemberton]] and [[Richard Taylor (Confederate general)|Richard Taylor]] in [[Louisiana]].<ref name="Eicher2001"/> <!-- He eventually lost his command based upon questions regarding his loyalty to the Confederate cause; he had become an outspoken and bold critic of the Confederate government, regularly expressing Unionist sentiments.{{citation needed|date=January 2017}} --> After his active military service, he moved to [[Austin, Texas]] to reunite with his family, who had abandoned their home in Arkansas during the Federal occupation and spent considerable time with his brother Dr. [[George W. Rust]] in Virginia.

== Later life and death ==
After the war Rust moved from his home in [[El Dorado, Arkansas]], across the [[Arkansas River]] from [[Little Rock, Arkansas|Little Rock]]. He returned to Washington as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and was even a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in 1869 before [[Congressional Reconstruction]] began and former Confederates were forbidden to hold elective office and he withdrew himself from candidacy. On April 3, 1870, he died in [[Pulaski County, Arkansas|Pulaski County]], [[Arkansas]], from a [[brain abscess]], while his wife and children were away visiting family in Virginia. His burial place is the subject of some dispute. Contemporary accounts state that he was buried at the historic [[Mount Holly Cemetery]] in Little Rock; his old Congressional biography reports his "interment in the Old Methodist Cemetery."<ref>[https://bioguideretro.congress.gov/Home/MemberDetails?memIndex=R000544 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress 1774-present]</ref> A new Congressional Biography reports he is buried in the Oakland and Fraternal Cemetery<ref>[https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/R000544 Congressional Biography Albert Rust 2023]</ref> at Little Rock.

== Personal life ==
Rust married Jane Carrington (1824-1847) of [[Charlotte County, Virginia]], on April 17, 1844, but she soon died, and was buried in Hervey Cemetery in Hempstead County, Arkansas. He then married Anne Bouldin Cabell, and at least three of their children (raised in Virginia during the American Civil War) would survive to adulthood: Julia Rust Tutwiler (1854-1923), Breckenridge Cabell Rust (1855-1892) and author Pauline Carrington Rust Bouve (1860-1928).

== See also ==
* [[List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)|List of Confederate States Army generals]]
* [[Fauquier County, Virginia#Notable people|List of people from Fauquier County, Virginia]]
* [[List of speakers of the Arkansas House of Representatives]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]]. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-8047-3641-1}}.
* Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. {{ISBN|978-0-8160-1055-4}}.
* {{CongBio|R000544}}
* [[Ezra J. Warner (historian)|Warner, Ezra J.]] ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. {{ISBN|978-0-8071-0823-9}}.
{{Div col end}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
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* {{find a Grave}}
* [http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/russen-ruther.html#209.25.86 Albert Rust] at [[The Political Graveyard]]
* {{Internet Archive author|name=Albert Rust}}
<!-- EDITORS NOTE: Please follow the [[WP:EL]] guideline where possible and consider discussing on the talk page. Thank you. -->

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{{U.S. Arkansas Representatives}}
{{Portal bar|American Civil War|Arkansas|Biography|Politics}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rust, Albert}}
[[Category:1810s births]]
[[Category:1870 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century American lawyers]]
[[Category:19th-century American planters]]
[[Category:19th-century members of the Arkansas General Assembly]]
[[Category:19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives]]
[[Category:3d Arkansas Infantry Regiment (Confederate States)]]
[[Category:American Civil War prisoners of war]]
[[Category:American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law]]
[[Category:American surveyors]]
[[Category:Arkansas lawyers]]
[[Category:Confederate States Army brigadier generals]]
[[Category:Deaths from brain abscess]]
[[Category:Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Arkansas]]
[[Category:Deputies and delegates to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States]]
[[Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Arkansas]]
[[Category:People from Desha County, Arkansas]]
[[Category:People from Fauquier County, Virginia]]
[[Category:People from Union County, Arkansas]]
[[Category:People of Arkansas in the American Civil War]]
[[Category:People pardoned by Andrew Johnson]]
[[Category:Speakers of the Arkansas House of Representatives]]