The Surgeon Who Refused to Surrender

 Dr. Francis Huebschmann at Gettysburg

The Union 2nd Corps Hospital,
Rock Creek, PA after the Battle of Gettysburg.

In the chaos of Gettysburg’s first day, as Union forces were driven from the town and Confederate troops surged through its streets, one man stood his ground—not with a rifle, but with a scalpel and a booming voice.

Dr. Francis Huebschmann, a German immigrant and surgeon with the 26th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment, found himself trapped behind enemy lines. But instead of fleeing, he stepped into the open fields and implored both sides to stop firing at the wounded.

A Surgeon of Principle

Born in Riethnordhausen, Germany, Huebschmann had come to Milwaukee in 1842 and quickly became a civic leader. He championed immigrant rights, served in the Wisconsin State Senate, and was appointed superintendent of Native American affairs. But when war came, he joined the Union Army as a surgeon, bringing his convictions to the battlefield. [1]

At Gettysburg, Huebschmann was surgeon in charge of the XI Corps, tending to the wounded in makeshift hospitals as the town fell to Confederate control. For three days, he remained with his patients, technically a prisoner, but never abandoning his post.

A Voice for Mercy

Barbara Franco’s Gettysburg Surgeons: Facing a Common Enemy [*] recounts Huebschmann’s dramatic plea: standing in the open, he called out to both Union and Confederate troops to cease fire on the wounded. His voice carried across the fields, a rare moment of shared humanity amid the bloodshed.

Remarkably, Confederate and Union surgeons cooperated in the aftermath, treating soldiers from both sides. Huebschmann’s actions weren’t just brave—they were emblematic of a deeper truth: That mercy could exist even in war’s darkest hour.

Legacy Beyond the Battlefield

After Gettysburg, Huebschmann continued to serve in major campaigns, including Chattanooga and Atlanta. He returned to Milwaukee and resumed his medical practice, helping shape postwar public health. His wartime experience, like that of many Civil War surgeons, helped shift medicine toward science and clinical observation. [1]

This is one of the millions of forgotten stories from the Irrepressible Conflict.

Mac

═══ ⚔ 𝑻𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒔 ⚑ ═══

[*] FYI: Barbara Franco's new book (2025) explores the experience of army surgeons - Union and Confederate - in a complicated, layered new telling of the three-day fight at Gettysburg. Read more at Stars and Stripes.

Works Cited

[1] Franco, Barbara (2025) Gettysburg Surgeons: Facing a Common Enemy in the Civil War’s Deadliest Battle. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books.