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America’s Youngest Warriors – Children Who Fought for the US

Khalid Elhassan April 4, 2025 17 min

Children - US Army Sergeant John Lincoln Clem — US Army Sergeant John Lincoln Clem. Metropolitan Museum of Art

13. The Kid Who Saved a General’s Life

Contemporary depiction of Gustav Albert Schurmann and Tad Lincoln. Meta

After the Battle of Fredericksburg, Gustav Schurmann joined the staff of General Sickles, who promoted the then fourteen-year-old to sergeant for courage under fire. During a grand review of the Army of the Potomac in April, 1863, Gustav caught President Lincoln’s eye, as well as that of the president’s youngest son, Tad. The two children became fast friends, and Gustav was invited to the White House. Granted an extended furlough, he spent a happy period with Tad Lincoln and the president’s family. In the Battle of Chancellorsville, Gustav displayed conspicuous courage, for which he was awarded a medal. Soon thereafter, at the Battle of Gettysburg, he once again exhibited his bravery and coolness under fire when General Sickles’ leg was shattered by a cannonball. Applying a tourniquet to stanch the bleeding, young Gustav helped save the general’s life, and went back with him to the hospital, and thence to Washington.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.