Photo by cliff1066
Rienzi came from the Grand Rapids area in Michigan, and is reputed to have been “over seventeen hands in height” which is very unusual for a Morgan. He came from the Black Hawk line (grandson of the original Justin Morgan horse). Black Hawk’s dam, Saunders Mare, was a 16 hand Thoroughbred which may explain Rienzi’s height.
He was presented as a three year old to General Sheridan in spring of 1862, shortly before the general’s raid on Rienzi, Mississippi, from which the horse got his original name. He was a powerful black gelding with three white socks. His deep chest, strong body and intelligence were typical of his breed, as well as his high head carriage. Rienzi's quickness made him appear rash, but he had the reputation of being calm and well-behaved under fire, and Sheridan had no trouble controlling his impressive mount.
Photo by dbking: for interesting information on this statue click here.
Rienzi’s name was changed to “Winchester” after the battle of Cedar Creek on October 19th 1864. Sheridan was on his way back from a staff meeting in Washington when he heard that his men had been attacked at Cedar Creek, 12 miles from Winchester. (General G.W. Forsyth, Sheridan’s aide-de-camp, writes that the distance was “a little less than nineteen miles” in his description of the incident in Scribner’s Magazine.) Rienzi’s speed carried the general to his troops in time to lead his men to victory.
The horse is immortalized in sculptures, paintings and poems, among the latter being Thomas Buchanan Read’s “Sheridan’s Ride.” After the war he lived in comfort with Sheridan in Chicago, dying at age nineteen in 1878.
Winchester’s stuffed body is on display at the Smithsonian’s American History Museum, and there is a statue of him at the Sheridan Circle, 23rd and Massachusetts NW.
Sources:
Horse Statues in Washington.DC
For a list of books on Civil War Horses click here
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