Page "Henry Halleck" Paragraph 14

In Washington, Halleck continued to excel at administrative issues and facilitated the training, equipping, and deployment of thousands of Union soldiers over vast areas.

He was unsuccessful, however, as a commander of the field armies or as a grand strategist.

His cold, abrasive personality alienated his subordinates ; one observer described him as a " cold, calculating owl.

" Historian Steven E. Woodworth wrote, " Beneath the ponderous dome of his high forehead, the General would gaze goggle-eyed at those who spoke to him, reflecting long before answering and simultaneously rubbing both elbows all the while, leading one observer to quip that the great intelligence he was reputed to possess must be located in his elbows.

" This disposition also made him unpopular with the Union press corps, who criticized him frequently.