Colston, were VMI graduates as were more than twenty of his brigadiers and colonels.
==== Battle of New Market ====
On May 14, 1864, the governor of Virginia called upon the cadets from VMI to service. After marching overnight 80 miles (129 km) from Lexington to New Market, on May 15, 1864, 247 cadets then fought at the Battle of New Market, marking the only time in U.S. history wherein the student body of an operating college fought as an organized unit in pitched combat in battle (as recognized by the American Battlefield Trust).
General John C. Breckinridge, the commanding Southern general, had held the cadets in reserve and did not use them until Union troops broke through the Confederate lines. Upon seeing the tide of battle turning in favor of the Union forces, Breckinridge stated, "Put the boys in...and may God forgive me for the order." The VMI cadets held the line and eventually pushed forward across an open muddy field, capturing a Union artillery emplacement, and helping to secure victory for the …
