 Jackson complied with the order, but angry with direct interference from Richmond internal to his command, he filed charges for a court-martial against Loring and resigned his commission, asking in a letter to Governor John Letcher on January 31 to be transferred to the position of Superintendent of the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Virginia.Under pressure from his former commander General Joseph E. Johnston and from Governor Letcher, Jackson withdrew his resignation.The charges against Loring were dropped, however, and all non-Virginia forces, along with Loring, were reassigned out of the Valley District elsewhere, reducing Jackson's effective force to about 4,000 men.