McKenzie Laughton
Arkansas History
Confederate Guerrilla In the memoir Confederate Guerrilla, a story of Joseph M. Bailey’s time in the confederate army during the civil war, there are many interesting points that describe what being in the confederate army meant. Joseph speaks of the things he felt, such as the feeling pride as his company 's flag, which was made by his sister, was chosen as the regimental colors along with the greater pride of him becoming a sergeant and named regimental color bearer or the regret of burning houses and killing men. Mostly he speaks in terms of what was going on during key points of his service. There are three key turning points that Joseph Bailey goes through, those points being the Battle at Pea Ridge,
During a surprize raid they tried to attempt on the union army, the confederate army fired until they ran out of ammunition along with the other side. Bailey feeling a surge of victory rushed them, demanding them to surrender only to be shot in the chest. At this point Bailey gave up on his hope of life and winning that battle. He begins to think about his regrets but never fearing what is to become of him until he thinks of being in his enemy 's hands. That is when he cries out for help and begs for his life, but unfortunately is taken by the enemies. Due to the severity of his wound they only treat him as soon to be dead and due to the fact that there was a man he knew in that army he got to be cared for in a cabin near his father’s home. Once rescued and cared for by family he received notice from a doctor that he didn’t have long to live. He at first accepted his fate but as time went on he only healed and was back to normal. Joseph Bailey learnt that becoming too cocky will result in one 's downfall and that even when times are rough and all hope is lost, good things will happen refilling one with hope, along with the compassion he shows his own prisoners
The condition of their clothing, food, and the scarce pay played a part in the downfall of the army, examples being soldiers without shoes, almost inedible food covered with insects, and pay every two months. Upon hearing news of General Lee’s surrender the remaining confederate camps were filled with a depressed atmosphere, talk of disbandment went around but they still continued their farce while trying to gain rides for themselves only to end up surrendering. Having surrendered, Bailey attempts to head home after recovering from his illness all while running into compassionate people who helped him out on his journey home. The surrendering gave Joseph Bailey time to reflect on his journey and realize just what he went through. Not only does he witness several acts of “barbaric cruelty” but he also witnesses the self-sacrifices of many heroic men and people’s many acts of compassion (pg 66). His lesson was to never forget any act of any sorts, whether it be out of cruelty of kindness because those acts are what makes life memorable and worth defending.
The reliability of this writing is a bit on the skeptical side. There are a couple reasonings behind why this work isn’t one-hundred percent historically reliable. One being that this is the recollections from Bailey many many years after the war had finished. Memory tends to fail people and isn’t always
It is 1865, and the war between the states has just ended. Booth’s rage is peaking as he recalls Union General Ulysses Grant’s participation in the fall of the Confederacy….
The Valley Campaign of the Shenandoah Valley of 23 March to 9 June 1862 saw the rise of the Confederate Major General (MG) Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson. The Shenandoah Valley campaign allowed for MG Jackson to incorporate the principles of maneuver, offensive and surprise operations (US Army Center of Military History, 2012) through the use of his cavalry and foot soldiers.
The book “For Cause and Comrades: Why Men Fought In The Civil War” by James M. McPherson examines the motivations of the soldiers who fought in the Civil War. McPherson wanted to understand why the men fought in the Civil War and why they fought so ferociously for such a large amount of time even though there was a huge possibility of death, disease and injurys.To answer the question regarding the reasons why men fought in the Civil War so viciously, and for such a long period of time, James McPherson studied countless amounts of letters, diaries and other mails that were written or sent by the soldiers who fought in the Civil War.
The book begins with an in-depth explanation of what happened in the latter stages of the Civil War. Major battles like Sayler’s Creek, High Bridge and Richmond are described through detailed language. For instance, at High Bridge, “Each man wages his own individual battle with a ferocity only a life-and-death situation can bring. Bullets pierce eyes. Screams and curses fill the air. The grassy plain runs blood red.” (page 61). All of these iconic Civil War battles led up to the Confederate surrender at the Appomattox Courthouse and the inescapable rebuilding of a new nation Abraham Lincoln had to deal with. Next, John Wilkes Booth is introduced and his pro-Confederate motives are made clear. His conspiracy to kill the president is described and his co-conspirators like Lewis Powell, David Herold, and George Atzerodt who also attempted to kill Secretary of State Seward a...
What happened at Andersonville was a repercussion of the Confederacy’s inability, not on the inability of Henry Wirz. Bibliography Denny, Robert. A. Civil War Prisons and Escapes. New York, New York: Sterling Publishing Company, 1993. Futch, Ovid.
The Confederate jobs, wealth, and property (including slaves) were at stake. “Confederates fought for independence, for their property and way of life, for their very survival as a nation” (McPherson, 27). For this reason, dedication for the cause was strong for Confederates. A collection of letters from Civil War soldiers online, alongside with McPherson’s evidence, shows the patriotism and dedication to their nation and slaves. Confederates stood behind each other and were dedicated to having their own nation; one soldier stated, “that if he was killed, it would be while ‘fighting gloriously for the undying principles of Constitutional liberty and self government’” (McPherson, 11). Private Street, while on his death bed, wrote to his wife: "we must never dispair, for death is preferable to a life spent under the gaulling yoke of abolition rule" (Street, 1862). The reasons that fueled Confederate soldiers were the very practices that they strived on in everyday life; these soldiers naturally had dedication, but patriotism towards their nation and brotherhood is universal between the letters presented, and helped unify the Confederacy.
In Joseph Plumb Martin’s account of his experiences in the Revolutionary War he offers unique insight into the perspective of a regular soldier, which differs from the views of generals and leaders such as popular characters like George Washington. Martin’s narrative is an asset to historical scholarship as a primary source that gives an in-depth look at how life in the army was for many young men during the War for Independence. He described the tremendous suffering he experienced like starvation and privation. He did not shy away from describing his criticism of the government who he believes did not adequately care for the soldiers during and after the war. While he may be biased because of his personal involvement as a soldier, he seems to relate accounts that are plausible without embellishment or self-aggrandizement. Overall, “A Narrative of A Revolutionary Soldier” is a rich source of information providing an overview of military experience during the war.
A Confederate soldier on the wall at the Heights recollected seeing, “…Single bodies…scattered at increased distances until the main mass of the dead lay thickly strewn over the ground.” The Confederates deliberate defensive positions on the hill were just too intense for the Potomac forces to penetrate. Despite the failing state of his plan, Burnside continued to send division after division up the hill until nightfall. No one made it past that well defended wall. Burnside’s inability to assess the battle and alter his plan contributed to the slaughter of thousands of Federal soldiers.
Henry Steele Commager’s essay “The Defeat of the Confederacy: An Overview” is more summary than argument. Commager is more concerned with highlighting the complex causality of the war’s end rather than attempting to give a definitive answer. Commager briefly muses over both the South’s strengths
The first chapter of his book titled “Old, Unhappy, Far-off Things” gives Keegan’s recognition to the fact that historians do not focus enough on actual soldiers. To explain this further, what Keegan is saying is that a historian puts things in a pack of sequential dates and times; but to the soldier, these things happen very rapidly and many times without planning. Keegan continues on to make note that when a historian puts together the pain-staking task of compilation of facts, the information is put down on paper as the writer’s view of how the facts unfolded and not from the soldier’s perspective.
The American Civil War is perhaps the most important event in U.S. history since the American Revolution. Over half a million men would perish between the Union and Confederate Armies. It is important to know that Ulysses S. Grant was an important figure (perhaps the most important behind Abraham Lincoln) in the war. Many will see him as the hero of the American Civil War. Nevertheless there were others who would play an important role to help the Union win the Civil War. The implementation of black soldiers was crucial to the Union in order to achieve victory against the Confederate Army. Yet, the contributions and accomplishments of black soldiers during the Civil War were overlooked for nearly a century following the Civil War. However, within the last 30 years, many scholars and historians have begun to publish books on the history of black soldiers and their contributions to the Civil War. During the Civil War, free blacks were permitted to serve in the Union Army. But it was not until 1863, that black soldiers would see combat and charge against the confederate armies. It is estimated that around 186,000 African American served the Union Army throughout the war, with the creation of 163 colored regiments. My research paper will focus on the Black regiments of the American Civil War and their importance to U.S. history. Some of the important issues that will be discussed in this paper will include the struggles of black soldiers during the Civil War, from their wage earnings (where most made less money than white soldiers); the clothes they wore (most had no uniforms at all). Also, many of these soldiers had trouble getting the basic necessities like shoes, socks and soap. Other areas I will discuss will be the discriminatio...
Following the defeat of the Confederacy and to lift the morale of a shattered people momentum gathered to enshrine the Myth of the Lost Cause which would transform the Southern soldier living and dead, into a veritable hero.
After this disaster a disappointed, and depressed Lee made plans to escape back to the South. Which he did, much to the chagrin of both Meade, and Lincoln. This as has often been said was the high point of the Confederacy. From this point on, and especially after the arrival of Grant in the East it was only a matter of time and attrition until the final end of the war.
General Lee knows that we have inexperienced men and aims at improving the quality of the troops. He upgrades the quality by tightening command and discipline, improving morale, and convincing the soldiers that the confederacy was in full command of the situation. Lee knew that we are lacking, and devised initiatives to nullify the Union’s superiority in manpower, armaments, and supply by destroying their prearranged plans.
Sears’ thesis is the Union could have won the war faster. McClellan was an incompetent commander and to take the initiative to attack an defeat the Confederate army. The Army of Northern Virginia, under...