Civil War Class: Events of 1865

The Civil War Institute holds classes at Manor College in Elkins Park that cover topics from Prisons of the Civil War to the Lincoln Assassination, and everything in between. This winter I've been taking a 6 part class on the Events of 1865 that has covered some of the less well known episodes of the war. We have learned about naval history-the last Confederate ship that was travelling around the globe well into June 1865 unaware that the war was over!  A fascinating talk about Sherman's march after his march to the sea where he tried to negotiate a surrender from Gen. Johnston 2 weeks after the events at Appomattox.  One week we learned about the 2 attacks on Fort Rich, the first badly planned and executed because of weather, incompetency and ego (sounds so familiar).

The two most disturbing weeks were about the explosion of the Sultana and the dreaded prison Andersonville

In this class I connected with someone from the Virginia trip, and have been talking more with some of the woman who like me, are just taking these classes because they are so interesting. It is good to hear them talk about 'not knowing anything' when they started, and now having some sense of satisfaction when they recognize names and which side they fought on.

I'd like to do a chart that has battles on top and elements that affected their outcome: weather, stragty, ego, competence level, dumb luck, timing, bad luck, rivalry, ambition, extreme bravery. There are probably other categories, but these seem to be the ones that come up again and again (especially egos, rivalry and dumb luck).

Song of Manassas Junction

Song of Manassas  Tobie Hoffman December 2014  One story from the Second Battle of Manassas (Bull Run)

  

A

We marched to Manassas Junction

D                                      A

To seize the depot there

         D                               A                  E     A

Our hungry men half naked and wanting

A                                                                   D                          A

Oh, the sight that greeted us brought out the Rebel cheer

 D                              A                                   E     A

As we were let  loose on the Federal bounty

D

Knock out the heads of the barrels fellas

A

Whiskey, brandy, and wine

D                                                            A                E

Streams of spirits run like water through the sands

D

Knock out the heads of the barrels , shouted

A

 Jackson  down the line

         E

Get down on your hands and knees

       E

drink greedily all you need

                    E                                       A

From the grounds of Mannass Junction

A

We pounced on oysters, biscuits, cheese,

D                          A

Sugar,  coffee, ham

         D                          A                      E                       A

Our gray and ragged uniforms a terrible sight to see

                    A                                                                   D                               A

What we stumbled on in the storehouses were splendid northern  blue

              D            A                                                E A

So we left  the buildings lookin’ like damn Yankees

Chorus

 

A

General Pope’s army closing in

          D                A

With 80,00 strong

         D                         A                             E     A

To finally beat the hide of Stonewall Jackson

                    A                                  

But we’d vanished from that blessed sight

        D                                 A

Ablaze as we marched off

  D                         A                         E A

Taking what we could without askin’

Chorus

A birthday to remember

General George Meade who lived on Delancey Street in Philadelphia celebrated his 199th birthday this year and as is the custom of the Meade Society, a party in his honor is organized on the exact day-December 31! The venue: Laurel Hill Cemetery, an historical and stunningly beautiful cemetery located on the hill above Kelly Drive. where he is buried with his family.
Unlike most of my other adventures, the day is cold, bitter cold, so even bundling up is not quite enough to keep warm from the wind.
An entourage of soldiers, representatives from veterans groups and women's groups and the rest of us in the riffraff form a parade to the grave sight accompanied by the civil war band. I wonder as I did at Gettysburg how they can play in such cold, but then again, those crazy football marching bands have the same problem. Liquor?

The ceremonies are delightfully managed as we see wreaths placed at the graves, hear the gunfire of the soldiers rifles, listen to music, and watch a short informative speech by an actual former navy captain who is, no surprise, playing a civil war naval captain. Dressed in his fancy naval plumed hat, he with his wife beside him play their parts well.

Although the celebration is my original motivation for coming out on a frigid December 31 afternoon, once again I have another 'Who knew?' moment. Who knew this cemetery was so exquisite? Who knew that just 10 minutes from my house is a hillside of such historical value? Now I do! Can't wait until spring to explore more of this Philadelphia treasure.

Gettysburg prayer

As the sun sets
And the hymnals play
Fairest Jesus
Amazing is the grace of God
Spirits rise
As the bugle plays
A song of consolation
Song of consolation


Please forgive us
We are sorry
For those who died on this and distant battlefields
We are sorry
Please forgive us
Sweet Jesus please comfort them still

As the sun sets
and the hymnals play

Detour to the Revolutionary War

Let's go back a hundred years from the Civil War to Christmas Eve 1776. Just up the road on the border of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, a hungry barefoot band of soldiers and their general are planning a daring early morning attack on the Hessian soldiers settled in across the river. Boats are readied in the evening, a cadre sent up river and the soldiers in total silence board long Durham boats to make the dangerous crossing.

Jackson earns his name

The one civilian casualty

Less than 20 miles south of Washington DC off of exit 47B of I66 a major regional highway that brings the suburbs to the city, is the northern Virginia town  of Manassas. A few miles more the malls turn to fields, rolling hills and the quiet of another world, another time. This is the Manassas Battlefield,  7 square miles of hiking trails,  stone houses, a small cemetery and many markers of war.

It is an unusually warm and sunny day, a perfect time to be outdoors. There are two tours here to describe the details of two battles-the north called it The 1st and 2nd Battle of Bull Run named for the shallow creek that was crossed by the Union soldiers. The south called it The 1st and 2nd Battles of Manassas.

Best to defer to the southern armies on this one. They whipped the north in both battles. But not without cost. In the second battle alone there were 23,000 casualties, filling the surrounding farmhouses and distant Arlington churches with the wounded. Most of the dead were never buried and even today, on a occasion, remnants and artifacts surface.

This was Lee's 3rd month in charge and joined by several bold generals, he devised strategies that were both ingenious and dangerous. Often outnumbered in battles throughout the war, he found ways to use his troops to best advantage. The north had not yet found it's greatest general and on this day in late July, 1862, the first real battle of the war was fought by the greenest of recruits. These northern soldiers, romantic in the thoughts of easy glory who had converged on Washington to the call to service, were all 90 day men, whose 3 month tour of duty was about to end. So though the Union generals did not think they were ready to fight, President Lincoln insisted that the battle be fought, the better to quickly start and end the struggle as soon as possible.

Indeed, politicians came down to Centreville about 6 miles away to experience this battle that they thought would be a decisive snup to Rebel insurgency. They  couldn't see the fighting itself,  but could follow the action as the cheers and yelps volleyed back and forth, smoke rising from the plateau on Henry Hill.

This was no picnic for anyone on the field or off. The innocent eager northern men who went onto the fields in their various uniforms mimicking the French colonials of Northern Africa
finished this day in utter disbelief, beaten as much by the sight of their comrades mowed down as the defeat itself.
________________________________________________________________________


A general rides out in front, solid atop his horse.

General B. E. Bee in an attempt to rally his fearful southern recruits calls out  "Form, form, there stands Jackson like a Stone Wall. Rally behind the Virginians" And those Virginians were to become known as the vaunted Stonewall  Brigade loyal to their leader "Stonewall" Jackson.

A nation mourns

November 25, 2014

A nation mourns then and now.

We remember Gettysburg, Antietam, Cold Harbor, Spotsylvania, Monocacy, Bull Run, Atlanta, Ferguson,  New York, Selma, Miami Gardens, Kabul, Faluja, Bagdhad, Syria.

We remember and cry.