In the Presence of Mine Enemies: The Civil War in the Heart of America, 1859-1864

In the Presence of Mine Enemies: The Civil War in the Heart of America, 1859-1864

Author: Edward L. Ayers

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Published: 2004-09-17

Total Pages: 496

ISBN-13: 0393247430

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Winner of the Bancroft Prize: Through a gripping narrative based on massive new research, a leading historian reshapes our understanding of the Civil War. Our standard Civil War histories tell a reassuring story of the triumph, in an inevitable conflict, of the dynamic, free-labor North over the traditional, slave-based South, vindicating the freedom principles built into the nation's foundations. But at the time, on the borderlands of Pennsylvania and Virginia, no one expected war, and no one knew how it would turn out. The one certainty was that any war between the states would be fought in their fields and streets. Edward L. Ayers gives us a different Civil War, built on an intimate scale. He charts the descent into war in the Great Valley spanning Pennsylvania and Virginia. Connected by strong ties of every kind, including the tendrils of slavery, the people of this borderland sought alternatives to secession and war. When none remained, they took up war with startling intensity. As this book relays with a vivid immediacy, it came to their doorsteps in hunger, disease, and measureless death. Ayers's Civil War emerges from the lives of everyday people as well as those who helped shape history—John Brown and Frederick Douglass, Lincoln, Jackson, and Lee. His story ends with the valley ravaged, Lincoln's support fragmenting, and Confederate forces massing for a battle at Gettysburg.


Book Synopsis In the Presence of Mine Enemies: The Civil War in the Heart of America, 1859-1864 by : Edward L. Ayers

Download or read book In the Presence of Mine Enemies: The Civil War in the Heart of America, 1859-1864 written by Edward L. Ayers and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2004-09-17 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the Bancroft Prize: Through a gripping narrative based on massive new research, a leading historian reshapes our understanding of the Civil War. Our standard Civil War histories tell a reassuring story of the triumph, in an inevitable conflict, of the dynamic, free-labor North over the traditional, slave-based South, vindicating the freedom principles built into the nation's foundations. But at the time, on the borderlands of Pennsylvania and Virginia, no one expected war, and no one knew how it would turn out. The one certainty was that any war between the states would be fought in their fields and streets. Edward L. Ayers gives us a different Civil War, built on an intimate scale. He charts the descent into war in the Great Valley spanning Pennsylvania and Virginia. Connected by strong ties of every kind, including the tendrils of slavery, the people of this borderland sought alternatives to secession and war. When none remained, they took up war with startling intensity. As this book relays with a vivid immediacy, it came to their doorsteps in hunger, disease, and measureless death. Ayers's Civil War emerges from the lives of everyday people as well as those who helped shape history—John Brown and Frederick Douglass, Lincoln, Jackson, and Lee. His story ends with the valley ravaged, Lincoln's support fragmenting, and Confederate forces massing for a battle at Gettysburg.

Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares

Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares

Author: John H. Matsui

Publisher: LSU Press

Published: 2021-05-19

Total Pages: 306

ISBN-13: 0807175315

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In Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares, John H. Matsui argues that the political ideology and racial views of American Protestants during the Civil War mirrored their religious optimism or pessimism regarding human nature, perfectibility, and the millennium. While previous historians have commented on the role of antebellum eschatology in political alignment, none have delved deeply into how religious views complicate the standard narrative of the North versus the South. Moving beyond the traditional optimism/pessimism dichotomy, Matsui divides American Protestants of the Civil War era into “premillenarian” and “postmillenarian” camps. Both postmillenarian and premillenarian Christians held that the return of Christ would inaugurate the arrival of heaven on earth, but they disagreed over its timing. This disagreement was key to their disparate political stances. Postmillenarians argued that God expected good Christians to actively perfect the world via moral reform—of self and society—and free-labor ideology, whereas premillenarians defended hierarchy or racial mastery (or both). Northern Democrats were generally comfortable with antebellum racial norms and were cynical regarding human nature; they therefore opposed Republicans’ utopian plans to reform the South. Southern Democrats, who held premillenarian views like their northern counterparts, pressed for or at least acquiesced in the secession of slaveholding states to preserve white supremacy. Most crucially, enslaved African American Protestants sought freedom, a postmillenarian societal change requiring nothing less than a major revolution and the reconstruction of southern society. Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares adds a new dimension to our understanding of the Civil War as it reveals the wartime marriage of political and racial ideology to religious speculation. As Matsui argues, the postmillenarian ideology came to dominate the northern states during the war years and the nation as a whole following the Union victory in 1865.


Book Synopsis Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares by : John H. Matsui

Download or read book Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares written by John H. Matsui and published by LSU Press. This book was released on 2021-05-19 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares, John H. Matsui argues that the political ideology and racial views of American Protestants during the Civil War mirrored their religious optimism or pessimism regarding human nature, perfectibility, and the millennium. While previous historians have commented on the role of antebellum eschatology in political alignment, none have delved deeply into how religious views complicate the standard narrative of the North versus the South. Moving beyond the traditional optimism/pessimism dichotomy, Matsui divides American Protestants of the Civil War era into “premillenarian” and “postmillenarian” camps. Both postmillenarian and premillenarian Christians held that the return of Christ would inaugurate the arrival of heaven on earth, but they disagreed over its timing. This disagreement was key to their disparate political stances. Postmillenarians argued that God expected good Christians to actively perfect the world via moral reform—of self and society—and free-labor ideology, whereas premillenarians defended hierarchy or racial mastery (or both). Northern Democrats were generally comfortable with antebellum racial norms and were cynical regarding human nature; they therefore opposed Republicans’ utopian plans to reform the South. Southern Democrats, who held premillenarian views like their northern counterparts, pressed for or at least acquiesced in the secession of slaveholding states to preserve white supremacy. Most crucially, enslaved African American Protestants sought freedom, a postmillenarian societal change requiring nothing less than a major revolution and the reconstruction of southern society. Millenarian Dreams and Racial Nightmares adds a new dimension to our understanding of the Civil War as it reveals the wartime marriage of political and racial ideology to religious speculation. As Matsui argues, the postmillenarian ideology came to dominate the northern states during the war years and the nation as a whole following the Union victory in 1865.

The Last of What I Am

The Last of What I Am

Author: Abigail Cutter

Publisher: Union Square & Co.

Published: 2023-09-19

Total Pages: 292

ISBN-13: 1454951796

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A haunting and beautifully written novel about a Confederate soldier whose own personal war follows him into the afterlife—until one fateful day when his encounters with a modern-day couple change everything. A ghost in his deserted childhood home in Virginia, Tom Smiley can’t forget the bloody war and its meaningless losses, nor can he shed his revulsion for his role in the Confederate defense of slavery. But when a young couple moves in and makes his home their own in the early twenty-first century, trouble erupts—and Tom is forced not only to face his own terrible secret but also to come to grips with his family’s hidden wartime history. He finds an unexpected ally in the house’s new owner, Phoebe Hunter, whose discoveries will have momentous consequences for them both.


Book Synopsis The Last of What I Am by : Abigail Cutter

Download or read book The Last of What I Am written by Abigail Cutter and published by Union Square & Co.. This book was released on 2023-09-19 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A haunting and beautifully written novel about a Confederate soldier whose own personal war follows him into the afterlife—until one fateful day when his encounters with a modern-day couple change everything. A ghost in his deserted childhood home in Virginia, Tom Smiley can’t forget the bloody war and its meaningless losses, nor can he shed his revulsion for his role in the Confederate defense of slavery. But when a young couple moves in and makes his home their own in the early twenty-first century, trouble erupts—and Tom is forced not only to face his own terrible secret but also to come to grips with his family’s hidden wartime history. He finds an unexpected ally in the house’s new owner, Phoebe Hunter, whose discoveries will have momentous consequences for them both.

Mississippi Civil War Monuments

Mississippi Civil War Monuments

Author: Timothy S. Sedore

Publisher: Indiana University Press

Published: 2020-03-03

Total Pages: 480

ISBN-13: 0253045592

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“From Vicksburg to Oxford, readers will find a rich examination of how and why Confederate and Union monuments sprang up across the state.” —Caroline E. Janney, Director, John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History, University of Virginia Soaring obelisks, graceful arches, and soldiers standing tall atop pedestals recall the memory of the Civil War in Mississippi, a former Confederate state that boasts more Civil War monuments than any other.In Mississippi Civil War Monuments: An Illustrated Field Guide, Timothy S. Sedore combs through the Mississippi landscape, exploring monuments commemorating important military figures and battles and remembering common soldiers, from rugged veterans to mournful youths. Sedore’s insightful commentary captures a character portrait of Mississippi, a state that was ensnared between Northern and Southern ideologies and that paid a high price for seceding from the Union. Sedore’s close examinations of these monuments broadens the narrative of Mississippi’s heritage and helps illuminate the impacts of the Civil War. With intriguing details and vivid descriptions, Mississippi Civil War Monuments offers a comprehensive guide to the monuments that make up Mississippi’s physical and historical landscape.


Book Synopsis Mississippi Civil War Monuments by : Timothy S. Sedore

Download or read book Mississippi Civil War Monuments written by Timothy S. Sedore and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2020-03-03 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “From Vicksburg to Oxford, readers will find a rich examination of how and why Confederate and Union monuments sprang up across the state.” —Caroline E. Janney, Director, John L. Nau III Center for Civil War History, University of Virginia Soaring obelisks, graceful arches, and soldiers standing tall atop pedestals recall the memory of the Civil War in Mississippi, a former Confederate state that boasts more Civil War monuments than any other.In Mississippi Civil War Monuments: An Illustrated Field Guide, Timothy S. Sedore combs through the Mississippi landscape, exploring monuments commemorating important military figures and battles and remembering common soldiers, from rugged veterans to mournful youths. Sedore’s insightful commentary captures a character portrait of Mississippi, a state that was ensnared between Northern and Southern ideologies and that paid a high price for seceding from the Union. Sedore’s close examinations of these monuments broadens the narrative of Mississippi’s heritage and helps illuminate the impacts of the Civil War. With intriguing details and vivid descriptions, Mississippi Civil War Monuments offers a comprehensive guide to the monuments that make up Mississippi’s physical and historical landscape.

Long Shadows

Long Shadows

Author: Abigail Cutter

Publisher: She Writes Press

Published: 2022-07-12

Total Pages: 230

ISBN-13: 1647423880

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Tom Smiley signed up as a private in the Confederate army when he was eighteen and quickly came to regret it. Spending the last year of the war in a Union prison scarred him so deeply that even death hasn't brought freedom from its memory. A ghost in his deserted childhood home, he can’t forget the bloody war and its meaningless losses, or shed his revulsion for his role in the Confederate defense of slavery. But when a young couple moves in and makes his home their own in the early 21st century, trouble erupts—and Tom is forced to not only face his own terrible secret but also come to grips with his family’s hidden wartime history. He finds an unexpected ally in his house’s new owner, Phoebe Hunter, who is both fascinated and frightened by his ghostly presence—and whose discoveries will have momentous consequences for them both.


Book Synopsis Long Shadows by : Abigail Cutter

Download or read book Long Shadows written by Abigail Cutter and published by She Writes Press. This book was released on 2022-07-12 with total page 230 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tom Smiley signed up as a private in the Confederate army when he was eighteen and quickly came to regret it. Spending the last year of the war in a Union prison scarred him so deeply that even death hasn't brought freedom from its memory. A ghost in his deserted childhood home, he can’t forget the bloody war and its meaningless losses, or shed his revulsion for his role in the Confederate defense of slavery. But when a young couple moves in and makes his home their own in the early 21st century, trouble erupts—and Tom is forced to not only face his own terrible secret but also come to grips with his family’s hidden wartime history. He finds an unexpected ally in his house’s new owner, Phoebe Hunter, who is both fascinated and frightened by his ghostly presence—and whose discoveries will have momentous consequences for them both.

Virginia at War, 1864

Virginia at War, 1864

Author: William C. Davis

Publisher: University Press of Kentucky

Published: 2009-09-25

Total Pages: 206

ISBN-13: 0813139309

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The fourth collection of essays in this Civil War series “serves to remind us that there is much for us to discover beyond Virginia’s battlefields” (H-Net Reviews). The fourth book in the Virginia at War series casts a special light on vital home front matters in Virginia during 1864. Following a year in which only one major battle was fought on Virginia soil, 1864 brought military campaigning to the Old Dominion. For the first time during the Civil War, the majority of Virginia’s forces fought inside the state’s borders. Yet soldiers were a distinct minority among the Virginians affected by the war. In Virginia at War, 1864, scholars explore various aspects of the civilian experience in Virginia including transportation and communication, wartime literature, politics and the press, higher education, patriotic celebrations, and early efforts at reconstruction in Union-occupied Virginia. The volume focuses on the effects of war on the civilian infrastructure as well as efforts to maintain the Confederacy. As in previous volumes, Virginia at War, 1864 concludes with an annotated excerpt from the Diary of a Southern Refugee During the War by Richmond’s Judith Brockenbrough McGuire. “The most fully rounded account of Virginia’s wartime experience.” —Charles P. Roland, author of Reflections on Lee: A Historian’s Assessment “This book covers some interesting areas of lesser-known history of Virginia during the Civil War.” —The Oklahoman


Book Synopsis Virginia at War, 1864 by : William C. Davis

Download or read book Virginia at War, 1864 written by William C. Davis and published by University Press of Kentucky. This book was released on 2009-09-25 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fourth collection of essays in this Civil War series “serves to remind us that there is much for us to discover beyond Virginia’s battlefields” (H-Net Reviews). The fourth book in the Virginia at War series casts a special light on vital home front matters in Virginia during 1864. Following a year in which only one major battle was fought on Virginia soil, 1864 brought military campaigning to the Old Dominion. For the first time during the Civil War, the majority of Virginia’s forces fought inside the state’s borders. Yet soldiers were a distinct minority among the Virginians affected by the war. In Virginia at War, 1864, scholars explore various aspects of the civilian experience in Virginia including transportation and communication, wartime literature, politics and the press, higher education, patriotic celebrations, and early efforts at reconstruction in Union-occupied Virginia. The volume focuses on the effects of war on the civilian infrastructure as well as efforts to maintain the Confederacy. As in previous volumes, Virginia at War, 1864 concludes with an annotated excerpt from the Diary of a Southern Refugee During the War by Richmond’s Judith Brockenbrough McGuire. “The most fully rounded account of Virginia’s wartime experience.” —Charles P. Roland, author of Reflections on Lee: A Historian’s Assessment “This book covers some interesting areas of lesser-known history of Virginia during the Civil War.” —The Oklahoman

The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America

The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America

Author: Edward L. Ayers

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Published: 2017-10-24

Total Pages: 640

ISBN-13: 0393292649

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Winner of the Lincoln Prize A landmark Civil War history told from a fresh, deeply researched ground-level perspective. At the crux of America’s history stand two astounding events: the immediate and complete destruction of the most powerful system of slavery in the modern world, followed by a political reconstruction in which new constitutions established the fundamental rights of citizens for formerly enslaved people. Few people living in 1860 would have dared imagine either event, and yet, in retrospect, both seem to have been inevitable. In a beautifully crafted narrative, Edward L. Ayers restores the drama of the unexpected to the history of the Civil War. From the same vantage point occupied by his unforgettable characters, Ayers captures the strategic savvy of Lee and his local lieutenants, and the clear vision of equal rights animating black troops from Pennsylvania. We see the war itself become a scourge to the Valley, its pitched battles punctuating a cycle of vicious attack and reprisal in which armies burned whole towns for retribution. In the weeks and months after emancipation, from the streets of Staunton, Virginia, we see black and white residents testing the limits of freedom as political leaders negotiate the terms of readmission to the Union. With analysis as powerful as its narrative, here is a landmark history of the Civil War.


Book Synopsis The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America by : Edward L. Ayers

Download or read book The Thin Light of Freedom: The Civil War and Emancipation in the Heart of America written by Edward L. Ayers and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2017-10-24 with total page 640 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the Lincoln Prize A landmark Civil War history told from a fresh, deeply researched ground-level perspective. At the crux of America’s history stand two astounding events: the immediate and complete destruction of the most powerful system of slavery in the modern world, followed by a political reconstruction in which new constitutions established the fundamental rights of citizens for formerly enslaved people. Few people living in 1860 would have dared imagine either event, and yet, in retrospect, both seem to have been inevitable. In a beautifully crafted narrative, Edward L. Ayers restores the drama of the unexpected to the history of the Civil War. From the same vantage point occupied by his unforgettable characters, Ayers captures the strategic savvy of Lee and his local lieutenants, and the clear vision of equal rights animating black troops from Pennsylvania. We see the war itself become a scourge to the Valley, its pitched battles punctuating a cycle of vicious attack and reprisal in which armies burned whole towns for retribution. In the weeks and months after emancipation, from the streets of Staunton, Virginia, we see black and white residents testing the limits of freedom as political leaders negotiate the terms of readmission to the Union. With analysis as powerful as its narrative, here is a landmark history of the Civil War.

Handbook of Digital Public History

Handbook of Digital Public History

Author: Serge Noiret

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2022-04-04

Total Pages: 562

ISBN-13: 3110430290

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This handbook provides a systematic overview of the present state of international research in digital public history. Individual studies by internationally renowned public historians, digital humanists, and digital historians elucidate central issues in the field and present a critical account of the major public history accomplishments, research activities, and practices with the public and of their digital context. The handbook applies an international and comparative approach, looks at the historical development of the field, focuses on technical background and the use of specific digital media and tools. Furthermore, the handbook analyzes connections with local communities and different publics worldwide when engaging in digital activities with the past, indicating directions for future research, and teaching activities.


Book Synopsis Handbook of Digital Public History by : Serge Noiret

Download or read book Handbook of Digital Public History written by Serge Noiret and published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. This book was released on 2022-04-04 with total page 562 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This handbook provides a systematic overview of the present state of international research in digital public history. Individual studies by internationally renowned public historians, digital humanists, and digital historians elucidate central issues in the field and present a critical account of the major public history accomplishments, research activities, and practices with the public and of their digital context. The handbook applies an international and comparative approach, looks at the historical development of the field, focuses on technical background and the use of specific digital media and tools. Furthermore, the handbook analyzes connections with local communities and different publics worldwide when engaging in digital activities with the past, indicating directions for future research, and teaching activities.

Journal of the Civil War Era

Journal of the Civil War Era

Author: William A. Blair

Publisher: UNC Press Books

Published: 2011-03-01

Total Pages: 155

ISBN-13: 0807852597

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The University of North Carolina Press and the George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center at the Pennsylvania State University are pleased to announce the launch of The Journal of the Civil War Era. William Blair, of the Pennsylvania State University, serves as founding editor. The journal takes advantage of the flowering of research on the many issues raised by the sectional crisis, war, Reconstruction, and memory of the conflict, while bringing fresh understanding to the struggles that defined the period, and by extension, the course of American history in the nineteenth century. The Journal of the Civil War Era aims to create a space where scholars across the many subfields that animate nineteenth-century history can enter into conversation with each other. Table of Contents for this issue, Volume One, Number One: Editor's Note William Blair Welcome to the New Journal Articles Edward L. Ayers and Scott Nesbit Seeing Emancipation: Scale and Freedom in the American South Melinda Lawson Imagining Slavery: Representations of the Peculiar Institution on the Northern Stage, 1776-1860 LeeAnn Whites Forty Shirts and a Wagonload of Wheat: Women, the Domestic Supply Line, and the Civil War on the Western Border Review Essay Douglas R. Egerton Rethinking Atlantic Historiography in a Post-Colonial Era: The Civil War in a Global Perspective Book Reviews Books Received Professional Notes Aaron Sheehan-Dean The Nineteenth-Century U.S. History Job Market, 2000-2009


Book Synopsis Journal of the Civil War Era by : William A. Blair

Download or read book Journal of the Civil War Era written by William A. Blair and published by UNC Press Books. This book was released on 2011-03-01 with total page 155 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The University of North Carolina Press and the George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center at the Pennsylvania State University are pleased to announce the launch of The Journal of the Civil War Era. William Blair, of the Pennsylvania State University, serves as founding editor. The journal takes advantage of the flowering of research on the many issues raised by the sectional crisis, war, Reconstruction, and memory of the conflict, while bringing fresh understanding to the struggles that defined the period, and by extension, the course of American history in the nineteenth century. The Journal of the Civil War Era aims to create a space where scholars across the many subfields that animate nineteenth-century history can enter into conversation with each other. Table of Contents for this issue, Volume One, Number One: Editor's Note William Blair Welcome to the New Journal Articles Edward L. Ayers and Scott Nesbit Seeing Emancipation: Scale and Freedom in the American South Melinda Lawson Imagining Slavery: Representations of the Peculiar Institution on the Northern Stage, 1776-1860 LeeAnn Whites Forty Shirts and a Wagonload of Wheat: Women, the Domestic Supply Line, and the Civil War on the Western Border Review Essay Douglas R. Egerton Rethinking Atlantic Historiography in a Post-Colonial Era: The Civil War in a Global Perspective Book Reviews Books Received Professional Notes Aaron Sheehan-Dean The Nineteenth-Century U.S. History Job Market, 2000-2009

On Great Fields

On Great Fields

Author: Ronald C. White

Publisher: Random House

Published: 2023-10-31

Total Pages: 513

ISBN-13: 0525510087

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NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the author of A. Lincoln and American Ulysses comes the dramatic and definitive biography of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, the history-altering professor turned Civil War hero. “A vital and vivid portrait of an unlikely military hero who played a key role in the preservation of the Union and therefore in the making of modern America.”—Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of And There Was Light SHORTLISTED FOR THE GILDER LEHRMAN LINCOLN PRIZE • A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Before 1862, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain had rarely left his home state of Maine, where he was a trained minister and mild-mannered professor at Bowdoin College. His colleagues were shocked when he volunteered for the Union army, but he was undeterred and later became known as one of the North’s greatest heroes: On the second day at Gettysburg, after running out of ammunition at Little Round Top, he ordered his men to wield their bayonets in a desperate charge down a rocky slope that routed the Confederate attackers. Despite being wounded at Petersburg—and told by two surgeons he would die—Chamberlain survived the war, going on to be elected governor of Maine four times and serve as president of Bowdoin College. How did a stuttering young boy come to be fluent in nine languages and even teach speech and rhetoric? How did a trained minister find his way to the battlefield? Award-winning historian Ronald C. White delves into these contradictions in this cradle-to-grave biography of General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, from his upbringing in rural Maine to his tenacious, empathetic military leadership and his influential postwar public service, exploring a question that still plagues so many veterans: How do you make a civilian life of meaning after having experienced the extreme highs and lows of war? Chamberlain is familiar to millions from Michael Shaara’s now-classic novel of the Civil War, The Killer Angels, and Ken Burns’s timeless miniseries The Civil War, but in this book, White captures the complex and inspiring man behind the hero. Heavily illustrated and featuring nine detailed maps, this gripping, impeccably researched portrait illuminates one of the most admired but least known figures in our nation’s bloodiest conflict.


Book Synopsis On Great Fields by : Ronald C. White

Download or read book On Great Fields written by Ronald C. White and published by Random House. This book was released on 2023-10-31 with total page 513 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the author of A. Lincoln and American Ulysses comes the dramatic and definitive biography of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, the history-altering professor turned Civil War hero. “A vital and vivid portrait of an unlikely military hero who played a key role in the preservation of the Union and therefore in the making of modern America.”—Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of And There Was Light SHORTLISTED FOR THE GILDER LEHRMAN LINCOLN PRIZE • A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Before 1862, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain had rarely left his home state of Maine, where he was a trained minister and mild-mannered professor at Bowdoin College. His colleagues were shocked when he volunteered for the Union army, but he was undeterred and later became known as one of the North’s greatest heroes: On the second day at Gettysburg, after running out of ammunition at Little Round Top, he ordered his men to wield their bayonets in a desperate charge down a rocky slope that routed the Confederate attackers. Despite being wounded at Petersburg—and told by two surgeons he would die—Chamberlain survived the war, going on to be elected governor of Maine four times and serve as president of Bowdoin College. How did a stuttering young boy come to be fluent in nine languages and even teach speech and rhetoric? How did a trained minister find his way to the battlefield? Award-winning historian Ronald C. White delves into these contradictions in this cradle-to-grave biography of General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, from his upbringing in rural Maine to his tenacious, empathetic military leadership and his influential postwar public service, exploring a question that still plagues so many veterans: How do you make a civilian life of meaning after having experienced the extreme highs and lows of war? Chamberlain is familiar to millions from Michael Shaara’s now-classic novel of the Civil War, The Killer Angels, and Ken Burns’s timeless miniseries The Civil War, but in this book, White captures the complex and inspiring man behind the hero. Heavily illustrated and featuring nine detailed maps, this gripping, impeccably researched portrait illuminates one of the most admired but least known figures in our nation’s bloodiest conflict.