Intro and Pics from Fredericksburg native

[fallendown]

I'd like to introduce myself. I'm a 41 year old Army veteran and Civil War Historian who was born and raised in Fredericksburg, VA. The Civil War has naturally always weighed heavy on me because of where I live. Currently, I live within a stone's throw of Salem Church which figured so prominently on the final day of the Chancellorsville campaign. As we speak the City of Fredericksburg is gearing up for the yearly reenactment of The Battle of Fredericksburg. In the following posts, I'll be adding pictures from the area for those of you who've never been here. I'm also willing to help out however I can with questions and information for the community. 

[fallendown]

Lees Hill Fredericksburg, VA

These are pics from Lee's personal position during the Battle of Fredericksburg. 

 

 

[fallendown]

These are pics of the stonewall, sunken road, and the Federal cemetery. The cemetery is atop Marye's Heights in Fredericksburg

 

 

Edited November 28, 2016 by fallendown

[fallendown]

Spotsylvania Courthouse Battlefield, Bloody Angle from Confederate positions

[fallendown]

Chancellorsville: road Jackson used on his flank march and Confederate Artillery position at Hazel Grove looking towards federal position at Fairview

[SouthernReb18]

Yo I love these because I have never been...good to see someone sharing a bit of history from their backyard..kudos bro!

[fallendown]

lol, speaking of sharing some history, I found 39 dropped bullets, an infantry officers coat button, and a US Belt buckle, in my grandfathers yard which is on the opposite side of Salem Church. Here's just some of it.

[fallendown]

Bullets were mostly .58 caliber but I did find 6 .69 caliber bullets. All of this was found in a half acre yard in a subdivision. 

[Lincolns Mullet]

Great pics! Thanks for sharing. Those two bullets look massive. I can't imagine any limb being hit by one and not require amputation.

 

Oh and welcome to the forum!

[fallendown]

Those are the .58 caliber minie bullets. The .69's minie's used in the older Springfields with rebored barrels are larger than that. 

[fallendown]

Nothing can truly describe the horror of that war. I recommend that anyone with an interest in the war read "A Mississippi Rebel in the Army of Northern Virginia." It's the personal memoir of Pvt David Holt who served as a skirmisher in the 21st Mississippi Infantry Regiment under General Posey. He was present from 2nd Manassas until his capture at Petersburg in 1865. His description of the horrors witness both on the skirmish line and in the trenches is gut wrenching at times. 

If cavalry is more your thing I suggest the book "The Last Cavalier" which is a biography of J.E.B. Stuart.

Of course you could listen to the words of the last surviving confederate cavalryman who talked about the war at the Library of Congress in 1947 shortly before his death in 1948. Remember however this recording is not politically correct.

 

 

[A. P. Hill]

Good Pictures.

I've been to all those locations many years ago.  I need a revisit.

[fallendown]

It's changing a lot because of development but the Civil War Trust is trying to buy up as much land as it can before people put houses on it. Everywhere you walk in this area has been fought over at one time or another. My girlfriend and I have ridden her horses through Manassas battlefield. They've opened up most of the battlefields to riders now, but some trails are off limits. 

[neogodhobo]

Really interesting.... Why did they close some of the trails ? So that people dont tamper with it or ?

[jekct1212]

You should join a Cavalry reenactment group, I do 12th Georgia and 26th Wisconsin Infantry and the cavalry scares the heck outta me!!

[fallendown]

34 minutes ago, neogodhobo said:

Really interesting.... Why did they close some of the trails ? So that people dont tamper with it or ?

They closed the trails to people on horseback. It makes sense though, narrow trail, big horse. Mine stands 5'5", nearly 2 meters at the shoulder. Plus people have their dogs sometimes too.

[fallendown]

34 minutes ago, jekct1212 said:

You should join a Cavalry reenactment group, I do 12th Georgia and 26th Wisconsin Infantry and the cavalry scares the heck outta me!!

Lol, when I was trying out for the mounted patrol at Manassas Battlefield we charged during a reenactment...it was fun... When I was in the Army I served in the Old Guards Caisson Platoon at Arlington Cemetery. That's where I learned to ride horses, out of 1927 cavalry manual...

Edited November 29, 2016 by fallendown

[fallendown]

When I used to work in Chantilly, VA, I drove past Henry Hill, Matthew Hill, and the Stone Bridge everyday. Rte 29 here runs right through the Manassas Battlefield.

[guidon101]

Aw man... awesome pictures. That's so sick how you are still finding artifacts just around your backyard form the war. And that live auto-biographic speech from someone who was there... never heard it before... goosebumps...

I'm curious though, I'm not sure I understand what's "politically incorrect" about the recording... It seemed to me, the guy was pretty sincere about his simplicity in youth and how he stayed away from politics even, at the time of the Civil War. Granted, he is much older when he gave the interview, and looking back at his life probably gives him a different perspective if history had turned out differently, I found it awesome how he said he held no special hatred for the federal troops or Pres. Lincoln, what an honorable fellow. Is it because he used the "N" word and his family owned slaves, even though he as a person became against it, and it sounded like he was respectful of African Americans, or is it because in the end he believed he and the South fought for State Rights?

It's interesting how some of these themes are still relevant today, though.

[fallendown]

I said that because I didn't want anyone offended by posting that video. It is a shame that I have to do that, but such is the nation we live in. I think Virginian and famed Cavalry Commander General John Mosby put it best when he said:

 

Quote

I wrote you about my disgust at reading the Reunion speeches: It has since been increased by reading Christians report. I am certainly glad I wasn’t there. According to Christian the Virginia people were the abolitionists & the Northern people were pro-slavery. He says slavery was “a patriarchal” institution – So were polygamy & circumcision. Ask Hugh if he has been circumcised. Christian quotes what the Old Virginians – said against slavery. True; but why didn’t he quote what the modern Virginians said in favor of it – Mason, Hunter, Wise &c. Why didn’t he state that a Virginia Senator (Mason) was the author of the Fugitive Slave law – & why didn’t he quote The Virginia Code (1860) that made it a crime to speak against slavery, or to teach a negro to read the Lord’s prayer. Now while I think as badly of slavery as Horace Greeley did I am not ashamed that my family were slaveholders. It was our inheritance – Neither am I ashamed that my ancestors were pirates & cattle thieves. People must be judged by the standard of their own age. If it was right to own slaves as property it was right to fight for it. The South went to war on account of Slavery. South Carolina went to war – as she said in her Secession proclamation – because slavery w^d. not be secure under Lincoln. South Carolina ought to know what was the cause for her seceding. . . . I am not ashamed of having fought on the side of slavery – a soldier fights for his country – right or wrong – he is not responsible for the political merits of the cause he fights in. The South was my country.

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Edited December 1, 2016 by fallendown

[guidon101]

On ‎11‎/‎30‎/‎2016 at 7:59 PM, fallendown said:

I said that because I didn't want anyone offended by posting that video. It is a shame that I have to do that, but such is the nation we live in. I think Virginian and famed Cavalry Commander General John Mosby put it best when he said:

 

 

 

Thanks for the explanation. That certainly makes sense to put things in context of their time period.

Something in the quote you posted also struck me:

"a soldier fights for his country – right or wrong – he is not responsible for the political merits of the cause he fights in"

It reminds me of the Henry V Shakespeare quote: "Every subject’s duty is the king’s, but every subject’s soul is his own."

There is also the "Sins of the Father" perspective, where ideally he (General John Mosby) should not be blamed for the "sins" of his ancestors, only for his own choices in life.

I wanted to add (my opinion) that, while a soldier may have responsibility to obey the Chain of Command, the government, the country's leaders, etc., a Citizen of a "free" and democratic/republican society should have responsibility for the "political merits" of their government's choices. Our responsibility as citizens comes from our power to vote, even though it often feels like a meaningless drop in an ocean. Military law may absolve an individual when acting under orders, but "every subject's soul is his own," and so we still each bear responsibility for the choices we make as citizens of a republican government, with the way we vote and the way we live our lives (I'm assuming the CSA was also a republican-type government, wasn't it?).

So as a soldier, he fought on the side of slavery, but as a citizen, it sounds like he fought against slavery. Very interesting dichotomy! (I read more about him after your post, so now I see he was a very fair-minded kind of person; and now I know more about what was called the "Lost Cause" and the significance of Pvt David Holt bringing it up)

I find it ironic though that he says "The South" was his country he was fighting for, but he didn't consider the entire United States as his country. Seems hard to tell the difference between a soldier picking his loyalties versus a citizen picking his politics.

Anyway, thanks for sharing all these historical insights! I love seeing/hearing/reading history in its rawest form, not conspiracy-alien-ghost-sugarcoated "history" like on the tubes these days lol.  On the other hand, I definitely see myself judging things from what is contemporary to me, and with much ignorance besides.