Category: Confederate Flags Heritage

The Civil War memoirs of Private Samuel Watkins of Company H, 1st Tennessee Infantry are considered the best ever written by a common soldier of the field. His writing style is engaging, and often quite humorous. He masterfully captured the pride, misery, and glory experienced by the common foot soldier. Here’s another story.

It’s no surprise that some Rebels were prone to mischief. Even innocent looking Sam got himself in a spot of trouble on day in a cornfield near Tupelo, Mississippi.  

Sam’s  regiment was under the command of General Bragg, who “issued an order authorizing citizens to defend themselves against the depredations of soldiers—to shoot them down if caught depredating.”  

But sometimes a fella can’t help but do a little depredating, a fancy way of saying plundering, if he’s not getting enough to eat.

Sam and his buddy Bryon were mighty hungry  when they spied a cornfield. Corn was so good for roasting, so naturally, in spite of the orders, you can guess what they did. Sam had an armful of corn when suddenly, “an old citizen raised up and said, ‘Stop there! Drop that corn.’”The old fellow had a “double- barreled shotgun cocked and leveled” at Sam, and proceeded to march him toward General Bragg’s headquarters.No amount of pleading helped change the old man’s mind. Sam said, “I could see the devil in the old fellow’s eye.”But Sam was determined not to see General Bragg, who was a mite too quick to have his own men shot. So, he said to the old man:“’Mister, Byron Richardson is in your field, and if you will go back we can catch him and you can take both of us to General Bragg.’ The old fellow’s spunk was up. He had captured me so easy, he no doubt thought he could whip a dozen.”They got back and there was Bryon, with his arms full of corn. The old citizen leveled his gun, but Sam grabbed it “and with the assistance of Byron, we had the old fellow and his gun both.”Sam’s future looked brighter now:

“We made the old fellow gather as much as he could carry, and made him carry it nearly to camp, when we dismissed him, a wiser if not a better and richer man.”

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The Confederate Battle Flag has 13 stars for 13 states.  South Carolina seceded in December 1860, followed by five more states: Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, and Louisiana  in January, and then Texas on the 1st of February.  

These seven states met a few days later in Montgomery, Alabama, and formed the Confederate States of America.  Jefferson Davis was elected President on February 9th, almost a month before Lincoln was inaugurated in March. By the middle of May, four more states had seceded and joined the Confederacy: Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina for a total of 11 Confederate States.  Four slave states – Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri – remained in the Union. Missouri and Kentucky proclaimed they were neutral in the war, but that ended in Missouri when Union troops arrested the Missouri State Guard and imprisoned them.  The State government went into exile, and a war began between the Missouri State Guard and the Union forces.  The state government voted to secede in October, and was admitted to the Confederacy. It was kind of the opposite in Kentucky.  Confederate General Polk advanced into Kentucky one day before Union General Grant moved his army into the state. The Kentucky legislature had promised its citizens it would remain neutral unless it was impossible, and to join the South if necessary. But with neutrality broken, the legislature decided to join with the North because Polk had been the first to enter the state. Many Kentucky citizens were very mad about this, and a new legislature was formed and it declared independence, joining the Confederacy. This made a total of 13 Confederate states.In short, Missouri and Kentucky were claimed by both North and South, and had representatives in both Congresses.

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It is said that Gettysburg is one of the most haunted places in America. Don’t believe in ghosts? Well, here is a story that may just change your mind.An old man approached some extras sitting at Little Round Top during filming of the movie Gettysburg. He wore a torn and scorched uniform, and smelled of gunpowder.The old man talked about the fury of battle, passed out rounds of ammunition and left.The extras figured he was one of the people in the film, but in looking more closely at the  ammunition, they noticed it looked odd. They took the rounds to the man in charge of those props. But he said they were not from him – they were actual Civil War rounds.For years at Gettysburg a barefoot man dressed in a shirt and hat matching the uniform of a Texas unit has been approaching the tourists. The man always says, “What you’re looking for is over there.”  He points to Plum Run and vanishes.Plum Run is a stream between Little Round Top and Devil’s Den, the center of the heaviest fighting of the battle of Gettysburg.The oldest building at Gettysburg College served as a field hospital during the battle. One night in the 1980’s two college administrators got onto the elevator on the 4th floor, and pushed the 1st floor button. But the elevator skipped the 1st floor and went straight to the basement level.When the doors opened, the men gazed out at a ghastly sight. They blood-covered doctors and orderlies bent over wounded and dying men. Amputated limbs lay in one corner. The scene was eerily silent. When one of the orderlies looked directly at them, the two men pounded the elevator buttons to get away.

Many witnesses saw the same things, so not everyone could be wrong. So, unbelievers, what do you say now?

 

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When the Civil War started it was hard to get a Texan to join other than a cavalry unit.  British Lt. Col. Fremantle visited Texas, and observed that “it was found very difficult to raise infantry in Texas as no Texan walks a yard if he can help it.” The 8th Texas Cavalry, commonly known as Terry’s Texas Rangers, pictured above, fought 275 battles across seven states. A Union Colonel described one Ranger attack this way: “With lightning speed, under infernal yelling, great numbers of Texas Rangers rushed upon our whole force. They advanced as near as fifteen or twenty yards to our lines, some of them even between them, and then opened fire with rifles and revolvers.” Fierce in battle, the Texans knew honor. During one engagement, a Union regiment managed to kill the Rangers’ beloved colonel.  A year later the Rangers captured the Union commander of that regiment, now a general in charge of a Brigade. Wounded, the general received kind treatment, and was later quoted as saying he would “rather be a private in the Texas Rangers than a general in the Federal army.” The Rangers were mighty sure of themselves, as well. Their chaplain wrote,

“Colonel Wharton has authorized me to say that he will not admit amateur fighters into the Regiment…. We want none but Texans.” Well, I don’t suppose a Texan is a Texan if he isn’t just a bit cocky. In any case, the Rangers’ right to swagger had been earned.

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It is said that Gettysburg is one of the most haunted places in America. Don’t believe in ghosts? Well, here is a story that may just change your mind.An old man approached some extras sitting at Little Round Top during filming of the movie Gettysburg. He wore a torn and scorched uniform, and smelled of gunpowder.The old man talked about the fury of battle, passed out rounds of ammunition and left.The extras figured he was one of the people in the film, but in looking more closely at the  ammunition, they noticed it looked odd. They took the rounds to the man in charge of those props. But he said they were not from him – they were actual Civil War rounds.For years at Gettysburg a barefoot man dressed in a shirt and hat matching the uniform of a Texas unit has been approaching the tourists. The man always says, “What you’re looking for is over there.”  He points to Plum Run and vanishes.Plum Run is a stream between Little Round Top and Devil’s Den, the center of the heaviest fighting of the battle of Gettysburg.The oldest building at Gettysburg College served as a field hospital during the battle. One night in the 1980’s two college administrators got onto the elevator on the 4th floor, and pushed the 1st floor button. But the elevator skipped the 1st floor and went straight to the basement level.When the doors opened, the men gazed out at a ghastly sight. They blood-covered doctors and orderlies bent over wounded and dying men. Amputated limbs lay in one corner. The scene was eerily silent. When one of the orderlies looked directly at them, the two men pounded the elevator buttons to get away.Many witnesses saw the same things, so not everyone could be wrong. So, unbelievers, what do you say now?

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A historic cemetery was recently rededicated in Hancock County. There was a special ceremony to honor one man in the Confederate Army. Family members said that he was a prisoner of war as well as a soldier for the Confederacy. Victor Ladner played an important part in American history. He played a historical role in the history of Hancock County as well.

Historic cemetery rededicated in Hancock County

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“Wheat’s Tigers” was the nickname of a Louisiana Battalion formed from the rougher sections of New Orleans, men described as “thieves, and outcasts…and bad characters generally.”

Of all the units that took the field at the First Battle of Manassas in July 1861, none exceeded the flair and intensity of the 1st Louisiana Special Battalion.  Raised from the dregs of New Orleans, they were primarily Irish immigrant dockworkers, tough and gutsy as their combative commander, Major Roberdeau Wheat.

Although the Tigers were known for their drinking, card playing, fighting and general mischief, they proved themselves fearless and effective at the Battle of First Manassas.

The Tigers dressed in colorful uniforms like the North African “Zouaves” then in the service of the French Army, and became known as one of the South’s best and most fearsome units.

Known as Bull Run to the Federals, Manassas was the first major battle of the war.  Even before the main fight began, the Louisiana Tigers made a charge. Lieutenant Adrian of Company B fell with a leg wound. As he lay on the ground bleeding, he shouted:“Tigers, go in once more, go in my sons, I’ll be great gloriously God damned if the sons of bitches can ever whip the Tigers!”One of the Rebels later said, “Our blood was on fire. Life was valueless.”

One of the Yankees later said the charge “seemed to me to be the most terrible moment of this terrific contest.”By dusk of that day, the Union army was driven from the field and retreated all the way back to Washington. General Beauregard reported that the Tigers displayed “dauntless courage and imperturbable coolness,” and that these men could stand tall and say, “We were of that band who fought the first hour of the battle of Manassas.”

Major Roberdeau Wheat, leader of the Tigers

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During the Civil War, the Cherokee Nation had 3,000 men serving as Confederate soldiers.

The Cherokee, by nature a peaceful people, were exceptionally skilled at protecting themselves.  They were naturals at close-quarters fighting, and adept at the irregular tactics of guerrilla warfare.

A leader of the Cherokee, Stand Watie, was eager to join the Confederate cause. In June 1861, he began recruiting for an army to assist the Southern cause. He was elected Chief of the newly declared Southern Cherokee Nation

Stand Watie’s birth name was Tak-er-taw-ker, meaning “Stands Firm.”  He combined parts of his Cherokee name and his father’s name, Oo-wat-ie, to call himself Stand Watie in English..

In March of 1862 Stand Watie caught the attention of senior officers when he captured a Union artillery battery. He then led a skilled rear guard action to protect a retreating Confederate army to prevent a disastrous defeat.

Watie’s courage, tactics and leadership led to his assignment to a command position. Watie rose to the rank of Brigadier General. One of the units under Watie’s command was the Cherokee Mounted Rifles.  His unit was active in cutting Union supply lines and disrupting the enemy’s operations in the Western Theater of the Civil War.

He kept on fighting until June 23rd, 1863, months after Appomattox, and longer than any other Confederate General.

The U.S. Postal Service commemorative stamp issued on June 29, 1995.

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Nathan Bedford Forrest is one of ablest commanders on record, the only Civil War officer to go from Private at the beginning of the war to highest rank then used, Lieutenant General. Union General Sherman said Confederate Lt. General Forrest was “the most remarkable man our civil war produced on either side.” Sherman, regarded as a great strategist, wrote this about Forrest: “…he had a genius for strategy which was original, and to me incomprehensible. There was no theory or art of war by which I could calculate with any degree of certainty what Forrest was up to. He always seemed to know what I was going to do next.” Forrest was remarkably brave in battle. Private James Hamner described one of their early battles:   “The Col. (Forrest) was about 50 yards ahead of us fighting for his life. I believe there was at least fifty shots fired at him in five minutes. One shot took effect in his horse’s head, but did not kill him. He killed 9 of the enemy.” Of another early battle, General Clark wrote this of Forrest: “…he was conspicuous for the most daring courage; always in advance of his command. He was at one time engaged in a hand-to-hand conflict with 4 of the enemy, 3 of whom he killed, dismounting and making a prisoner of the fourth.” Forrest was noted for using a distinctive 12-star battle flag. He removed the middle star so his enemies knew exactly who they were fighting.

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The Battle of Perryville in Kentucky one of the most important battles of the American Civil War, but most people, including many Civil War buffs, know little about it..

Sam Watkins was there and he wrote about it in his famous memoirs. Sam served in the First Tennessee, Company H, and fought in every major battle that this Confederate unit was engaged in – Shiloh, Corinth, Stones River, Chickamauga, Chattanooga, the Atlanta Campaign, Franklin, and Nashville.

There were over 55,000 Union and nearly 17,0006,800 Confederate troops in the area. These numbers make Perryville the largest battle to have been fought in the Bluegrass State.

He writes about his experience,

“I was in every battle, skirmish and march that was made by the First Tennessee Regiment during the war, and I do not remember of a harder contest and more evenly fought battle than that of Perryville.”The morning of the battle dawned, and the two sides “seemed to be eyeing each other.” Finally about noon, “they opened their war dogs upon us… and from one end of the line to the other seemed to be a solid sheet of blazing smoke and fire.”The Yankees and the Rebels were locked in “a mortal struggle” as the Rebels advanced.  Then Sam’s company encountered four cannons that fired into them:“We did not recoil, but our line was fairly hurled back by the leaden hail that was poured into our very faces… It was death to retreat now to either side.”These cannon were Napoleon guns, capable of firing 12-pound shots.The Rebels charged ahead and were soon in hand-to-hand fighting. Neither side wanted to yield.  Sam described it:“Such obstinate fighting I never had seen before or since….it seemed the earth itself was in a volcanic uproar.”

Confederate General Braxton Bragg also commented on the battle saying,

“for the time engaged it was the severest and most desperately contested engagement within my knowledge.”

Sam Watkins also wrote,

“I do not know which side whipped, but I know that I helped bring off those four Napoleon guns that night.”

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Soon after the formation of the Confederate States of America, the new government chose a national seal and motto: Deo Vindice: “God Will Vindicate”

The seal features George Washington on horseback, pictured in his uniform of the Revolution securing American independence. Washington is surrounded with a wreath, made of some of the main agricultural products of the Confederacy: wheat, corn, tobacco, cotton, rice and sugarcane. In the top margin of the seal are the words “The Confederate States of America: 22 February 1862”. This date on the seal commemorates the establishment of the new Confederate government in Richmond, Virginia with the inauguration of President Jefferson Davis – and it is also Washington’s birthday.But why George Washington?  

It’s easy to see. Washington was chosen as the model for the Confederacy because of his importance in founding a new nation. He was man of great personal character, a military leader who secured independence, and a new nation’s political leader.

Both North and South would claim Washington as their patron of democracy. No public figure stood higher in the public esteem. He was beloved by Northerners and Southerners alike. By 1861 he had come to symbolize everything virtuous and heroic about the American Revolution.

Historian Joseph J. Ellis wrote,

‘If there was a Mount Olympus in the new American republic, all the lesser gods were gathered farther down the slope from Washington.”

Since the Southerners claimed Washington as their guiding spirit, a member of the Georgia delegation to the 1861 Confederate constitutional convention in Montgomery, Alabama, proposed to name the new Southern nation ‘‘Republic of Washington.”

Jefferson Davis. In his inaugural address said,

“On this the birthday of the man most identified with the establishment of American independence, and beneath the monument erected to commemorate his heroic virtues and those of his compatriots, we have assembled to usher into existence the permanent government of the Confederate States.”

The Confederacy, he continued, would

“perpetuate the principles of our Revolutionary fathers. The day, the memory, and the purpose seem fitly associated….We are in arms to renew such sacrifices as our fathers made to the holy cause of constitutional liberty.”

Although neither Jefferson Davis nor Confederate General Robert E. Lee ever claimed the title for themselves, they were often called “Second Washingtons.”

Had he lived to see it, many say that George Washington would not have supported the Confederacy because of his stated commitment to one nation, indivisible.

But that didn’t prevent Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, Thomas J. ‘Stonewall’ Jackson, and other leading Southerners from declaring that Washington  was a citizen of his state first, and of the United States second.

Maybe he would have been a Confederate, too, or maybe not. Who knows? It’s fun to think about it.  In any case, George Washington was definitely a hero and model of the Confederacy.

Confederate currency with Deo Vindice seal including George Washington

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More Americans died in The Civil War than any other conflict. In fact, it took half of all Americans lost in all our wars.  Most of it was fought on Confederate territory.   It was a brutal conflict, yet many a man fought from beginning to end. Soldiers had little tolerance for the opinions of those not in the fray. One man wrote about them as

“men who have not spunk enough to leave their mammy…setting on their asses by warm fires and enjoying all the comforts of home, running down men who are enduring hardships all the time and risking their lives…” Soldiers fought with great courage. A chaplain wrote,

“Our battle-worn veterans go into danger when ordered, remain as a stern duty so long as directed, and leave as honor and duty allow.”

One captain explained,

“I am a soldier and a good one,” though he admitted he might complain and “growl” after a fight. But when “an order came to storm a battery, nary a squeal would I make.”   Men were pushed to the breaking point, but kept going. They knew they could trust the fellows next to them, men who had stood up to certain death before, and would do it again.

One Southern private explained, “We were defeated because bravery and human endurance were unequal to the undertaking.” Honoring those lost was particularly sacred in the South. Local women established memorial associations to create cemeteries. The departed that never returned were remembered in many ways, and still are to this day.

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