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Last Tribute of Respect Jackson's Funeral, VMI, May 15, 1863 
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After being accidentally wounded by friendly fire during the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson struggled for eight days after an amputation, before finally succumbing to pneumonia on May 10, 1863.
In the days following his passing, newspapers printed tributes to the man that many considered a national treasure. The Richmond Times Dispatch published an especially warm homage that summed up the grief of the Confederate faithful. It stated, “Words have no power to express the emotion, which the death of Jackson has aroused in the public mind.” The general’s body was first placed at the Governor's Mansion in Richmond for the public to mourn, and then it was transported for burial near his home in Lexington. Upon arrival the casket was received by a corps of cadets, escorted to the Virginia Military Institute, and placed in the very same lecture room where, as a Professor, Jackson had taught prior to the war. Major General F.H. Smith, the superintendent at VMI, issued a declaration to his students that stated, “Surely the Virginia Military Institute has a precious inheritance in the memory of General Jackson. His work is finished. God gave him to us, and to his country. He fitted him for his work, and when his work was done He called him to Himself.” The stately funeral procession that followed was a testament to the service and sacrifice of the man they called “Stonewall.” In accordance with military tradition, his casket was draped with a Confederate flag, placed on a caisson adorned by six mourning plumes, and drawn by four horses. An honor guard comprised of V.M.I. cadets acted as escorts. Jackson’s personal staff, including Major A.S. Pendleton, Dr. Hunter Holmes McGuire and Captains Morrison and Smith accompanied his grieving widow, Mary Anna. Virginia governor John Letcher and a delegation of citizens from Lynchburg were also in attendance. Hundreds of mourners lined the road to pay their final respects to a man who had obscurely left for service in the defense of his state, and returned in death as one of the most admired commanders in the history of warfare. Following a service at the Lexington Presbyterian Church where Jackson had been a deacon, his body was then laid to rest in what is known today as the Stonewall Jackson Memorial Cemetery. | |
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The Angel of the Battlefield Clara Barton with Walt Whitman at Chatham, December 15, 1862 
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In December of 1862, the small town of Fredericksburg, Virginia bore witness to one of the most one-sided battles of the entire Civil War. After crossing the Rappahannock River and taking possession of the heavily shelled town, Federal troops were devastated during a series of futile assaults on an impenetrable area beyond the city limits known as “Marye’s Heights.”
Local churches, homes and businesses were often commandeered by the military to be used as field hospitals. Unfortunately, the conditions at these makeshift medical sites were often deplorable. One woman who was determined to improve the healthcare of wounded soldiers everywhere was a volunteer nurse named Clara Barton. After assisting surgeons in the town’s battered churches, Barton went back across the river to the Lacy House, also known as Chatham. Located atop a bluff called “Stafford Heights,” the estate overlooked Fredericksburg and had originally been used as the Union army headquarters prior to the battle. By her estimate, there were no fewer than twelve hundred men crowded into the rooms of the mansion, with rows more stationed outside on the cold hard ground. Lying among this sea of bloody blue uniforms were a number of gray-clad wounded in need. One rebel, Captain Thurman Thomas of the 13th Mississippi Volunteers, was caught behind enemy lines, but grateful for the mercy he received. The “Angel of the Battlefield,” as Barton was called, treated the wounded Confederate with the same care and concern that she employed with her own boys. Her act of charity for Thomas and his companions echoed the sentiment that true compassion drew no political distinction. For the next two weeks Barton stayed at Chatham, where she saw “hundreds of the worst wounded men I have ever seen.” Throughout the remainder of the war she routinely helped soldiers from both sides, and those who survived regarded her as their savior. Following the end of the war, Barton traveled abroad, helping to end suffering on an international level. In 1881, she founded the American Red Cross, which continues to carry on her mission of mercy today. | |
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The Gray Ghost Mosby in Warrenton January 18, 1863 
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Following the Confederate Congress’s Partisan Ranger Act of 1862, Major General J.E.B. Stuart appointed one of his most gifted scouts, First Lieutenant John Singleton Mosby, to lead the 43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry. “Mosby’s Rangers,” as they would be called, were formed that following January as the winter of 1863 blanketed the Virginia countryside.
On the 18th of that month, while en route from Fredericksburg to Upper Fauquier, Mosby and fifteen men detached from the 1st Virginia Cavalry stopped off in the town of Warrenton to dine at the renowned Warren-Green Hotel. In November of 1862, Union General George B. McClellan had bid his troops farewell on the steps of this tavern after being relieved of his command by President Abraham Lincoln. This evening however, the Warren-Green witnessed the birth of a new command whose reputation would grow to epic proportions. This unique group represented twelve native Virginians and three Marylanders who had been handpicked by Mosby himself. They formed the original nucleus of “Mosby’s Rangers,” and together they would provide intelligence for the Army of Northern Virginia, while also causing disruptions along the Union army supply lines. Their unique ability to evade Federal pursuers earned their commander the nickname of “The Gray Ghost,” as he and his troops appeared to vanish whenever they ventured into harm’s way. Mosby himself recalled their unique mission when he wrote, “My purpose was to weaken the armies invading Virginia, by harassing their rear... to destroy supply trains, to break up the means of conveying intelligence, and thus isolating an army from its base, as well as its different corps from each other, to confuse their plans by capturing their dispatches, are the objects of partisan war. It is just as legitimate to fight an enemy in the rear as in the front. The only difference is in the danger.” After the South’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse in 1865, Mosby begrudgingly disbanded his rangers, vowing to never surrender formally. He later returned to the town of Warrenton to conduct his law practice and often dined at the Warren-Green Hotel. | |
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Rush to the Summit Chamberlain at Gettysburg, July 2, 1863 
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Thirty-four year-old Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain’s orders were clear and urgent: Move your regiment and do it fast. It was the second day at the Battle of Gettysburg, and General Robert E. Lee’s formidable Army of Northern Virginia was making its attack. The day before, Lee’s hard-fighting troops had broken the Federal line and had driven Northern troops through the town of Gettysburg in defeat and near panic. They had been stopped and reformed on a new line atop defensible high ground called Cemetery Ridge – and now Lee had struck again.
This time two Confederate assaults came simultaneously; one against the right side of the Federal line, and the other against the left side. On the left, the Northern defenders began giving way, and the Southerners were on their way to capturing a strategic, undefended battlefield landmark – a high wooded hill called Little Round Top. If captured by the Confederates, it could mean destruction of the Federal line. The battle – and maybe even the war – could be lost for the Union. A frantic call was issued for Federal troops to defend the crucial hill. In response, four regiments of Northern troops were rushed to Little Round Top’s summit. One was the 20th Maine Infantry, commanded by Joshua Chamberlain, who led his men up the rugged hillside to defend the vitally important Federal left flank. The regiment’s orders were to hold their position “at all hazards;” they could not let the enemy turn the far left flank. Colonel Chamberlain was no professional soldier: He was a college professor who had left the classroom to volunteer for duty. But he was a natural leader, and at Little Round Top he proved it. His troops piled up a line of stones and fence rails, and waited for the inevitable attack. It came soon -- charge after charge by the 15th Alabama Infantry, which was one of the toughest regiments in Lee’s army. Hickory-hard fighters, the Alabamians had never failed to take an objective – but this day they did. Despite a valiant effort, they were turned back by Colonel Chamberlain and the men from Maine. The decisive moment came when Chamberlain, realizing his troops were out of ammunition, ordered a desperate but successful bayonet counter-charge that saved the day. Saved too, for the Union, was the Federal army - and perhaps the war. Colonel Chamberlain and the 20th Maine had rushed to the summit, and had prevailed. | |
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Jackson's "Foot Cavalry" Old Mill, Strasburg, Va. June 1, 1862 
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None could outmarch them. Some believed none could outfight them. They were known as “Jackson’s Foot Cavalry” — so called for their ability to cover more than 30 miles a day – cavalry distance – on the march. Virginians all, they formed a division of troops under the command of General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia in 1862. In March of 1862, they numbered about 10,000 and had orders to defend the Valley from Northern forces four times their size. General Nathaniel Banks and 40,000 Federal troops had been moved into the Valley to battle Jackson while General George B. McClellan moved his giant Federal army toward the Confederate capital of Richmond. After driving away Jackson’s force, Banks was supposed to withdraw toward Washington, D.C. and support McClellan’s army as needed. Initially, Banks’ army pursued Jackson southward through the Valley. Believing Jackson had been driven away, Banks left General James Shields and a division of troops near Winchester, Virginia, and began to move the rest of his army toward Richmond as planned. Jackson, however, led his “foot cavalry” army in a rapid forced march back through the Valley, and struck Shields a surprise blow at the battle of Kernstown on March 23. Although Shields’ larger force eventually prevailed, Jackson won a strategic victory by keeping Northern forces tied down in the Valley. Reinforced by 7,000 more troops, he soon attacked again, this time defeating Federal forces under Generals Robert Schenk and Robert Milroy at the battle of McDowell on May 8. At Front Royal on May 23, he attacked Banks, forced him to retreat to Winchester, then decisively defeated him. Banks made a hasty retreat back north and across the Potomac River. In response, Washington authorities moved a large Federal force into the Shenandoah Valley to punish Jackson. It was not to be. Stonewall had lived in the Valley and he knew the country intimately. His “Foot Cavalry” was already moving by late May, and Jackson escaped a trap set for him near Strasburg. What then unfolded was one of the most brilliant operations of the Civil War: Stonewall Jackson’s Valley Campaign. Although threatened by superior Northern forces on two sides, Jackson defeated General John C. Fremont at Cross Keys on June 7, and General James Shields at Port Republic on June 9. Both Federal armies retreated. Meanwhile, General Robert E. Lee turned back McClellan’s army in the Seven Days Campaign. Lee had saved Richmond, and Jackson was master of the Valley. In 38 days, his “Foot Cavalry” marched approximately 400 miles, engaged in six battles, defeated five Northern generals and prevented thousands of Northern reinforcements from attacking Richmond. Jackson and his “Foot Cavalry” had become the stuff of legend. | |
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Lion of the Valley Stonewall Jackson in Winchester, Virginia November 6, 1861 
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No longer was he "Tom Fool" Jackson. That's what some cadets had called Major Thomas J. Jackson a year earlier at the Virginia Military Institute, where he had lectured on artillery principles, astronomy and physics. He was an expert at artillery, and he memorized his other subjects, but his classroom presentation was anything but inspiring. One student called him "the worst teacher God ever made." His demanding discipline resulted in the expulsion of six cadets, and prompted one student to challenge him to a duel. He often appeared lost in his thoughts, and sometimes even forgot to eat. He walked with an awkward gait, laughed in a peculiar and soundless manner, and would abruptly raise his arm and make a pumping motion to stimulate blood circulation. Beneath such eccentric behavior, however, lay one of history's brightest military geniuses. By the time he established his headquarters in Winchester, Virginia in 1861, Jackson's odd habits were overshadowed by his celebrated fame. "Tom Fool" Jackson had become "Stonewall" Jackson - the hero of the Confederate victory at First Manassas. A graduate of West Point and a Mexican War veteran, Jackson had left VMI for Confederate service, demonstrating a command ability that quickly spurred him to the rank of brigadier general and command of a brigade of Virginia troops from the Shenandoah Valley. His rock-hard defense of Henry House Hill at the battle of First Manassas earned him the nickname "Stonewall" Jackson, and made his name heroically famous throughout the South. In November of 1861, he was promoted to major general and placed in command of defending the Shenandoah Valley with headquarters at Winchester. When Jackson led his troops into town on November 6, the residents of Winchester realized they had a hero in their midst - but the flame of fame would soon burn with even greater brilliance. In the spring of 1862, Jackson would unleash his remarkable "Valley Campaign" and demonstrate his exceptional military genius. In an extraordinary display of hard marching, hard fighting and brilliant maneuvering, Jackson and his "foot cavalry" would humiliate the Northern armies that threatened the Shenandoah Valley. His triumph there would make him the lion of the Valley, and produce a year-long partnership with General Robert E. Lee that would make Stonewall Jackson one of history's leading military legends. | |
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Order Out of Chaos Nathan Bedford Forrest, Nashville, Tenn., February 22, 1862 
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Nashville was in a panic. The Tennessee capital was a key Confederate rail link, supply depot and industrial center for the war’s Western theater. Despite Nashville’s importance, the Southern army defending it was withdrawn when Northern forces advanced on the city in February of 1862. The army’s commander, Brigadier General John B. Floyd, a hapless political officer who had already abandoned nearby Fort Donelson, hastily retreated from Nashville – leaving behind vast stores of desperately needed military equipment and supplies. Left behind too, however, was a bold and decisive Confederate officer and his troops – Colonel Nathan Bedford Forrest and his brigade of cavalry. The retreating commander had left Forrest to tidy up the evacuation and he took his orders seriously. Soon, Forrest restored order out of the chaos. Forrest then commandeered wagons, and put his troops to work saving military supplies, equipment and ammunition – including more than 700 wagonloads of army rations. Not until Northern troops were entering Nashville in full strength on the evening of February 23, did Forrest suspend his disciplined salvage operation and retire from the city. By then, order had been restored, and Nashville’s mayor was able to surrender the capital – which was spared the fiery destruction that awaited other Southern cities. Forrest’s salvage operation had provided the stores necessary for Southern forces to fight again. The same daring and determination would soon make General Nathan Bedford Forrest famous – as the “Wizard of the Saddle.” | |
Rendezvous with Destiny
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He was first on the field and may have saved the war's greatest battle for the Union. Brigadier General John Buford was 37 years old when he led his First Cavalry Division into Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on June 30, 1863. Known to his troops as 'Old Steadfast,' he was considered one of the best cavalry officers in the Northern army, and he showed why at Gettysburg. As General Robert E. Lee moved his spread-out Army of Northern Virginia across Pennsylvania in late June, the cross roads town of Gettysburg lay on his route of march, and also in the path of General George Meade's pursuing Army of the Potomac. The first to fully reach the field might win the major battle both armies were seeking. Buford's cavalry got there first, and his orders were clear: Hold Gettysburg at all costs until supports arrive. Buford knew the bulk of Lee's army was arriving from the west, so he located strong defensive lines for the Federal army on ridges flanking the town's west side, with an excellent fall-back position on Cemetery Ridge to the rear. Buford did his job - and well. His cavalry was first to engage Lee's army, and held back its advance until the Federal army began arriving in force. When Northern troops were finally driven back on the battle's first day, they dug in on Cemetery Ridge. There, they delivered a decisive defeat to Lee's battle-hardened troops over the next two days, and made Gettysburg the decisive battle of the American Civil War. General Buford's choice of defensive positions on June 30th had enabled the Union to prevail on the war's greatest field of battle. | |
Going Home
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It was his final journey.
General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson – Robert E. Lee’s irreplaceable “right arm” – was seriously wounded at the battle of Chancellorsville on May 2, 1863. Eight days later, he succumbed to a related case of pneumonia. After lying in state at the Virginia Capitol and following an official state funeral in Richmond, Jackson’s body was transported back home to Lexington, Virginia for burial. On May 13, 1863, his funeral cortege arrived by rail in Lynchburg, Virginia. There, it proceeded through the city in a solemn procession, escorted by thousands of mourners. At the Kanawha Canal, the cortege was transferred to the packet boat Marshall. A familiar craft on the canal, the Marshall had the task of taking General Jackson up the James River on the final leg of his journey home to Lexington. For a long and memorable pause, the Marshall waited at its mooring below Lynchburg’s Ninth Street Bridge – with Jackson’s flag-draped casket aboard and surrounded by a group of mourners. Finally, its lines were cast off, and the Marshall headed up the canal for Lexington – as a huge crowd lined the bridge to pay their respects to the fallen leader. Stonewall Jackson was going home | |
Sunrise Service
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Despite a hefty measure of scoundrels, shirkers and skeptics, the ranks of the Civil War soldier were thoroughly leavened with believers. Nineteenth century American society was firmly founded on the Judeo-Christian world-view and a Biblical faith was openly expressed in the ranks – even in official military reports. Flag Officer Andrew H. Foote, whose river-borne naval forces helped open the Southern heartland to Federal advances, was a faithful Christian who conducted worship services for his sailors aboard ship. General Stonewall Jackson personally distributed salvation tracts to his soldiers. General Oliver O. Howard, a Federal corps commander, earnestly discouraged gambling and drunkenness among his troops, and his concern for freed slaves led to the establishment of Howard University. General Robert E. Lee personally insured that Jewish troops in his command were excused for Sabbath worship, and issued orders calling for periods of prayer and fasting in his army. Said Lee: “I am nothing but a poor sinner, trusting in Christ alone for salvation.” “I derive great comfort from the precious promises of Our Lord & Savior,” wrote a Southern infantryman in 1862 – sentiments repeated in countless soldier letters. “May God give me faith to sustain me under every trial….” In a typical letter written the same year, a Northern cavalryman agreed: “I am trying to become a more devoted Christian, a better Man – and the best Soldier I am capable of becoming.” More than a quarter-million copies of a Gospel tract called Parting Words were distributed through the Southern armies, and the U.S. Christian Commission donated more than a half-million Bibles to Northern troops during a single year of the war. In 1862 and 1863, the Southern armies were transformed by a revival akin to the Colonial-era Great Awakening. It produced tens of thousands of new Christians, spurred a wave of campground worship services, and launched countless prayer meetings. In the Confederate Army of Tennessee, an average of 40 soldiers a night professed newfound faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in a single two-week period. On the Virginia front, a joint baptism organized by Southern soldiers on the Rapidan River attracted a group of Northern troops to the opposite bank. Spontaneously, men from both sides joined in a hymn-singing at water’s edge. From the front lines to the backwaters of the war, soldiers North and South regularly paused from the ways of war to open the Lord’s Day with a sunrise worship service – expressing a common faith amidst an uncommon conflict. Mort Kunstler's Comments: The Southern countryside draped by a mantle of snow is, of course, a spectacular setting for any painting – and numerous snowy Sundays are on record during the war. Add to that the gorgeous tones of a winter sunrise – and a memorable stage is set for the painting. I also learned about the very moving personal elements of 19th century outdoor worship services in America – the different characters and poses that would have been seen at such an event. As I made preliminary sketches of the scene, I was able to include many of these elements – such as the typical praying poses of the “hat over heart” and the “crossed arms.” My annual snow scenes usually take place in the evening, so it was a nice change to paint an early morning sunrise. The focal point of the painting is the Southern chaplain, and I painted his dark figure against the lightest background. This design element, using the biggest contrast, brings the eye of the viewer right to the chaplain – and immediately tells the story I want to convey. Another design element, using tree branches as pointers, brings the eye to the focal point as well. For color accents, I have shown the South’s First National flag and the Southern battle flag – both of which came in use in General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia in the winter of 1861-62. During winter camp, some of the officers were visited by their wives, and this gave me the opportunity to include some women and an infant. What has emerged here in Sunrise Service is a wonderful, meaningful painting. It’s an artwork that truly expresses the heart of that exceptional generation of 19th century Americans – both Southern and Northern – and I think it’s also one of the most attractive pictures that I’ve ever had the opportunity to paint. Thank you, Rod and “Bud.” Without your suggestions and input, Sunrise Service would not have come to be – and I’m so glad to have painted it. | |
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Victory Rode the Rails Jackson at Piedmont Station, July 19, 1861 
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It was like a grand holiday. Throughout North and South in the summer of 1861, America's young men gleefully pulled on new uniforms, shouldered "rifle-muskets" and cheerfully left for war. They would whip the Rebels in 90 days, boasted Northern recruits. One Southerner could lick ten Yankees, claimed Southern boys. Never again would Americans go to war with such an unrealistic, romantic notion. Some knew better. Brigadier General Thomas J. Jackson, an unremarkable mathematics instructor from the Virginia Military Institute, was a Mexican War veteran, and he tried hard to prepare his troops - Virginia's First Brigade - for the reality of war.
But even Jackson's troops went to war as if heading for a holiday picnic. As they boarded a train at Virginia's Piedmont Station - among the first troops moved to battle by rail - they encountered a boisterous celebration. Flags were flying, troops were waving and young women were passing out treats. A holiday atmosphere masked a grim reality: Many of these youngsters, like their counterparts in the North, would soon be dead or wounded in the war's first major battle at First Manassas. There, too, near the banks of an obscure creek called Bull Run, the unknown VMI officer, Thomas J. Jackson, would rally the shaken Southerners, help turn the day for the Confederacy - and emerge forever famous as General "Stonewall" Jackson. |
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Lee Takes Command Pres. Davis and Gen. Lee, May 31, 1862 Available Only as a Framed Print!
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They were words that changed the course of the war: “General Lee, I shall assign you to command of this army.” They were spoken by Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States of America, on an evening ride following the Battle of Seven Pines. A mighty Northern army commanded by General George B. McClellan had pressed Richmond’s defenders back to the outskirts of the beleaguered Confederate capital. Then, at Seven Pines, the Confederate army commander, General Joseph E. Johnston, was seriously wounded. Who would now take command of the Southern forces defending Richmond? If the capital fell, the newborn Southern nation would surely collapse. Riding back toward Richmond through the darkness on Nine Mile Road, President Davis turned to his chief military advisor, 55 year-old General Robert E. Lee, and made him the army’s commander. Although he had opposed secession, Lee was committed to defending his homeland from invasion, and he obediently accepted command. Within a month, he had driven McClellan’s army from the field, and had reformed his command into what would become the heralded Army of Northern Virginia. By war’s end, he had established a reputation of competence and character that was revered in the South and respected in the North – and had launched the legacy that would make Robert E. Lee the most admired military leader of the American Civil War. | ||
On They Came With Flags Flying 
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In The Hands of Providence Chamberlain at Fredericksburg, Va., Dec. 13, 1862 
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The Official Gods and Generals Collection Finally, it was their turn. For hours, Lieutenant Colonel Joshua L. Chamberlain and the troops of the 20th Maine had awaited the command to enter combat at the Battle of Fredericksburg. The men from Maine watched with fascination and horror as wave after wave of their fellow soldiers courageously charged across a deadly, open field of fire – and were dashed to pieces by Southern artillery and infantry fire. Now their time had come – and their full initiation to combat would occur at one of the bloodiest battles of America’s bloodiest war. “I held my breath and set my teeth together,” one of the regiment’s officers would later recall, “determined not to show fear if I could….” Faces fixed toward the enemy, they moved forward. Confederate artillery raked the regiment with deadly gusts – yet on they went. They charged “over fences and through hedges,” Chamberlain would recall, “over bodies of dead men and living ones, past four lines that were lying on the ground.” Like those who went before it, however, the 20th Maine was doomed to fail. After suffering an awful shredding, the regiment was forced back. Even so, on the plains of death at Fredericksburg, the men from Maine – and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain – forged a reputation for coolness and courage that would follow them to other famous fields of fire and glory. | |
Mort Künstler
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Shenendoah Autumn Gens. Stuart and Jackson Millwood, Virginia, Nov. 4, 1862 The Official Gods and Generals Collection Image size: 17" x 28" Giclée Prints on Canvas Shipping $ 19 | |
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By late 1862, General Thomas J. Jackson and General J.E.B. Stuart were giants in gray — revered in the South and reluctantly respected in the North. Only General Robert E. Lee was held in higher esteem. “Stonewall” Jackson and “Jeb” Stuart had bequeathed heart and hope to the embattled people of the South, while repeatedly frustrating Northern strategies for conquering the Southern homeland. Stuart had literally ridden circles around the enemy, while providing invaluable intelligence as the “eyes” of General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia. Jackson had turned the tide at First Manassas where he emerged from obscurity to become the mighty “Stonewall” and then had thoroughly humiliated his foes in the Shenandoah Valley and at Second Manassas.
A daring attempt by Lee to capitalize on the Southern victories had been thwarted weeks earlier on the bloody fields of Antietam. Now, the Army of Northern Virginia was regrouping and preparing to repel another Northern assault — which they knew would surely come soon. In early November, Jackson and his troops were encamped east of Winchester, Virginia, and the General established temporary headquarters on the grounds of Carter Hall Plantation. It was there on November 4, 1862, that Jackson received a visit from General Stuart, who was fresh from battle and a hard night’s ride. Jackson promptly ordered his headquarters cooks to feed the weary warriors. “Nothing was better calculated to restore our good spirits than the summons to the General’s large breakfast-table,” recalled Major Heros von Borcke. Within hours, Stuart and his staff were back in the saddle and bidding goodbye to their host. They left Carter Hall much better for their time spent as General Jackson’s guests. “The good cheer had the happiest effect on Stuart, who enlivened our repast with abundant anecdote and the recital of many a joke,” recalled von Borcke. The laughter and cheer would prove fleeting — ahead lay hard days, heavy fighting and tragic ends for both Jackson and Stuart. Within months, mighty “Stonewall” would be dead, followed in 1864 by the dashing General Stuart. For the moment, however, Jackson and Stuart — like General Lee — were giants of heroic stature in the South this Shenandoah autumn. | ||
Mort Künstler
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Morgan's Ohio Raid Montgomery, Ohio, July 14, 1863 Mort Künstler is the Official Artist for the Ohio Bicentennial Commission. Image size: 16 3/4" x 29" Giclée Prints on Canvas Shipping $ 19 | |
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It was one of the boldest cavalry operations of the Civil War. In July of 1863, General John Hunt Morgan led 2,500 Confederate cavalrymen on a daring, three-week raid through Indiana and Ohio. Morgan and his men eluded pursuing Federal cavalry, diverted Federal troops and resources and delayed important Northern military operations. In the beleaguered South, news of Morgan’s Raid boosted morale. Morgan and his cavalrymen were relentlessly pursued by determined Federal cavalry commanded by Generals Edward H. Hobson and Henry M. Judah. They met staunch resistance by Midwestern civilians throughout the length of their raid. In Montgomery, Ohio – a village near Cincinnatti – Morgan’s Raiders received a chilly reception from defiant townspeople. With Northern forces closing in, Morgan’s harried troops pushed on across Ohio. Five days after Morgan’s men entered Montgomery, Hobson’s and Judah’s Federal troops overtook the Rebel raiders at Buffington Island, Ohio and captured approximately 700 Southern soldiers. Morgan and his men raced northward, but were finally cornered in northeastern Ohio near the Pennsylvania border. There, on July 26, 1863, Morgan was forced to surrender his command near West Point, Ohio - barely 70 miles from Lake Erie. Although Morgan would daringly escape from imprisonment and return to Confederate command, he would be mortally wounded on another raid. In the South, his exploits would become part of the legacy of the Lost Cause. In Ohio, generations to come would recall the days when the citizens of the Buckeye State defied the Rebel Raiders in the alarming time of Morgan’s Ohio Raid. | ||
Mort Künstler
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Changing of the Pickets Image Size: 17 3/4" x 29 1/2" Overall : 23 3/4" x 34 1/2" 1,150 Limited Edition prints S/N $ 200 100 Artist Proofs $ 350 Shipping $ 19 |
Mort Künstler
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Letter From Home Image Size: 19" x 15 1/4" Overall Size: 25" x 20 1/4" 1,150 Limited Edition prints S/N $ 200 100 Artist Proofs S/N $ 350 Shipping $ 19 |
Mort Künstler
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The Winds of Winter Stonewall Jackson's Romney Campaign, January, 1862 Image Size: 17 3/4" x 26 3/4" Overall Size: 23 3/4" x 31 3/4" 2000 Limited Edition prints S/N $ 200 500 Virginia Tech Edition S/N 250 Internet Edition S/N 100 Artist Proofs S/N $ 350
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It was nothing like their early dreams of war. Federal forces had invaded the Shenandoah Valley, and an army of Southern soldiers had been dispatched to protect their homeland. Their objective was the Shenandoah Valley hamlet of Romney, where the Northern army was encamped - but the Valley weather, not the Yankees, proved to be the fiercest enemy. Less than a year earlier, these sons of the South had rushed to arms, filled with romantic notions of gallantry and glory. Now they faced the reality of life in the field. Deep snow and bitterly cold temperatures had transformed their march into a grueling ordeal. Reported a Confederate officer: "The road was almost an uninterrupted sheet of ice, rendering it almost impossible for man or beast to travel, while by moonlight the beards of the men, matted with ice, glistened like crystals…" Recalled another: "If a man had told me 12 months ago that men could stand such hardships, I would have called him a fool." Despite the almost unbearable conditions, they persevered - led by a relentless warrior: General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson. Determined to do his duty and rid the Shenandoah Valley of invaders, Jackson drove his troops forward day and night through the snow, wind and ice. Soon, as if awed by Jackson's sheer willpower as much as the savage weather, Federal forces retreated without doing battle. Left behind was a horde of supplies and weapons to be confiscated by the jubilant Confederates. Months ahead, in the spring and summer to come, awaited greater glory: Jackson's brilliant, victorious Valley Campaign. It too would be won by the same determination and endurance that had enabled Stonewall Jackson and his "foot cavalry" to win the winter war. |
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