“The Civil War: The Third Year Told by the People Who Lived It”

The year 1863 was likely the critical one in the Civil War, largely because of two battles. Both were fought about the same time, in July. Gettysburg happened over three days, while Vicksburg had been considerably longer and far more complex, with Grierson’s Raid, the Battles of Jackson and Port Gobson, and the long siege that saw town citizens hiding in caves from the shelling and subsisting on whatever food sources might be available. 

But the year saw far more than only two battles. The Emancipation Proclamation went into full effect; former slaves were forming into Union regiments; the Union instituted a conscription act, which resulted in days of draft riots in New York City; Knoxville was occupied by Union forces; the Confederates experienced a great victory at Chancellorsville; and more.

To continue reading, please see my post today at Dancing Priest.

Some Wednesday Readings

 

Les Miserables and the American Civil War and Les Miserables, the American Civil War, and the Future of Republican Government – Sarah Kay Bierle and David Dixon at Emerging Civil War

 

“Seated Lincoln” in Newark, N.J. by Gutzon Borglum, Sculptor of Mt. Rushmore – Patrick Young at The Reconsruction Era.