Plain People of the Confederacy

Description

"Widely hailed for his realistic portrayals of the common soldier of the Civil War, Bell Irvin Wiley upset carefully cultivated, deeply held southern myths about the Lost Cause with the 1944 publication of The Plain People of the Confederacy. His look at the Confederate experience of soldiers, African Americans, and women also sparked a debate about the reasons for southern defeat that continues among historians to this day. Republished here with Paul D. Escott's new introduction and fresh appraisal of the book's influence, this classic work reveals a far more complex, conflicted, and intriguing society than the unified and idealized version created and perpetuated in the wake of surrender.". "Wiley broke new ground by challenging southern myths about a contented and loyal slave population, a self-sacrificing citizenry united in support of states' rights, and a military unmarred by cowardice and vice. Unearthing a wealth of correspondence, government documents, and other firsthand accounts, Wiley brought to center stage the question of popular morale and insisted on its importance in shaping the fate of the Confederacy. He showed that the Confederacy was racked by dissension and that the heart of the South's problems lay in class resentments and poor governmental policy rather than in military reverses."--BOOK JACKET.

First Sentence

THE Southern Confederacy achieved her greatest renown from the exploits of her armed forces.

Excerpt

THE Southern Confederacy achieved her greatest renown from the exploits of her armed forces.

Subjects

Other Editions

• Plain People of the ConfederacyHardcoverPeter Smith Publisher Inc1987-12-01
• The plain people of the Confederacy.Quadrangle Books1943-01-01
• The plain people of the ConfederacyLouisiana State University Press1943-01-01
• The plain people of the Confederacy.Quadrangle Books1963-01-01
• The plain people of the ConfederacyQuadrangle Books1963-01-01
• The plain people of the ConfederacyLouisiana State University Press1965-01-01