^As we see in Chaimberlain, the northern soilders are more familiar with their commanders and more willing to express thier opinions. A strange irony here. the group that is supposedly fighting for freedom from the oppressors are more reserved and respectful of authority than those who are fighting to preserve the Union.

Chaimberlain is faced with over 130 mutineers that have been thrust upon him. He has only minutes to assess the situation and act. He has no time to seek help from outside, and he has not the nature to devise a plan of guile and stealth. He speaks simply and honestly and from the heart. The results are remarkable.

What of the notion of having your little brother in your command. At time of war. Hard to imagine isn't it?

 

Until the 5 Sullivan Brothers were lost in the sinking of the USS Juneau in WOrld War II, this was not that uncommon,

Custer's 2 brothers and a brother-in-law were with him at Little Big Horn.

You have to consider how companies and regiments were raised durng the Civil War. A company was typically mostly for one town and a regiment from a relatively small geopgraphical area, so you had grown up with those around you in battle. This had the benefit of instant camradery and made it harder to shirk opne's duty knowing that cowardice would be carried back home and could directly result in the death of life long friends.

 

A very good point. Longstreet and Chamberlain seem very much the same man except that they are on opposing sides. They are different, but somehow they are very much the same. And they represent the same thing to each side.

 

I'm enjoying this thread and learning things I had never thought of in this connection before. Bill, you are doing a great job of guiding the discussion and pacing the progress. I hope other people who are interested will join in too. It might just be your take, your impressions, your interpretation of the historical facts or the fictional presentation in the book. We already have a number of different perspectives represented. Military, Southern, Northern, legal, literary, historical...+. I was just lurking at first, but decided to join in (couldn't stay out ) and am looking forward to reading more of the discussion as the thread continues through the novel.

 

I'm basically lurking and learning. I really enjoyed driving down into Appomattox yesterday and paid particular attention to the route of Lee's retreat. I've been there soooo many times that I normally just blow by.

 

I'm so glad more folks have joined in. I was hoping that some of our military historians, such as Vito, would be able to tell us the realtive size and strength of the different military units. How big is a company, a regiment, a corps, a division, etc? Later in the book, we will be discussing a few military maneuvers. I hope the experts will chime in then too as Shaara doesn't really make it clear.

Now, a short discussion on schedule. By my count, including foreword and afterword, there are 27 sections or chapters. We have discussed three. Gettysburg is about 5 weeks away. We need to try to cover a chapter a day. We can't spend more than two days on any one chapter. Maybe it will move quicker as we go. I hope folks don't mind if I try to cover a chapter per day from here on out.

 

John Buford. From the moment you meet him you know he is a professional soilder. From the minute he learns that he has run into the confederate skirmishers, he knows the gravity of the situation. He strikes me as man discouraged by his superiors. He has little faith in them and that opinion seems to be the result of a number of disapointments in the field as well as his personal assessments. What else strikes you about him?

 

One quick question for some of the historians. I thought that by the time of the Battle of Gettysburg repeater rifles were issued to the troops yet it seems that the men are still carrying single shot muskets. When did the troops get repeater rifles?

 

I was looking at this site Rob. I'm not sure of the accuracy, but it is interesting reading.

http://m.s.tripod.com/~ProlificPains/wpns.htm

 

Thanks Bill. I took a look at that thread. It is interesting reading.

Sorry I'm not in the bookclub to much tonight. I've been working on the meet and haven't had a chance to look at the book.

I'll be ready tomorrow night when the discussion resumes.