Title: A people's history of the Civil War : struggles for the meaning of freedom /
Authors: Williams, David, 1959-
Publisher: New Press : Distributed by W.W. Norton & Co.,
Year: 2005
Subjects: United States History Social aspects.; United States History
Abstract: "A People's History of the Civil War is "bottom up" history, illustrated with little-known anecdotes and first-person testimony. David Williams brings to life the brutal, mundane experiences of the war - such as the mutilated bodies which, in the words of one soldier, lay "thick as autumn leaves" over the fields after every major battle - and the harsh realities of battlefield medicine and wartime rations. At the same time, he gives us a moving and intimate glimpse into the personal acts of bravery and human kindness that helped to elevate a terrible fight into a sometimes-noble cause."--Jacket.
Contents: "The people at war" -- "All the benefit of the wealthy" -- "The brunt is thrown upon the working classes" -- "The women rising" -- "We poor soldiers" -- "Come in out of the draft" -- "My God! are we free?" -- "Indians here have no fight with the whites" -- "Was the war in vain?"