Recently took a vacation trip with the family and the hotel where we stayed hadt a small library which interestingly had a number of books on the War Between the States including a three volume series entitled “Lee’s Lieutenants, A Study in Command”, “How the North Won”, “Battlefields of the Civil War” and others. On one shelf was a 28-volume series by Time Life entitled “The Civil War”. Interesting to see books of this sort in a hotel and these comprised the majority of the books on the shelves there. I sat down to look at one of the Time Life books as I had not seen these previously. The first thing I did was check the copyright date. It was in the early 1980s. You see, nowadays, you have to judge a history book largely by its cover or at least what’s just inside the front cover as that date may reflect on the mindset and predisposition of the historians of that period.
As the fortunes of the Confederacy waned in 1864, General Patrick Cleburne stated, “Surrender means that the history of this heroic struggle will be written by the enemy; that our youth will be trained by Northern school teachers; will learn from Northern school books their version of the War; will be impressed by all the influences of history and education to regard our gallant dead as traitors, and our maimed veterans as fit subjects for derision.” Today, historians are agenda driven and seek to produce publications by adhering to the modern narratives especially in regards to the War for Southern Independence which they would refer to as Lincoln’s War to Free the Slaves in the Rebellious Southern States. The Project 1619 history curriculum gained traction to indoctrinate our children in schools across the country. A certain Jeremiah Jasper Johnson on Twitter states on his profile, "History is a set of lies agreed upon." - Napoleon Bonaparte
It is enlightening to read the posts for some of the accounts on Twitter. Jefferson Davis (@Jeff_Davis 1808) uses quotes from statesmen and officers of the period to make his points for his voluminous tweets. Using direct quotes of the characters or witnesses who were living in the period is called first person accounts. “Some of the most interesting and useful artifacts from history are the first-person accounts we find in journals and interviews. Students can gather those today as they chronicle and attempt to understand an event from the past or the things unfolding in our present.” (https://inspiredteaching.org/document-history-with-first-person-accounts/) Truly, this is the most accurate accounting of the historical record. Obviously too, analysis of historical documents such as constitutions.
But today, even eye-witness accounts may not provide accurate unbiased reporting as for instance the main stream media has proven to be agenda driven and more so provides opinion pieces instead of factual reporting. We look at historians as sources of historical accounting but today, it is accepted that classwork and doctoral theses are often tilted to accommodate the bias of the institution and the reviewing professors. Fairly, if one can categorize your thoughts as politically incorrect, you may actually be onto the scent of truth.
We must be careful to recognize our own bias and potential for becoming comfortable and complacent in our own echo chamber as members of the SCV. We are fortunate to have had many uniquely qualified and objective speakers at our camp meetings including Dr. Grover Plunkett, Col. John Eidsmoe, and our own Jayson Altieri who provide factual information about their subjects. The SCV educational forums are excellent opportunities to hear qualified exceptionally learned speakers such as Brion McClanahan and Thomas Dilorenzo. Brion is a frequent tweeter and blogger and focuses on our nation’s founding principles to which we should always refer in defense of our ancestors fight for Southern Independence. The Stephen Dill Lee Institute is another venue providing a great opportunity to hear and learn from true historians. As our Southern heritage and history are attacked and literally dismantled in regards to monuments and vestiges of our historical record by woke politicians and mobs, the Abbeville Institute seeks to “preserve the history and culture of the American South…to view the South’s history through an academic lens to help others understand the rich traditions and culture that was born here. The Institute is operated by a group of scholars from the American South who have dedicate their studies and research to the cause. Our goal is to never rewrite history or erase the past, but to remove the negative stereotype that hangs over the South.” (abbevilleacademy.org)
As the Reconciliation Monument is dismantled at Arlington and after the Army forts have all been stripped of the names of universally recognized heroic honorable iconic Confederate general officers, it takes no question of presumption as to the intent of our government to minimize the recognition and value of our Southern heritage and culture. They are attempting to erase Southern history and the founders ideals of limited federal government, self-reliance and liberty which emboldened our Confederate ancestors to seek Southern independence. It is up to us as Sons of Confederate Veterans to perpetuate the truth and educate ourselves and our loved ones for the sake of future generations as the Charge implores us to do.
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