A Captain’s War: The Letters and Diaries of William H. S. Burgwyn, 1861–1865 (Voices from the American Civil War) Kindle Edition

A gripping, first-hand account of life as a young Confederate officer during the brutal years of the American Civil War.This work should be essential reading for fans of Company Aytch: A Confederate Memoir of the Civil War by Sam R. Watkins and Hardtack and Coffee: The Unwritten Story of Army Life by John D. Billings.At just fifteen years old, William H. S. Burgwyn enlisted in the Confederate army. By the war’s end, he had risen to the rank of captain, fought at Antietam and Fredericksburg, served as a staff officer under Brigadier-General Thomas L. Clingman, and endured the horrors of Cold Harbor, where he was severely wounded. Even after his recovery, Burgwyn returned to the front lines — only to be captured during the assault on Fort Harrison and spend the final six months of the war in a Union prison.In his stolen moments of quiet, Burgwyn kept a vivid diary and penned letters home, offering rare, personal insights into both the chaos of battle and the tedium of army life. Edited by historian Herbert M. Schiller, these remarkable writings reveal not just the exhilaration and terror of combat, but also the ambitions, friendships, hardships, and small details of a soldier’s life — from scheming for promotion to the lifeline of money sent from Northern relatives.‘In publishing these papers, Dr. Schiller is making this historically important material more readily available to the community of Civil Warriors, professional and lay. Through these papers, we may better understand how ‘ordinary troops’ under ‘ordinary generals’ rendered extraordinary service in the crucible of Civil War.’ — Richard J. Sommers, U.S. Army Military History Institute‘a valuable addition to Confederate accounts of the war’s eastern theater.’ J. Tracy Power, The Journal of Southern History‘a wonderful addition to the literature of the Civil War because it brings to light long-lost personal reminiscences.’ — Robert Hilldrup, The Roanoke Times Read more