I was named after Robert E. Lee and have been a Civil War buff since I was a kid in the 1950s and 1960s. The Invasion, Martial Law, confiscation of private weapons, and imprisonment of Marylanders in Baltimore makes it easier to understand how many shocked Marylanders fought for the Confederacy to rid their homes of Northern aggressors. Since I live in this one party State that has eaten away at my Constitutional rights for years, I understand how my ancestors felt to be under the boot of tyranny.
@@ericsniper9843 My Irish ancestors were enslaved by the English and the Vikings. My Britain and German ancestors were enslaved by the Romans. My Cherokee ancestors were slaughtered by the Americans, their land was stolen, and they were sent to the Swamps of Oklahoma.
Today folks are quick to say that our political situation is the worst ever. Digging into history as Ron does paints a much different picture of how much turmoil and heartbreak can be created when politics fails. TBTG
This letter and story underscores the fact that so many people participated in this war on both sides for a plethora of reasons. This was a complex and passionate time in American history. The "Border States" like Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri had many, many families that were literally torn apart. I'm not sure that ol' Shakespeare could have written a better tragedy than as what befell our nation and especially, those regions. The good news is that as a byproduct, slavery was abolished, not to discount the tireless work of some abolitionists. Even if slavery had been abolished before the first shot was fired on Ft. Sumter, there was so much sectional animosity along with hot tensions between the newly formed Republican party and Southern Democrats, I think the Civil War may have still occurred regardless. All of these dynamics makes this such a fascinating time in our nation's history to study. Love your channel!
Yes, tireless work of terrorism by the self-named radical republicans. They were at least half of the reason why the South seceded. The other half was the arrogant Southern Aristocrats who believed that they could win by chivalry & bravado alone.
It doesn’t surprise me to see an Englishman interested in the US Civil War. I see this a lot. What does surprise me is the lack of interest in the US of British history, including civil wars with all that involves. I say this because although the American Civil War isn’t part of your history, English civil wars are as much a part of my history (as a Scots-Irish/English descendant) as it is any Brits’.
@@PeterFayle Indeed. One could also call the Wars of the Roses a civil war, and then of course there was the Henry III vs Simon de Montfort battles. For many in the States this is our own history and many of us are ignorant of it. Not to mention the fact, and I think this is what it is, that people such as Jackson were at one time in the 20th century better known - or at least as well known - in Britain than in the US. A while back I saw a photo of a Brit at the spot where Turner Ashby was killed. It occurred to me that this guy probably knew more about Jackson’s Valley Campaign that I did. I’ve been to many American Civil War battle sites but I’ve never seen Towton, Marsden Moor or Edgehill. I hope to remedy this before I get too old.
@@PeterFayle Man I do too. I’m in my 60s now and not in the best health. But I must see England and Scotland before I die. Then I’d die happy. It really means that much to me. The USA is the new kid on the block, historically speaking, unless we are referring to the indigenous population. But every square foot of Britain has an enormous amount of history associated with it. You can still see and touch things that for example Richard III saw and touched on his way to Bosworth. That’s rather mind blowing to me.
Well, so we met again for coffee this morning....How delightful it was listening to your tales, evocative as usual. It sent me in search of a family letter penned on August 7, 1861. Here is a snippet. It was written by the hand of Molly Phillips to her cousin at Oak Level Virginia. "I have the blues very bad, well Cousin Elvira nearly all of our boys have volunteered, Cous' Pres and Tobias, Nate has also and Robert. I haven't a beau left." I felt a bittersweet tug of recognition at the parallel lives led at the exact same moment in time between young Randolph McKim and my relatives of a similar age.
How very cool to have a family letter like that . My GGGrandfather joined the Michigan 4th volunteer infantry in 1863 and Im still trying to find his grave but I have it narrowed down . Thank You for sharing .
I found the letters as well as two dictionaries among my parents things. One had the name of a relative of mine along with notations of the births of slave children as well as family children, it was dated 1774. The other also had several family names. No date in that one but my guess is around 1850 based on names and the condition of the book. As for your g-g-grandfather, stick with it. Believe me when I say... you will be rewarded beyond measure. Good Luck!
Thank you Ron for another informative episode! Not only do I learn a lot from listening to your well done presentations, but I often feel that I am taken back to those times via a 'time machine' of sorts listening to these first hand accounts.
Stonewall being such of strong Christian faith, you can see how that young man with his own faith became a young officer under Jackson. That young Southerner was blessed in faith and duty.
HUZZAH TO RANDOLPH HARRISON MCKIM!!! What a hard thing to do: choosing between family loyalties, the patriarchy and a sense of a higher duty. It must be one of the hardest decisions a human being can make. I wouldn't envy anyone forced into that position by circumstances beyond their control.
Out of nine U.S. Army colonels from Virginia serving in 1860, ONE of them joined the Confederacy. We all know who that was. It wasn't such a hard decision really.
@petebondurant58 perhaps not for one who who lacks the necessary prerequisites for independent thought? It must make life so much more simple when one is easily brainwashed into blind loyalties?
@@FuzzyWuzzy75 A majority of Virginia Colonels serving in the U.S. Army in 1861, men who lived in those times, would consider that you lack the necessary prerequisite for independent thought.
@petebondurant58 Oh, you speak for the dead, do you?! Wow, clairvoyant and a first-rate douche bag all in one that is impressive! And for the record, when I spoke of individuals lacking the prerequisites for independent thought, I wasn't speaking of anyone who would have been alive at time of the Civil War.
McKimm was a well known reverand after the war and became a renown public speaker in WashingtonDC. area. He was an important advocate for reconciliation telling Southerners to love both flags: the stars and stripes of the reunified nation as well as love and remembrance for the stars and bars that so many of thier country men sacrificed life and limb for. The last 30 years of the 19th century reflected the moral dilima the South faced between the defeat of their flawed cause and the need for patriotism and loyalty the reformed United States. The high percentage of Southerners who enlisted in the war agains Spain and WW1 reflects their loyalty to the United States. Even though people like Lee stated the fate of the South and outcome of the war was determinded by God, It was a hard pill to swallow for many white Southerners and it would take 3 or 4 generations to accept the equal status of African Americans.
And the war crimes committed by Sherman and his Yankees. Though, to be fair, Quantril had his raid that killed over 150 civilians. Then again, he was more of a guerilla.
I have come to find out that my ancestors fought on both sides. I have no evidence as to why that happened. It has been my belief that the Civil War was a much more complex issue, and even though the notion of it being fought for the freedom of slaves has been romanticized in more recent times, there is too much evidence to suggest it was not.
He would've been sickened to see what his city has become today.The slavers that he fought for have controlled Baltimore for 57 years and we see the results. Sad.
I think it’s very important that we try to show all the angles on both sides. While I obviously believe Abraham Lincoln was constitutionally wrong and the constitution is indeed a compact of the states, I feel for the parents of the young men on both sides. God Bless the South, I hate that we had war that costed the lives of nearly 1 million people. It wasn’t necessary.
That's like apples & bananas. Though, there were German-born Americans that joined the Axis. ua-cam.com/video/8uhsitAE8cI/v-deo.htmlsi=Lwtjpf6cyFB5lRRX
If that had been my Mississippi momma he wrote to, she would have broken his plate, turned his picture to the wall, disowned him, and his name was not to be spoken in her presence.
The War was about economics. Read Thomas J. DiLorenzo's The Real Lincoln and Lincoln Unmasked. Great books from a Pennsylvania yankee and an old "Civil War" buff. He's a Professor at Loyola University.
And funny still not one word about slavery just the words oppressors and invaders in all of their letters home you would think they knew why they were fighting a war for wouldn’t you !!!!!
If I was 20 when the war broke out and my parents were Unionists.... I'd probably join the Confederate army just to spite them and be a rebel. I'll bet this happened a lot..... both ways.
Excellent question. One number I am aware of his 100,000 White southerners that were Unionists. If you consider Black men who were enslaved, and that 200,000 men of color joined the U.S. Army and Navy, the number could be upwards of 300,000. The 100,000 number does not include border states. Maryland, for example, provided 60,000 men to the U.S. and 25,000 to the C.S. More research to be done here.
@@lifeonthecivilwarresearchtrail that is a very good set of estimates. Tennessee had the most Union volunteer units in the seceded states, both white and black if I recall. Eastern Tenn was fairly pro Union in the mountains...as you find on Western VA (eventually WV) and backwater towns in N GA...while the larger villages had stronger Confederate participation.
@@STho205 Glad you pointed out examples of pockets of Unionists in the Southern states. I once visited a historical society in Western North Carolina and I told the director I was visiting to research a local Civil War soldier. He asked me which side. An eye-opening experience.
@@lifeonthecivilwarresearchtrail yes I live in the tristates corner (Georgia myself) the Elijah Stanley incident on the Toccoa River is quite an enlightening story of family against family over sympathies.
Got a shock like that visiting Andersonville GA. The monuments there had the numbers of men who died there from each state. More Soldiers from Tennessee died at Andersonville (as prisoners of the CSA) than troops from Ohio or New York. Certainly educated me that the state lines were not the boundaries of loyalty we are sometimes led to believe.
I was named after Robert E. Lee and have been a Civil War buff since I was a kid in the 1950s and 1960s. The Invasion, Martial Law, confiscation of private weapons, and imprisonment of Marylanders in Baltimore makes it easier to understand how many shocked Marylanders fought for the Confederacy to rid their homes of Northern aggressors. Since I live in this one party State that has eaten away at my Constitutional rights for years, I understand how my ancestors felt to be under the boot of tyranny.
Amen
I second that amen.
DEO VINDICE
Your ancestors were not under the boot of tyranny. It was the enslaved people who were without rights.
@@ericsniper9843 My Irish ancestors were enslaved by the English and the Vikings. My Britain and German ancestors were enslaved by the Romans. My Cherokee ancestors were slaughtered by the Americans, their land was stolen, and they were sent to the Swamps of Oklahoma.
@@robertrobert7924 Yeah, everyone is part Cherokee. 😆
One of Robert E. Lee's sisters, Anne Kinloch Lee Marshall resided in Baltimore and was a Union loyalist.
And my parents took it hard when I changed majors...
Today folks are quick to say that our political situation is the worst ever. Digging into history as Ron does paints a much different picture of how much turmoil and heartbreak can be created when politics fails. TBTG
This letter and story underscores the fact that so many people participated in this war on both sides for a plethora of reasons. This was a complex and passionate time in American history. The "Border States" like Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri had many, many families that were literally torn apart. I'm not sure that ol' Shakespeare could have written a better tragedy than as what befell our nation and especially, those regions. The good news is that as a byproduct, slavery was abolished, not to discount the tireless work of some abolitionists. Even if slavery had been abolished before the first shot was fired on Ft. Sumter, there was so much sectional animosity along with hot tensions between the newly formed Republican party and Southern Democrats, I think the Civil War may have still occurred regardless. All of these dynamics makes this such a fascinating time in our nation's history to study. Love your channel!
Yes, tireless work of terrorism by the self-named radical republicans. They were at least half of the reason why the South seceded. The other half was the arrogant Southern Aristocrats who believed that they could win by chivalry & bravado alone.
As an English man I have for many many years been interested in the civil war and find your work very interesting thank you.
It doesn’t surprise me to see an Englishman interested in the US Civil War. I see this a lot.
What does surprise me is the lack of interest in the US of British history, including civil wars with all that involves. I say this because although the American Civil War isn’t part of your history, English civil wars are as much a part of my history (as a Scots-Irish/English descendant) as it is any Brits’.
The English civil war is also very interesting with it ending in regicide and the country being run by a so called lord protector.
@@PeterFayle Indeed. One could also call the Wars of the Roses a civil war, and then of course there was the Henry III vs Simon de Montfort battles.
For many in the States this is our own history and many of us are ignorant of it. Not to mention the fact, and I think this is what it is, that people such as Jackson were at one time in the 20th century better known - or at least as well known - in Britain than in the US.
A while back I saw a photo of a Brit at the spot where Turner Ashby was killed. It occurred to me that this guy probably knew more about Jackson’s Valley Campaign that I did.
I’ve been to many American Civil War battle sites but I’ve never seen Towton, Marsden Moor or Edgehill. I hope to remedy this before I get too old.
I hope you get to visit the battlefield sites that you mentioned , I hope to pay a visit to the Shenandoah Valley to follow Jackson’s valley campaign.
@@PeterFayle Man I do too. I’m in my 60s now and not in the best health. But I must see England and Scotland before I die. Then I’d die happy. It really means that much to me.
The USA is the new kid on the block, historically speaking, unless we are referring to the indigenous population. But every square foot of Britain has an enormous amount of history associated with it. You can still see and touch things that for example Richard III saw and touched on his way to Bosworth. That’s rather mind blowing to me.
Well, so we met again for coffee this morning....How delightful it was listening to your tales, evocative as usual. It sent me in search of a family letter penned on August 7, 1861. Here is a snippet. It was written by the hand of Molly Phillips to her cousin at Oak Level Virginia.
"I have the blues very bad, well Cousin Elvira nearly all of our boys have volunteered, Cous' Pres and Tobias, Nate has also and Robert. I haven't a beau left." I felt a bittersweet tug of recognition at the parallel lives led at the exact same moment in time between young Randolph McKim and my relatives of a similar age.
How very cool to have a family letter like that . My GGGrandfather joined the Michigan 4th volunteer infantry in 1863 and Im still trying to find his grave but I have it narrowed down . Thank You for sharing .
I found the letters as well as two dictionaries among my parents things. One had the name of a relative of mine along with notations of the births of slave children as well as family children, it was dated 1774. The other also had several family names. No date in that one but my guess is around 1850 based on names and the condition of the book.
As for your g-g-grandfather, stick with it. Believe me when I say... you will be rewarded beyond measure. Good Luck!
@@debbiegipson4512 Thank You so much.
And yet another awesome story, bringing the past alive. Thanks for sharing
Thank you , Ron, for the excellent work. best Wishes From Caledoni, a Jim Sieyes
Thank you Ron for another informative episode! Not only do I learn a lot from listening to your well done presentations, but I often feel that I am taken back to those times via a 'time machine' of sorts listening to these first hand accounts.
Stonewall being such of strong Christian faith, you can see how that young man with his own faith became a young officer under Jackson.
That young Southerner was blessed in faith and duty.
Thank you for these great videos. I have been a Civil War buff since I was old enough to read. These personal accounts are so interesting to hear
Could you do a topic on Ukrainian born General Vasyl Turchin who took part in the Civil War there's a Turchin Park named after him thank you.
Good boy!!!
You earned a new subscriber. This video was really cool
I love listening to you read the letters that you come acrossed you have the perfect voice for it Thank You .
Maryland my Maryland 🥰🥰🥰
Wonderful story
Reading (and seeing) the stories of soldiers and officers on both sides, I often wonder how many of them have linear descendants who are still living.
I always like the McKim story and recommend R.H. McKim's book
God bless that man for standing up for his principles regardless of what others may think of it.
real people
An interesting video.
HUZZAH TO RANDOLPH HARRISON MCKIM!!!
What a hard thing to do: choosing between family loyalties, the patriarchy and a sense of a higher duty. It must be one of the hardest decisions a human being can make. I wouldn't envy anyone forced into that position by circumstances beyond their control.
Out of nine U.S. Army colonels from Virginia serving in 1860, ONE of them joined the Confederacy. We all know who that was. It wasn't such a hard decision really.
@petebondurant58 perhaps not for one who who lacks the necessary prerequisites for independent thought? It must make life so much more simple when one is easily brainwashed into blind loyalties?
@@FuzzyWuzzy75 A majority of Virginia Colonels serving in the U.S. Army in 1861, men who lived in those times, would consider that you lack the necessary prerequisite for independent thought.
@petebondurant58 Oh, you speak for the dead, do you?! Wow, clairvoyant and a first-rate douche bag all in one that is impressive! And for the record, when I spoke of individuals lacking the prerequisites for independent thought, I wasn't speaking of anyone who would have been alive at time of the Civil War.
McKimm was a well known reverand after the war and became a renown public speaker in WashingtonDC. area. He was an important advocate for reconciliation telling Southerners to love both flags: the stars and stripes of the reunified nation as well as love and remembrance for the stars and bars that so many of thier country men sacrificed life and limb for. The last 30 years of the 19th century reflected the moral dilima the South faced between the defeat of their flawed cause and the need for patriotism and loyalty the reformed United States. The high percentage of Southerners who enlisted in the war agains Spain and WW1 reflects their loyalty to the United States.
Even though people like Lee stated the fate of the South and outcome of the war was determinded by God, It was a hard pill to swallow for many white Southerners and it would take 3 or 4 generations to accept the equal status of African Americans.
And the war crimes committed by Sherman and his Yankees. Though, to be fair, Quantril had his raid that killed over 150 civilians. Then again, he was more of a guerilla.
Maryland had slaves during the war as well and not long after
As did other Northern states. Both Lincoln & Grant were slave owners, themselves.
Weird- this letter almost makes it sound like many confederates weren’t fighting for slavery at all. (Sarcasm intended).
"The Yankee's cannot shoot". So many false beliefs when it comes to war until you find out the hard way.
I have come to find out that my ancestors fought on both sides. I have no evidence as to why that happened. It has been my belief that the Civil War was a much more complex issue, and even though the notion of it being fought for the freedom of slaves has been romanticized in more recent times, there is too much evidence to suggest it was not.
He would've been sickened to see what his city has become today.The slavers that he fought for have controlled Baltimore for 57 years and we see the results. Sad.
I think it’s very important that we try to show all the angles on both sides. While I obviously believe Abraham Lincoln was constitutionally wrong and the constitution is indeed a compact of the states, I feel for the parents of the young men on both sides. God Bless the South, I hate that we had war that costed the lives of nearly 1 million people. It wasn’t necessary.
I agree
Agree 100%
More lost cause bs
@@PeterAinsworth-mc9nu how so?
Yep.
Imagine finding out in WW2 your son had joined the German army.
Or was a Red Army rapist. Lots of bad socialist groups to join.
That's like apples & bananas. Though, there were German-born Americans that joined the Axis. ua-cam.com/video/8uhsitAE8cI/v-deo.htmlsi=Lwtjpf6cyFB5lRRX
Overall, it appears you do an excellent job preserving the past!
If that had been my Mississippi momma he wrote to, she would have broken his plate, turned his picture to the wall, disowned him, and his name was not to be spoken in her presence.
Robert E. Lee's sister, Anne, disowned him.
Interesting that slavery was not why he joined the confederacy to fight the north
My confederates didn’t even own any. They fought for home ,family, God ,and considered their state sovereign.
The War was about economics.
Read Thomas J. DiLorenzo's The Real Lincoln and Lincoln Unmasked.
Great books from a Pennsylvania yankee and an old "Civil War" buff.
He's a Professor at Loyola University.
Lincoln was a tyrant
@carywest9256 I was not aware of those books. I agree with you the war was about economics and politics.
@@rebel0058 It was about economics and politics...and slavery was deeply intertwined within economics and politics.
Bad choice... though Woodrow Wilson would have loved it.
Insolent oppressors? Pot kettle.
And funny still not one word about slavery just the words oppressors and invaders in all of their letters home you would think they knew why they were fighting a war for wouldn’t you !!!!!
If I was 20 when the war broke out and my parents were Unionists.... I'd probably join the Confederate army just to spite them and be a rebel. I'll bet this happened a lot..... both ways.
how many southerners joined the union army?
Excellent question. One number I am aware of his 100,000 White southerners that were Unionists. If you consider Black men who were enslaved, and that 200,000 men of color joined the U.S. Army and Navy, the number could be upwards of 300,000. The 100,000 number does not include border states. Maryland, for example, provided 60,000 men to the U.S. and 25,000 to the C.S. More research to be done here.
@@lifeonthecivilwarresearchtrail that is a very good set of estimates.
Tennessee had the most Union volunteer units in the seceded states, both white and black if I recall. Eastern Tenn was fairly pro Union in the mountains...as you find on Western VA (eventually WV) and backwater towns in N GA...while the larger villages had stronger Confederate participation.
@@STho205 Glad you pointed out examples of pockets of Unionists in the Southern states. I once visited a historical society in Western North Carolina and I told the director I was visiting to research a local Civil War soldier. He asked me which side. An eye-opening experience.
@@lifeonthecivilwarresearchtrail yes I live in the tristates corner (Georgia myself) the Elijah Stanley incident on the Toccoa River is quite an enlightening story of family against family over sympathies.
Got a shock like that visiting Andersonville GA. The monuments there had the numbers of men who died there from each state. More Soldiers from Tennessee died at Andersonville (as prisoners of the CSA) than troops from Ohio or New York. Certainly educated me that the state lines were not the boundaries of loyalty we are sometimes led to believe.