DOC Before Religion: A History of a Modern Concept by Brent Nongbri in History

Description

This monumental contribution to the literature of the Civil War brings together Lee's official correspondence—letters; orders; dispatches; battle reports—with his touching letters to his family; thus providing a previously unavailable view of Lee's life during the war. From the more than 6;000 items; the editors have chosen to reprint many letters in full for the first time; so that Lee is seen complete; self-revealed; in all his dignity and purpose. Short narratives connect each section—on the mobilization of Virginia; Chancellorsville and Gettysburg; and the siege of Petersburg and Appomattox. Sponsored by the Virginia Civil War Commission to commemorate the Civil War Centennial; this expert work of scholarship dramatizes Lee's life as only his own correspondence could. As Lee himself said: ”Letters are good representatives of our minds. They certainly present a good criterion for judging of the character of the individual.”