By the American Revolution; the farmers and city-dwellers of British America had achieved; individually and collectively; considerable prosperity. The nature and extent of that success are still unfolding. In this first comprehensive assessment of where research on prerevolutionary economy stands; what it seeks to achieve; and how it might best proceed; the authors discuss those areas in which traditional work remains to be done and address new possibilities for a 'new economic history.'
#1825804 in Books The University of North Carolina Press 2010-05-14Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 1.08 x 6.60 x 9.54l; 1.38 #File Name: 0807833770336 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. a good readi.By William Byrnreading it now; a good readi.6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Giving Late-War Confederates Their DueBy William D. HickoxThe study of Civil War soldiers has come a long way since the publication of Bell I. Wiley's classic 1943 work The Life of Johnny Reb: The Common Soldier of the Confederacy. In the intervening decades an impressive array of historians built on Wiley's once-innovative approach of focusing on ordinary combatants. The last 23 years in particular have seen a large body of scholarship exploring the motivations that drove Americans to take up arms. Most of these works take issue with Wiley's assumption that soldiers were not motivated by ideology and assert that soldiers' writings indicate a widespread awareness of; and identification with; their national causes. For instance; it is no longer possible to convincingly argue that ordinary Confederates had little interest in protecting slavery; for historians have demonstrated that white Southerners had a personal stake in the white supremacy and bondage system upon which their society was built. Now Kenneth W. Noe has stepped into this vibrant field of scholarship with a book examining "later enlisters"--those Rebel soldiers who joined the war effort after the initial burst of volunteering. Noe's introduction; titled "What They Did Not Fight For;" places his work within Civil War soldier historiography and provides as good a summary of the topic as one can find. Yet in every case; Noe writes; historians have concentrated on the writings of especially patriotic volunteers; leading to "a voluminous literature on `Civil War soldiers' that is in actuality only a detailed study of the most motivated men who enlisted in the first year or so of the war ... Others are ignored or else shunted aside" (7). He particularly takes issue with James M. McPherson's assertion that "the prototypical unwilling soldier ... was a nonslaveholding Southern married farmer with small children who was drafted in 1862 or enlisted only to avoid being drafted" (7). Instead; Noe argues that "later-enlisting Confederates ultimately defy simple stereotyping and must be met on their own ground. Doing so offers a fuller portrait of them and all Confederate soldiers" (18). It is a diverse portrait as well; composed of the young and old; married and single; slaveholding and nonslaveholding. The wide-ranging book examines motivating factors such as nationalism; money; religion; women; and hatred of the enemy. Noe; while admitting that later enlisters did not often mention slavery in their writings; claims that this was because slavery and racism were an integral part of their worldview; and thus: "They did not defend it in letters home because they did not have to do so" (48). Noe finds that later enlisters were primarily motivated by "kin and neighborhood" rather than patriotic fervor (208). Additionally; and contrary to McPherson's depiction of them as cowardly "sneaks" who avoided battle; "[t]here is absolutely no evidence ... that more later enlisters did so than those soldiers who enlisted soon after Fort Sumter" (207)--despite the pervasive war weariness so poignantly expressed in their letters home. Reluctant Rebels demonstrates that later enlisters were typical in some ways while atypical in others. Noe mined a remarkable array of published and unpublished primary sources to produce this relatively short but hard-hitting book. Letters; journals; and census data allowed him to construct a database of 320 later enlisting Confederates that graphs their age; occupation; wealth; marriage status; and whether or not they owned slaves. The book also includes a unique table charting "Soldiers Reporting War Weariness and Desertion; by Month;" indicating that July 1863 saw a low point in Rebel morale. Noe was careful to use no primary sources dating from after 1865; and unlike some other historians; he names the people he cites lest he should "add to soldiers' namelessness or anonymity" (12). Yet a certain degree of anonymity is inescapable. Noe's arguments almost entirely rest on the writings--which vary from a single letter to several hundred--of 320 men out of roughly four hundred thousand "reluctant Rebels." The small sample size is due to the fact that "surprisingly few later-enlisting Confederates wrote during the war. They were especially silent about their decisions not to enlist in 1861" (8). This paucity of documentation is particularly evident in Noe's discussion of the large segment of soldiers who were forced into the military as conscripts. "Given the real numbers of draftees in Confederates [sic] service;" he admits; "their absence in the written record is striking. One is confronted by the looming shadow of a segment of Southern society; poor and illiterate; forced into the army without recourse and then lost to scholars who rely on traditional written records" (121). Noe's dilemma is that of anyone who studies marginalized and uneducated peoples; and it undoubtedly puts a question mark after some of his claims about the motivations of later enlisters. Yet he is careful to avoid depicting such men as a monolithic whole; and his arguments are convincing when applied to the majority of soldiers who were literate. Kenneth W. Noe has made a valuable contribution to Civil War history in illuminating a large but hitherto-ignored group of soldiers. Reluctant Rebels would be a useful work for historians of the conflict and deserves a place in courses on both the Civil War and war and society.10 of 10 people found the following review helpful. Excellent but not for everyoneBy James W. DurneyWe are enamored with first; in Civil War histories that means men who rush to enlist in 1861. Much of the social history of the war is from their viewpoint. Much of the battle history concentrates on these men and their units. Kenneth W. Noe does not slight these men but looks to the class of 1862 and how they differ from the initial enlistees. Using a sample of 320 men that by enlistment; draft or service as a substitute enter the Confederate army after the initial rush. He details their attitudes; feeling and experiences. While serving as our guide and keeping the narration moving; the author allows these men to "speak" for themselves whenever possible. This book is a thoughtful detailed statistical analysis of these men and by extension the thousands of similar men in CSA armies. This is not a glory of war advance the flag history. This is a personal detailed look at what is often an unpleasant and unwanted experience. It is a view of war we do not often see; where quite determination; comradeship and a sense of duty sustain men. This is the closest I have come to feeling what men in the Confederate ranks felt. The writing is excellent; the research is complete and the analysis on target.The book contains three main sections: "When Our Rights Were Threatened"; "Fighting for Property We Gained by Honest Toil" and "We are a Band of Brothers and Native to the Soil". Each section contains essays that illustrate the topic. This organization allows concentration on a specific topic in the area. The author has arraigned these essays and topics to build our understanding of the men and the differences from the early enlistees. Each essay is about twenty pages; all are thought provoking.The introduction; "What They Did not Fight For" covers the basic methodology and introduces the subject building a foundation for the book. "Slavery" is an excellent essay covering both the role of slavery as a cause of the war and the role of slaves in the army. "Women" covers the problems associated with trying to manage a wife; family and farm by mail. This is a look at southern male attitudes coming to grips with realities they were unprepared for. "Hatred"; "Comrades" and "Weariness" are subjects seldom covered. The soldier's words and Noe's analysis provide a powerful look at these almost forbidden subjects.This is an excellent book! It is readable in a scholarly way and will make you think about the men and the war. Not being Battles and Leader; it will not get the attention it deserves. If you want a challenging thought provoking book; you will be hard pressed to find a better candidate.
