Synopses & Reviews
Uncommonly articulate letters from a young German-American soldier with the Union forces.During a conflict that saw death visit many households in the land, this is the story of a young recruitandrsquo;s devotion to family and nation. William Remmelandrsquo;s letters cover more than two full years of service in the 121st New York Infantry Regiment during the Civil War, from August 1862 to October of 1864. They provide details on military and social history in the eastern theater of operations and on the experience of the homefront in upstate New York among a largely immigrant, working-class family and community. Like every other soldier in every other war, Remmelandrsquo;s experiences are both universal and unique. They are universal in his experience of boredom, privation, discomfort, and ultimately, obliteration. His circumstances were idiosyncratic in that he was an immigrant boy, serious, thoughtful, articulate, who represents a constituency of one.
Sergeant Remmelandrsquo;s unit (which was for a time commanded by Emory Upton, an important figure in the post-war army) was part of the 6th Corps, Army of the Potomac. He was a German immigrant who had settled with his parents and family in far upstate New York. The author wrote in English and apparently his parents responded in German. Perhaps this cultural difference led Remmel to be particularly careful in his writing and to explain events with unusual precision.
In addition to the important material on an immigrant familyandrsquo;s experience, Remmel also deals with the question of slavery, illness and hospital care (when he was wounded), the problem of hard war/total war, as well as the campaigns of Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and the Shenandoah Valley in 1864. He disappears, MIA, at the Battle of Cedar Creek, October 19, 1864. His family believed he died as a POW at Andersonville Prison, and they spent a good deal of time and effort vainly trying to determine his fate.
Review
andquot;A strong set of letters. . . . Bender has done a remarkable job identifying the various people Remmel mentions in his letters. While this is hardly a social history of Remmelandrsquo;s regiment, the reader does get a good feel of where the soldiers come from and what happened to them. Furthermore, the letters show much about family dynamics and the nature of life in the North during the Civil War.andquot;andmdash; Reid Mitchell, author of Civil War Soldiers
Review
andquot;This is a highly valuable collection of letters, ably edited.andquot;andmdash; Steven E. Woodworth, author of The Art of Command in the Civil War
Review
Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 andldquo;Remmel, unlike many soldier correspondents who generally confined themselves to statements about the weather and their health, proved to be a keen observer of events and quite capable of articulating his opinions concerning complex issues. Remmel offers the reader interesting insights into the life and times of an infantry soldier who andquot;saw the elephantandquot; with the Army of the Potomac's famous VI Corps. Anyone interested in looking at the Civil War from the bottom up should make their acquaintance with Sgt. William Remmel.andrdquo;andmdash;Blue and Gray Magazine
Synopsis
Uncommonly articulate letters from a young German-American soldier with the Union forces
Sergeant William Remmel was a German immigrant who had settled with his parents and family in far upstate New York. His letters collected in Like Grass before the Scythe cover more than two full years of his service and provide details on military and social history in the eastern theater of operations and on the experience of the home front in upstate New York among a largely immigrant, working-class family and community.
Remmel wrote in English and apparently his parents responded in German. In addition to the important material on an immigrant family's experience, Remmel also deals with the question of slavery, illness and hospital care (when he was wounded), the problem of hard war/total war, as well as the campaigns of Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and the Shenandoah Valley in 1864.
Synopsis
Uncommonly articulate letters from a young German-American soldier with the Union forces.
About the Author
Robert Patrick Bender teaches history at Eastern New Mexico University andmdash; Roswell.