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I was responding to a thread earlier, and it got me thinking. What is all of your opinions on monuments on Civil War battlefields, particularly when there are a profusion of monuments on a field, such as Gettysburg, Antietam, etc? Are you indifferent, do you like them, or do you not like them there? I know that I don't mind them, but I don't like one for every single regiment, brigade, and, well, you get the picture. Don't get me wrong, I think that this is a war that needs to be remembered for generations to come. But I just think that sometimes, too many monuments kinda takes away from the picture of the battlefield sometimes. Like I said in an earlier thread, my ideal battlefield is Spotsylvania. It looks much like it did in 1864 (the parts that have been preserved) and there are a few monuments, but not so many that it looks cluttered and one gets in the way when you are trying to picture an action like Upton attacking Doles Salient on the 10th. So, I leave it up to you guys. What do you think? No right or wrong, just give your honest opinions, cause its something I have wondered about and wondered what others thought on the issue.
__________________ "The unity of government which constitutes you one people is also now dear to you. It is justly so, for it is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad; of your safety; of your prosperity; of that very liberty which you so highly prize." George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796
My opinion? Marble markers tend to mess up the view. But I can't fault those who gave their pennies and dollars to put them up. The markers do what we here are doing: marking and honoring the valor of the American Volunteer Soldier. If they can give the last full measure, I guess I can visualize around their monuments.
ole
__________________ I never knew a man who wished to be himself a slave. Consider if you know any good thing that no man desires for himself. A. Lincoln
I really like the equestrain statue of Gen. U.S. Grant at Vicksburg, Mississippi. Looking at it helps me to visualize what it must've been like for him to command the battlefield. Awesome.
The only thing missing is Gen. Sherman. This photo of his equestrain monument is next to the White House in Washington. If it were me, I'd move it to a battlefield, but then again ...
I wonder if ya'll couldn't help me to put together an on-line database of images of equestrian statues..
Last edited by Ozark Iron John; 08-11-2007 at 07:37 AM.
On another thread, there's a dynamite picture of a Thomas Jonathon Jackson statue. And I think I have one of Wade Hampton, or whoever is depicted in Columbia, SC. Will look for it.
ole
__________________ I never knew a man who wished to be himself a slave. Consider if you know any good thing that no man desires for himself. A. Lincoln
I'd be surprised the boys around Vicksburg? haven't taken a few pot shots at Gen. Grant. To answer the question, I agree with Ole, sorta. My first encounter with a monument of any kind except the graveyards around home, was at Gettysburg about 1956. If there was nothing there it would have just been a big farm across the road from Gen. Ike's house. I looked up and saw a huge monument to the men of North Carolina, my home state. That made me proud, though I wasn't exactly sure why at the time. Having a slightly different perspective fifty plus years later, Ole's notion has some merit. Gen. Forrest on one of his horses over at the park in Memphis, pigeon poop and all, still gives me a strange feeling inside. So does my wife's cookin, come to think of it.
__________________ Ancestors in US Army: 13th TN Cav; 10th TN Cav; 3rd NC Inf
Ancestors in CSA Army: 48th VA; 63rd VA, 5th NC Cav; 37th NC
Wife and Grandson's CSA: 15th AL, 51st GA, 41st TN; 36th TN; GA Mil 1197 Dist
__________________ 'It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate. It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag'
It is important to have a couple places where monuments might seem overwhelming, such as Gettysburg or Vicksburg. These monuments stand in testament of all the men who fought and died, not just those at that battle. They have become a symbol of universal suffering for all battlefields. By having these mega monuments at these places, it keeps attention off some of the other battlefields so their individual pastoral beauty can be admired the way it should be. If every battlefields looked like Gettysburg or Vicksburg... Then I would have a problem.
__________________ "In mortal combat, a man may and will become so infuriated by the din and dangers of a bloody fight that his heart will turn to stone and his every de sire [be] for blood."
John Hadley, 7th Indiana after the battle at Port Republic
I wonder if ya'll couldn't help me to put together an on-line database of images of equestrian statues..
Sounds like an excellent idea... I would help but I'm nowhere near anywhere I could get some good pictures. Let me know if this ever pans out
__________________ "In mortal combat, a man may and will become so infuriated by the din and dangers of a bloody fight that his heart will turn to stone and his every de sire [be] for blood."
John Hadley, 7th Indiana after the battle at Port Republic
I know I have some pictures from various fields in Va., Pa, and Md. that I have around. Might have to get some of them uploaded and we can share.
I agree with Dred that its important for the monuments to be there. And there are some battles that may deserve a few more considering what happened there and such. It isn't as if I would want the monuments already at a place such as Gettysburg gone. I like the statue type monuments and such. I guess my biggest dislike is huge ostentacious monuments, like the Pennsylvania memorial at Gettysburg. Having a statue denoting where a unit fought is great, I think. Or one commemorating a leader, that would be great too. But huge, grandiose monuments kind of bother me. It's like "Hey look, our monument is bigger that your monument." And all the men fought hard, and deserve to have their achievment commemorated. I like monuments like the Irish Brigade monument at Gettysburg, the 126th Ohio's at Spotsylvania, and so on and so forth. Ostentacious just kinda...bugs me. But hey, thats me. If they want it bigger, nothing I can do or say.
__________________ "The unity of government which constitutes you one people is also now dear to you. It is justly so, for it is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad; of your safety; of your prosperity; of that very liberty which you so highly prize." George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796
Gettysburg is a special case. It's a battlefield, but also the place that units, who may have fought on many fields, choose to memorialize. It's a huge collection, almost as much of history as the battle.(The world will little note, nor long remember what we said here, but they will never miss these huge monuments). Thomas Desjardins, in "Honored Dead" writes about the movement to preserve and memorialize Gettysburg, and its worth a read.
Antietam, which has very few monuments in comparsion, has a very different feel, which I can't really describe.
In a sense all the battlefields, which are mown, quiet, and orderly looking, are nothing like the event: noisy, crowded, terrifying and stinking. It's like visiting a tasteful cemetary.
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Whats Your Opinion of Battlefield Monuments? 
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