10 Totally Random Facts About...// Chancellorsville! // Plus, An Excerpt from The Rivers of Sorrow!5/29/2019
Hello friends! Welcome back to another 10 Totally Random Facts post! In Honor of My dear Stonewall Jackson’s final victory, this month we are looking at 10 Totally Random Facts about the Battle of Chancellorsville. *sobs* Let’s see if I can get through this…
And now…an excerpt from “The Rivers of Sorrow”!!! From Chapter 8: A Place Called Chancellorsville “No talking whatsoever, don’t load your rifles and if you straggle, you’re getting a bayonet prod! Got it?”
“Yes, sir.” Richard was convinced his soldiers weren’t going to give him any problems. Seth glanced over his squad and was pleased to see them moving briskly, preparing to march. The gray mist of dawn hung in the air. Seth shivered, partly from the cool morning, partly from anticipation of battle. Maybe they would whip the Yankees for good this time! Richard trotted past his brother. “32:7-8!” he called to Seth. Seth saluted and grinned at his older brother. The camp verse flashed through his mind. ‘Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him: for there be more with us than with him: With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the LORD our God to help us, and to fight our battles…’ The 2nd Corps was soon on the march. Jackson’s men filed by in silence. No one was talking; all that could be heard was a muffled tramp, tramp, tramp of soldiers’ feet and the gentle clank of their gear. Jackson allowed a smile to take to the corners of his lips. These were soldiers; real men. Veterans. Fearless. Hard-core men of war. They would take on anybody. They would follow only those whom they trusted and believed in. They were an Army. They were the best army the world had ever seen. They were men fighting for a cause with all their heart. Lord, please give Thy divine guidance in this attack. It is only by Thy ever kind Providence that we can even hope to be successful... «««1863««« Later that evening, the long column halted. They were tired, having just made a 12-mile trek, with only one water stop and no food stops. Part of the column had skirmished with Hooker’s men. Now the Yankees thought the Southerners were withdrawing from the area. At 5:15 p.m., the attack began. There was only two hours of day light left, when C.S. Brig. Gen. Rodes[1] was ordered to deploy his brigade. Raleigh Colston[2], Brigadier General, was right behind him. Richard fell in step with Gen. Jackson and his aides. Champion tensed underneath Richard. He wanted to run; he always wanted to run. Richard patted him on the shoulder. It wouldn’t be long and he would be doing just that. Excitement mounted inside Richard. Yes, they at last would push Hooker all the way across the river and personally escort them to Washington! Meanwhile in the Yankee camp, the inexperienced German soldiers of the 11th Corps were talking and laughing while preparing their supper. They listened to music being played in a nearby pine grove. A young drummer returned to the circle, carrying a bucket of water for a stew that was being made. The soldiers patted him on the back, thanking him for running the errand and promising him the first bowl of stew. The boy turned to jot a letter to his mother while waiting on his food. He frowned; the ground under him vibrated. He gasped as a deer plowed through the camp, nearly tramping over him in the process. “Hey, someone shoot some more meat for supper!” “I’ve never seen so many rabbits or foxes in my life!” “What I wouldn’t give for that deer there!” The men laughed at the spectacle, casually wondering what had caused the animals to flee right through their camp. “WOH-WHO-EY!” The soldiers jumped and glanced at the knoll beyond them. There, cresting the hill above them was a line a mile long of Confederate soldiers! “Move it!” “Their coming!” “Get your guns!” Orders were screamed to each other in a crazy mix of English and German. Everyone ran. Behind them, Confederates advanced. Richard trotted along next to his commander’s column, waiting for orders and watching for any possible threat on Gen. Jackson’s life. Wounded soldiers still posed a threat and he constantly scanned the camp for such perils. The Yankees gave up ground rapidly. Oh, they stopped and tried to hold the Confederates back, but their efforts were futile. [1] He will finish as a Major General. [2] Confederate Brigadier General, known for his hand in the Battle of Chancellorsville. Until Next Time, Ryana Lynn Jude 22 Comments are closed.
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Ryana Lynn
Christian. American. Southern. Author. Subscribe for Blog Updates and a Free Short Story!
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