Fighting for the Confederacy

Winner of the 1990 Douglas Southall Freeman History Award, Military Order of the Stars and Bars, and winner of the 1991 Founders Award, Museum of the Confederacy.

This personal account of the American Civil War by General Edward Porter Alexander, provides an assessment of people and events. Alexander was involved in nearly all of the great battles of the East and had frequent contact with the high command of the Army of Northern Virginia.Originally published by UNC Press in 1989, Fighting for the Confederacy is one of the richest personal accounts in all of the vast literature on the Civil War. Alexander was involved in nearly all of the great battles of the East, from First Manassas through Appomattox, and his duties brought him into frequent contact with most of the high command of the Army of Northern Virginia, including Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, and James Longstreet. No other Civil War veteran of his stature matched Alexander's ability to discuss operations in penetrating detail-- this is especially true of his description of Gettysburg. His narrative is also remarkable for its utterly candid appraisals of leaders on both sides. |Rescued from an archive and published only eight years ago, this private memoir by Confederate General Porter Alexander is now recognized as one of the best books by a participant in the Civil War.