Stonewall Jackson survived two years of the bloodiest war in American history. He was killed by his own men.
May 1863, Virginia wilderness. A group of nervous Confederate soldiers heard movement in the trees after dark and opened fire. Jackson took three bullets. He died eight days later. This week marks the anniversary of that battle — Chancellorsville — arguably Robert E. Lee’s greatest victory, won while outnumbered nearly two to one.
My daughter went to Virginia Military Institute, where Jackson taught before the war. When she arrived as a first-year student, she was required to salute the Stonewall Jackson statue every time she entered or left the barracks. That detail stayed with me. It sent me down a rabbit hole — not about Jackson exactly, but about something connected to him. Something I had completely wrong.
The Rebel Yell.
