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Re: A New Light on Gettysburg
In Response To: Re: A New Light on Gettysburg ()

"Read reports from many and then pick a place in the middle and it probably would be more accurate."

When you read reports on a Civil War battle, you sometimes wonder if the officers were in the same battle. Many people believe that the reports vary wildly because the commanders were trying to put the best spin on the story. Undoubtedly, that was a factor in many cases. However, from personal experience I believe that to some degree the differences are often honest ones, as seen through the fog of war. I have been in combat assaults and firefights after which, comparing notes with men who were in different helicopters or on different parts of the field, sound nothing like what I had just experienced. A combat assault can be a piece of cake for one man, or a living hell for another, depending on whether their choppers took fire or not. A firefight can be a minor skirmish or the biggest battle in the history of the world, depending on whether the enemy which just happened to be in your direct front had crew-served weapons or just small-arms; or how close the mortar shells were landing to your position; or whether your platoon leader is prudent or is a medal-hound. I can see elements of this conundrum in Civil War after-action reports, especially those written by junior officers.

Your point is well taken. A good historian will study and consider all pertinent documents before arriving at a conclusion. A bad one will cherry-pick his sources and interpret them very liberally to prove a conclusion he has already reached.

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