Richard Forrester, President           Rob Monroe, Editor       
8008 Spottswood Road                   2416 Edenbrook Dr.       
Richmond, VA 23229                     Richmond, VA 23228-3040  
dforrester@verizon.net                 RMonroe500@comcast.net   
July 2005 PROGRAM

Dr. Richard M. McMurry 
"A New Framework for Civil War Military History"

8:00 p.m., Tuesday, July 12, 2005, at the
Boulevard United Methodist Church, 321 N. Boulevard,
Richmond, VA (corner of Boulevard and Stuart Ave.) Enter
the basement door on the right side under the front steps.

An Atlanta native, Richard McMurry received a  B.S.   degree
in  history  from  VMI  and an M.A.  and a Ph.D.  from Emory
University.  From 1967 to 1981 he taught history at Valdosta
State  College in Georgia and taught as an adjunct professor
at North Carolina State University from 1981 to 1988.  Since
1988  he  has  been  a  freelance writer and speaker and has
served as a guide/historian for many tour and cruise groups.

McMurry has authored  more  than  100  articles  on  various
facets of the Civil War.  He has edited or co-edited several
works, and is the author  of  numerous  award-winning  books
including  Virginia  Military  Institute Alumni in the Civil
War: In Bello Praesidium.  His latest  book  is  The  Fourth
Battle  of  Winchester:  Toward  a  New  Civil War Paradigm.
McMurry now makes his home in Roanoke.                      

For almost a century and a half, most  people  have  held  a
very  limited view of Civil War military history.  They have
looked at the subject only in a context that focuses on  the
battles fought in one small area of the war.  This extremely
limited view, McMurry asserts, imprisons people in a narrow,
provincial    framework    that    produces   a   misleading
understanding of the conflict.  This poor  understanding  in
turn  gives  an erroneous interpretation not only of how the
war was fought but also of several larger questions relating
to the nation's military history in general and to the Civil
War  in  particular.   What  is  the  best   framework   for
understanding  Civil  War  military  history?   McMurry will
explore this question at the RCWRT's July meeting.          

Summary of June Meeting


The June meeting of the Richmond Civil War Round Table began
with  the  announcement that our annual holiday dinner would
take place November 8 at  the  SunTrust  building  downtown.
Hobbie  Godwin  gave  a  brief  talk  on  the history of the
RCWRT's gavel.  At early Round Table meetings, members would
speak  on  various  subjects  or review books.  As expected,
opinions were not always well received by all in attendance.
These  early  meetings  often  created quite a stir.  Godden
laughed as he recalled  an  uproar  being  caused  over  the
correct  pronunciation of the word "pontoon." "Sometimes the
ladies in the audience would have to retire,"  he  chuckled.
Finally,  in  1959  a  gavel was employed to maintain order.
Round Table members have come and gone  but  the  gavel  has
remained.                                                   


Our June speaker, William Bergen, was introduced by a fellow
University of Virginia history  professor,  Gary  Gallagher.
Bergen  spoke  to  the  Round Table about what Grant and Lee
faced before the Overland Campaign.  When  Grant  took  over
the Army of the Potomac in March 1864, he felt uncomfortable
being a westerner promoted above easterners.   At  the  time
the  only  clear  cut Union victory in the East had come "on
their home turf" at Gettysburg.                             

The spring of 1864 marked  the  first  time  the  top  Union
general  faced  off  against  the top Confederate commander.
"The contrast between Lee and  Grant  could  not  have  been
greater,"  Bergen  stated.   Lee had an impeccable record at
West Point, while Grant and was remembered  by  a  classmate
primarily for his "ability to compose and maintain horses."

By  the  Overland  Campaign,  the  57-year-old  Lee knew his
generals and lieutenants well.  He had promoted many of them
himself  for  their aggressiveness in battle.  Nevertheless,
the Confederate commander had concerns  resulting  from  the
loss  of  some  of his most trusted subordinates in the past
year - Pettigrew, Pender and Jackson.                       

At the same time,  the  42-year-old  Grant  was  faced  with
changing  the  culture  of "McClellanism" in the Army of the
Potomac.   He  was  as  unfamiliar  with   his   commander's
capabilities  as Lee had been before the Seven Days battles.
But Grant faced a formidable opponent in 1864, unlike Lee in
1862,  Bergen  noted.   By  the  time  of  the Battle of the
Wilderness, Grant still had not  learned  all  of  his  unit
commanders.                                                 

Lee's  64,000  men faced Grant's 120,000 during the Overland
Campaign.  Despite this  gap,  Bergen  said,  other  factors
evened  the playing field.  A handful of Confederate raiders
did much to  hamper  the  Union  army's  progress.   A  much
greater  percentage  of  Lee's  troops had seen combat.  The
bounty system had provided poor soldiers to the Army of  the
Potomac,  Bergen  said.   Often  these  new  men were bounty
jumpers and the desertion rate  -  about  7,000  a  month  -
nearly equaled Union battle casualties.                     

Lee and Grant shared similarities as well.  Moral courage in
offensive warfare was a  trait  both  commanders  possessed.
Neither  general got the fight he wanted during the Overland
Campaign.  Both generals were adept at words, Bergen stated,
and  had  to apply these talents often in writing letters to
their  presidents.   "We  underestimate  Grant's   political
sense," Bergen said.  The Union commander realized immediate
battlefield successes were necessary  to  win  the  upcoming
election for Lincoln.                                       

Subcommittee to Meet July 22

The Clerk's Office of the House of Delegates  has  announced
that  the  first  meeting  of  the Virginia General Assembly
Joint Subcommittee to Examine the Cost  and  Feasibility  of
Relocating  the  Museum  and  White House of the Confederacy
will be held at 10am on Friday, July 22.   The  majority  of
the  meeting  will take place in Richmond in House Room C of
the General Assembly Building (the SE corner  of  Broad  and
9th streets, across the grounds from the State Capitol).    

While  the  agenda has not been set, it is expected that the
subcommittee  will  elect  a  chairman,  and  the   museum's
executive  director,  Waite  Rawls,  will  give  a  detailed
presentation on the situation.  It has been  suggested  that
subcommittee  members will then walk several blocks north to
the museum for a formal tour, but  that  has  not  yet  been
determined.   This  meeting  and  the three or four meetings
that follow are open to the public.                         

Until a chairman has been elected, citizens may voice  their
opinions  to  the  bill's  patron,  William  Janis  (R-House
District 56).  His contact information is: P.O.   Box  3703,
Glen   Allen,   VA   23058;   (804)   726-5856,  or  e-mail:
Del_Janis@house.state.va.us.  Any questions about the agenda
for  this  meeting  should  be  addressed to Robie Ingram or
Bryan Stogdale in  the  Division  of  Legislative  Services,
(804) 786-3591.                                             

Civil War Buffs Mourn the
Loss of Two Noted Historians

Last month the Civil War community was saddened to learn  of
the  deaths  of  two  of  its  most recognized and respected
historians.  On June 15, Brian  C.   Pohanka,  50,  died  of
cancer  at his home in Alexandria.  On June 27, Shelby Foote
died in Memphis at the age of 88.                           

Born in Washington, Mr.  Pohanka became enthralled with  the
Civil  War  at  a  young age.  He was a voracious reader and
favored American Heritage history books and  Bruce  Catton's
works.   Mr.   Pohanka went on to earn a history degree from
Dickinson College in Pennsylvania.  He worked  as  a  senior
researcher  for  the  Civil War series of books published by
Time-Life.  He was a consultant for  the  History  Channel's
"Civil  War  Journal"  series  and  worked as an advisor and
military coordinator  for  major  motion  pictures  such  as
"Glory" (1989) and "Cold Mountain" (2003).  Mr.  Pohanka was
instrumental in forming the Association for the Preservation
of  Civil War Sites, now known as the Civil War Preservation
Trust.  CWPT President James Lighthizer credited Mr. Pohanka
for  helping to "start the battlefield preservation movement
that we know today."                                        

A native of Greenville, Mississippi, Mr.  Foote attended the
University  of  North  Carolina for two years, served during
World War II, and worked as  a  journalist  in  his  younger
years.   He  moved  to  Memphis  in 1953 and lived there the
remainder of his life.  He worked 20 years to  complete  The
Civil  War:  A  Narrative  (1974),  a three-volume epic that
brought him acclaim.  But it was Ken Burns' 1990 "The  Civil
War"  documentary  on  PBS  that  immortalized Mr.  Foote to
thousands  of  viewers.    Mr.    Foote's   commentary   and
distinctive  Southern drawl were prominently featured in the
film and he instantly became a somewhat reluctant celebrity.

Fall Field Trip Announced

The Richmond Civil War Round Table fall tour will be held on
Saturday,  October  1,  2005.   Our  guide  will  be John V.
Quarstein, Director of the Virginia War Museum and author of
"The Battle of the Ironclads".  He is an expert on the Civil
War on the Virginia Peninsula and a dynamic tour guide.   We
will begin our tour at Lee Hall and visit several land sites
in the morning.  After lunch at Fort Monroe, we  will  board
the  Miss  Hampton  II and explore the scene of the historic
clash between the CSS Virginia and the USS Monitor.         

The bus departs at 8am from the James River Bus Terminal  at
915  North  Allen  Avenue  (located  between Broad and Leigh
streets) and will return  by  5pm.   The  cost  is  $35  per
person.   Guests  are  welcome.  Please bring your own lunch
and drink.  Note  that  security  measures  at  Fort  Monroe
require  that  all visitors present a photo ID.  If you have
questions, please contact Bernie Fisher at (804) 730-1785 or
via  email,  bernard.fisher@comcast.net.  Please make checks
payable to RCWRT and send along with the form below to:     

Bernie Fisher           
7300 Ann Cabell Lane    
Mechanicsville, VA 23111


2005 RCWRT Fall Field Trip

Date: ______________  Name:  _________________________________________________

Address:  ____________________________________________________________________

Phone Number:  (_____) ______-________                                        

Number of reserved seats:  _____ x $35 = $ _______ total                      

(Make check payable to RCWRT)                                                  

RCWRT Monthly Speakers for 2005

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Richmond Civil War Round Table Newsletter
Rob Monroe, Editor     
2416 Edenbrook Dr.     
Richmond, VA 23228-3040