Civil War II

¶ … American Civil War [...] Civil War event I would most like to eyewitness, and answer the questions: Why? What would I have seen? Would participating in or seeing that event have made you a different person from the one you are today? If so, how? The Civil War event I have chosen is the surrender at Appomattox courthouse. The Civil War ended nearly where it began, at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia, on April 9, 1865.

I have chosen this event not because of the defeat of the South, but because it was the meeting of two great generals, and marked the end of a war that had torn the country apart. I believe the occasion was not only historically important, but also important in that it was an end to the bloodshed, and a stepping-stone to peace. While a few Confederate forces continued to fight after the surrender, the war officially ended within a few weeks.

As so much of a race depends on how it faces death, and how it stands personal anguish and sickness; as, in the glints of emotions under emergencies, and the indirect traits and asides in Plutarch, we get far profounder clues to the antique world than all its more formal history"(Lowenfels 293). Walt Whitman understood the horrible cost of the Civil War, for he witnessed the carnage and death firsthand in the hospitals and on the battlefield.

He felt the nations' real history came through in the way the people handled themselves during crisis, and this is still true today. During the worst times, Americans are often at their very best. This is why I would like to have witnessed the signing of the surrender at Appomattox, because the surrender brought "normality" back to the country, and gave us a place to begin again.

I believe I would have seen two tired men who had great respect for each other, both waiting to get on with their lives, and settle the matter for the last time. I believe everyone was weary of the fighting, and the separation in our country. Neither man enjoyed war, but they were both great leaders, who could incite their men to fight to win, and I believe they enjoyed the precision and planning that went into battles. General Lee once said, "It is well that war is so terrible.

We should grow too fond of it'" (Norton 280). It seems certain that neither man enjoyed the casualties of war, which were horrific during the four years of fighting. "Some 260,000 of his southern brothers did fight to the last in a doomed cause, while 360,000 Yankees died to make the United States a nation at last" (Oates 393). I believe the nation was ready to heal, and this historic signing of surrender began the healing process, especially because of the way the two men conducted themselves, and how the entire affair was handled.

The men themselves were both striking and strong individuals, with quick minds and good fighting tactics. Whitman saw Grant several times, and said remembered, "About sundown I saw him again riding on a large, fine horse, with his hat off in answer to the hurrahs; he rode by where I stood and I saw him well as he rode by on a slow canter, with nothing but a single orderly after him. He looks like a good man (and I believe there is much in looks)" (Lowenfels 81-82).

According to accounts, both men conducted themselves like gentlemen at the surrender, and were very respectful of one another. One man was a "loser," and one man was a "winner," but both men had dignity and earned the respect of those who watched the surrender. "General Grant now stepped down from the porch, and, moving toward him, saluted him by raising his hat.

He was followed in this act of courtesy by all our officers present; Lee raised his hat respectfully, and rode off to break the sad news to the brave fellows whom he had so long commanded" (Surrender). I believe the event would have changed me for the better, because of the way the two men conducted themselves, and because the meeting itself was so important.

It is not often one is able to witness an important event such as this, and it could not help but change the lives of all those who witnessed it. In addition, seeing both sides conduct themselves with such distinction and respect would have made an important impression on any who witnessed the signing. As Norton notes, "Grant treated his viral with respect and paroled the defeated troops" (Norton 295).

It would have been very easy for Grant to hold Lee personally accountable for all the Union deaths, and treat him as a prisoner of war, along with his men, but Grant did not, and became the better man because of it. Finally, the surrender at Appomattox is still haunting today, which is another reason I would like to have witnessed the event first hand.

Today, the courthouse and surrounding area is a National Historic Park - reminding visitors forever of the momentous events that took place there almost 140 years ago. There are some events in history that stand out above others, and this was one of them. Some of these events are tragic, making.