It is recorded by Shelby Foote and others in books, diaries and periodicals of the time, when Confederates were captured and asked why they were fighting their unequivocal answer every single time was, "Because YOU'RE here."
You have NO reason to be ashamed of your Confederate ancestors. They fought because the South was INVADED. Period.
In Washington, D.C. on Jan. 21, 1861, Jefferson Davis stood on the floor of the U.S. Senate and bid farewell to his colleagues. Two weeks earlier, his homeland of Mississippi had dissolved its ties with the Union, a move that effectively ended his senatorial career.
The day proved the saddest of his life. Worn down by attempts to find a compromise to avert the current crisis and weighted down with stress and anxiety, Davis would soon leave the capital bound for an uncertain fate. His wife, Varina, would accompany him, equally distraught to leave their much-loved Washington.
Physical characteristics indicate the portraits were made at the same time. The brass mats and frames are similar, as is the texture of the back of the iron plates. Though the Davises may have visited Whitehurst’s gallery together, their different poses suggests the portraits were not thought of as a pair—Jefferson stares straight ahead and Varina in profile.
Read the full article at: https://militaryimages.atavist.com/jefferson-davis-on-the-eve-of-war-spring-2016
Battle Flag Of The 26th North Carolina (The Museum Of The Confederacy)
"North Carolina cannot remain much longer stationary; she must write her destiny either under the flag of Mr. Lincoln and aid to coerce the south or unite with the south to resist and defend their rights.“
William Holland Thomas to his wife, January 1, 1861. John C. Inscoe, The Heart of Confederate Appalachia: Western North Carolina in the Civil War.
North Carolina seceded from the Union only reluctantly, yet it contributed as much as any state to the Confederate cause in soldiers, money, and supplies. North Carolina was also home to many Unionists, and this civil war at home — on top of the hardships of Union occupation, the deaths of thousands of men, and runaway inflation — tore the state nearly to shreds.
From: thecivilwarparlor
At the beginning of hostilities, Alabama state troops seized forts at the entrance to Mobile Bay and the Union arsenal at Mount Vernon. There was no fighting in the state early in the war, but in 1862 invading Federal forces held sizable areas. To resist the invasion, almost every white Alabamian old enough to carry a gun enlisted in the Confederate forces. Some 2,500 white men and 10,000 blacks had already enlisted in the Union army.
There are no statistics on Alabama’s contributions to the Confederate army, but estimates vary between 75,000 and 125,000 fighting men from a population of just above 500,000 whites. Estimates of losses range from 25,000 to 70,000. The state furnished the Confederacy with 60-65 regiments of infantry, 12-15 regiments of cavalry, and over 20 batteries of artillery.
(Source: Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War)
Photo: In case: May 11th 1861″ and “To David / Adams / Montevallo, Ala.”Ambrotype is 3.25 x 4.75 inches File name: Q778; Q779; Q780 -
See more at: http://alabamapioneers.com/alabama-confederate-soldiers-photographs-can-identify/#sthash.SWjjnAXL.dpuf