Glorious Courage: A New Book on John Pelham

Most of us are familiar with the upper echelon Lost Cause figures. Commanders such as Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, and Jeb Stuart come immediately to mind among the famed Confederate pantheon. There are others of course, who might not have achieved the fame of the top commanders, but who populate Confederate lore all the same, such as John and Willie Pegram, who were killed in the war as thus serve as martyrs to the cause in popular memory.

From my Insta

John Pelham, the young horse artillerist from Alabama, numbers among those immortalized in Confederate memory. Pelham was noted during his short life for his military prowess and gallantry. He was handsome, fearless, and dedicated to his cause.

But here’s the thing about Rebels like John Pelham. His legendary status in Confederate memory is largely a post-mortem and post-war creation. Sarah Kay Bierle’s new book from Savas Beatie, Glorious Courage: John Pelham in the Civil War, does a wonderful job of bringing the artillerist back down to earth. Sure, he received accolades a-plenty from the likes of Lee and Stuart, and his deadly work against the Yankee army at Antietam and Fredericksburg is well-documented. Still, there is plenty of reason to also believe that he was impetuous and reckless, perhaps letting his emotions guide his actions. Bierle emphasizes one such instance during the Loudoun campaign where anger may have clouded Pelham’s judgement. The point is, like any other soldier in this war, Pelham was flawed.

But flawed or not, Pelham assumes a position in Confederate lore typically associated those who were cut down in battle, as Pelham was at Kelly’s Ford in 1863 - the tragic hero. In this well-worn story, Pelham’s death serves as the model of classic tragedy: an honorable gentleman who is doomed not by moral failure but by fate and loyalty to a noble cause. His death comes by way of chivalrous adherence to duty, making his demise all the more poignant. In this way Pelham’s death reinforces the theme of moral righteousness and the tragedy of defeat.

Reality, of course, is significantly different than these tidy Lost Cause tales. And though Lost Cause warriors and Confederate sympathizers may think they know the “Gallant Pelham,” the truth is that he is a bit of a mystery. Bierle, to her credit, is quite clear about this. The limited testimony from Pelham’s pen (his correspondence was either lost or destroyed after the war) and the shadowy details of his personal life, especially with the ladies, makes it unquestionably difficult to get to know Pelham beyond what his admirers described.

Readers will surely appreciate Bierle’s thorough understanding of the battlefields and historical resources as she pieces together what little we actually know about John Pelham. I think she tackles this investigation in fine style, and so I highly recommend the book. And as with most titles in Savas Beatie’s Emerging Civil War Series, the work is exceedingly accessable. Bierle has a delightful writing style that is colloquial without being overly familiar in tone. She poses thoughtful questions throughout, enticing the reader to think critically about what we think we know about the Civil War and its participants. I for one will certainly be sharing it with my students when we take on Lost Cause themes.

With compliments,

Keith