The Fury and Pride of Southern Heritage and the Confederacy

The Confederate States Of America consisted of 11 slaveholding states often referred to as The Secessionist States and existed between 1861 to 1865. In the beginning, it was made up of seven states, South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. When the Civil war began in April of 1861 four more states declared secession and joined The Confederacy these included Virginia, Arkansas, Tennesse and North Carolina.

After the election of (Republican) President Abraham Lincoln in 1860, all of the previous states had declared their secession from the United States. The new administration was opposed to slavery and its expansion into the western territories.

A new Confederate Government was formed in 1861. It was not recognized and was considered illegal by the Government of the United States.

The Confederate States of America 1861-1865

Motto: Deo Vindice (Latin-Under God our Vindicator

Anthem:

God Save The South- (unofficial)

The Bonnie Blue Flag (popular)

Dixie (Traditional)

Though the Confederacy was dissolved by early 1865 many in the southern states are still devout to its cause and beliefs, and the legacy bestowed on them by their forefathers. They see the monuments and the flags with a sacredness.

The removal and attack on many of the monuments and historical items have caused protests resulting in violence by those groups who say they view the monuments as offensive and pro-slavery. This does not ring true.

This is the history taught in schools and colleges in many places in the U.S. It was what I was taught.

The Civil War often referred to as "The Lost Cause" by many began in April of 1861. It involved 2.5 million soldiers, 750,00 from the South and 2 million in the Union (Northern Army).

The war began with the attack on Fort Sumter, a Union fort in the harbor of South Carolina.

The war lasted for four years and resulted in the death of 620,000 soldiers. The bloodiest of the battles was the Battle Of Gettysburg, It resulted in casualties of 51,000.men on both sides.

The American Civil War was fought on American soil.from 1861 to 1865. The Union Army proclaimed loyalty to the United States Constitution while the Confederates proclaimed loyalty to states rights.

The war ended when Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered To Uyless Grant at Appomattox in 1865.

The South Is A Garden. It has been worn out by the War, Reconstruction, the Period of Desolation, the Depression, and the worst ravages of all - Modernity; yet, a well-worn out garden, its contours perceived by keen eyes, the fruitfulness of its past stored in memory, can be over time, a time which will last no longer than those of us who initially set our minds to the task, restored, to once again produce, to the time appointed unto it, the fruits which nurture the human spirit and which foreshadow the Garden of which there will be no end.

-Dr. Robert M. Peters of Louisiana

I did not believe more than I ever had, that the nation would unite behind any Southerner. One reason the country could not rally behind a Southern president, I was convinced, that the metropolitan press of the Eastern Seaboard would never permit it. My experience in office has confirmed this reaction. I was not thinking of just the derisive articles about my style, my clothes, my manners, my accent, and my family-although I admit I received enough of that kind of treatment in my first few months as President to last a lifetime. I was also thinking of a more deep-seated and far-reaching attitude - a disdain for the South that seems to be woven into the fabric of Northern experience. This is a subject that deserves a more profound explanation than I can give it here - a subject that has never been sufficiently examined.

President Lyndon B. Johnson

Amidst all the anti-South hysteria currently happening in the United States at the current time, it is left to the proud ancestors of the Confederacy to defend and be unapologetic for our desire to purge the lies infesting the story of our heritage and our forefathers.

The Civil War was fought in America from 1861-1865. All the institutions of American society, including all Southern institutions and leaders, are separating the Confederacy from American History. The official version is being taught at all levels of the educational system. This is a political version devoid of the real truth of the War for Southern Independence.

The most important fact about the Civil War is that it was a war of conquest and invasion by the North and the Federal Government against the people of the South.They destroyed the legitimately elected Government of fourteen states and made the South a captive of wealth for Northern interests and benefit. People of the South were subjected to military occupation and terrorism on women and children both white and black, that is unprecedented.

The U.S. Government had much more resources and soldiers at their disposal than did the valiant men of the South Even with these advantages they were unable to defeat the South. Three hundred foreigners were imported to reinforce the U.S. Army. In all, it took 22 million Northerners to crush and conquer only five million Southerners, in what would become four years of the bloodiest wars in American history against civilians.

The South has been portrayed as a few of wealthy slave owners in the Antebellum South lording over the rest of its population. The truth is that the wealthy in any society have more power and influence.

The Civil War began after the so-called attack on Fort Sumter. The taking of Fort Sumter was preceded by a warning, was bloodless and the entire garrison was allowed to depart with honor intact. Why should Southerners allow a fort that was built with their tax money for their protection to be used to conquer and exhort taxes? Every other Federal post had been peacefully surrendered.Lincolns call for reinforcements afterward did little to bring unity. Four more states seceded the union. It would take over a million men to quash what Lincoln referred to as "the rebellion". many lives would be lost on both sides but the South suffered most. The antebellum homes and plantations had been plundered and burned, many of the women raped, tortured, or sometimes killed protecting their homes.

There were many battles fought during the Civil War but to refer to it as "mythical lost cause is wrong. It left an indelible strength and devotion to our forefathers which lives on in the hearts of those of us who were born and raised with the traditional values and beliefs of a place we still call Dixie, a place many of us still call home.

The war ended when General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses Grant after the Battle of Gettysburg at which time Grant shook the hand and removed his hat to Lee. Lee walked away from the surrender at Appomattox with his hat in hand and his other arm lifted toward the sky.

In the current atmosphere of political correctness, the South and all that Southerners hold dear is being demonized. Everything related to the South and the Civil War is being labeled as racist and the historians are declaring the cause of the Civil War to have been slavery and nothing more. This is self-serving and a misuse of history. The Civil War was not about slavery as claimed, but about taking captive the South which at the time was an economic giant due to the cotton boom. The freeing of the slaves was a byproduct.

All history is somebody's story and The Civil War is the story of the South and its people.

The destruction of southern history began in two thousand one with the fight over the Confederate flag. Mississippi is the last state to have the Confederate emblem still on the state flag. A vote was taken and the people of Mississippi voted to retain the flag they have had over 200 years. The battle still rages today. it was taken to the 5th circuit court in New Orleans to be decided and the court sided with the people of Mississippi. it is still at this date being debated.

Other symbols of the Confederacy are also under attack. Many of the monuments which southerners hold dear are being removed or desecrated. The statue of Robert E. Lee and other statues have come under fire. many were removed in the dark of night due to the opposition from those who hold the statutes dear and see them a part of the southern heritage. These events have erupted in violence on the part of groups such as "Black Lives Matter " and Antifa. At the beginning, the protests were aimed at the Confederacy. now it has expanded to the American flag and the Northern statutes.

The most recent act of violence was by Delvin Kelley, a 26-year-old who entered a church and killed 26 people including children. His ties to Antifa were revealed on his Facebook page. he was discharged from the military with a dishonorable discharge due to abuse of his child and wife. On his Facebook page, he displays the Antifa flag.

The government has taken no steps to take this under control. the people have pressured for more strict gun laws but this is not the answer since most of the shootings are perpetrated by individuals who used unregistered firearms. The case for the open carry and concealed carry in Texas is emphasized by the fact that the shooter was chased, shot and killed by an armed citizen.

These acts of violence are extreme. In New York city the use of a vehicle to kill individuals was another extreme example. There are much more. The escalation of these events is frightening. It began with a war on the Southern states and has ended in terror as anything remotely related becomes a target.

The people of the South hold the relics of their past dear and in some instances sacred. I am the proud descendant of Confederate ancestors. I hold dear the heritage which was passed on to me by my parents, grandparents, and history.

The Confederate flag is not about hate. It is about heritage and Southern pride in what we hold dear. I was raised Southern. I will die southern. My ancestors left me a heritage that will long be passed on to my children and their children. It is with this pride that we stand and defend the honor of our ancestors before us. We come from honorable men who were willing to die for our beliefs. We stand to defend their honor and the God given rights of all people.

Deo Vindice!!!

I was born in Prentiss, Ms. I grew up there until the age of 13 when my parents divorced and my mother moved to Texas. As a child, I said The Pledge Of Allegiance to the Stars and Stripes and sang the National Anthem, but I could also belt out Dixie and recite The Pledge of Allegiance to the Confederate Flag.

All my ancestors from my great, great, great, grandparents to my parents are from the South. They are from The Carolinas, Virginia, Alabama, and Mississippi. They fascinated me with the stories of the old days and The Civil War and the hardships suffered by those from the south. I went to wander among the Antebellum Homes that still stood in many places, " Gone With The Wind" was my favorite movie and My idea of a southern belle was Scarlett.O"Hara.

I worked on the enormous farm my great, great grandfather and my grandfather owned. I milked cows, cleaned the barn, picked and planted crops, and yes, picked cotton. My grandparents taught us values, respect, history, and the legacy we inherited.

I came from a very large family as did my parents. We ate all meals together at the table where you ate what was served or sat there until you did. The whole family attended church together, no monkeying around, sit still and listen. I still listen to the old gospel hymns and on the death of my mother in April I had the chance to see that old church again. The ladies and gentleman still had the southern hospitality to prepare a very nice meal for the family and mourners. I was surprised to find many of them remembered me from a very young age even though I left at 13. It all seemed so long ago but everything seemed frozen in time like I had never left. The little church was still little, the air still fresh, the people still, loving and kind.

My brothers, sisters, and cousins played outside, fishing, bending the small trees down to ride them like horses or use their branches as pom-poms. we played in the stream and swung out of the barn second floor while our parents sat on the porches and drank iced tea. We said, yes mamam, yes sir, and the grace before meals. We made our beds, cleaned our rooms and weren't above being spanked or more usually sent to retrieve a switch from the switch bush. We did our homework, took a bath, said our prayers and off to bed then up at 6 am to catch the school bus.

Today I am nostalgic of those times. The house I grew up in is still in the family as is the land that my family has owned for generations. All of my sisters and brothers have returned to that same little town we grew up in except me. I have remained in Texas but still long for those times of long ago when all I wanted was grow up and go to Ole Miss University. I had no idea of the firestorm that would befall my beloved south and the true history of what happened there long before my memories were made as a child. What could change so much in a place where the mailman still leaves candy in the mailbox and everyone greets you with a wave, men tip their hats and open doors and pull out chairs.I was about to find out.

My lesson in the real history of my beloved homeland was about to begin starting with my beloved Mississippi Flag.