Cubans in the Confederacy: José Agustín Quintero, Ambrosio José Gonzales, and Loreta Janeta Velazquez [Paperback]

Phillip Thomas Tucker (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0786409762 | ISBN-13: 978-0786409761 | Publication Date: May 10, 2002

The role of Cubans in the American Civil War is seldom appreciated. This work is the first to provide a look at the often distinguished services they performed. Although Cubans are recorded in the rosters of both Union and Confederate forces, Cuban ties with the Confederacy were particularly strong, perhaps because Cuban patriots fighting for liberation from Spain tended to identify with the Southern cause. In this work are biographies of three Cubans who served the Confederate army in the War Between the States. Darryl E. Brock offers a detailed portrait of José Agustín Quintero, who served as the South's most effective diplomat. Michael Wendell Stevens writes on Ambrosio José Gonzales, who rose to the rank of colonel and served some of the Confederacy's best-known generals. Finally, Richard Hal provides a sketch of Loreta Janeta Velazquez, a soldier and spy for the Confederacy who infiltrated (as a double agent) the operations of Northern spymaster LaFayette C. Baker.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Phillip Thomas Tucker is the chief of the history office at the 81st Training Wing (AETC), Keesler Air Force Base. He is also the author of Westerners in Gray (1994). He lives in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Product Details

• Paperback: 259 pages
• Publisher: Mcfarland & Co Inc Pub (May 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786409762
• ISBN-13: 978-0786409761
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,816,909 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Unique Book, January 24, 2004

By 

Walter Woodman (Shreveport, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cubans in the Confederacy: José Agustín Quintero, Ambrosio José Gonzales, and Loreta Janeta Velazquez (Paperback)

This book is a valuable contribution to the historical truth that the Confederacy was much more diverse than is commonly assumed by most people. As the editor of the book states in his introduction "stereotypes continue to exist that the average Southern soldier was a typical Southern 'cracker' and Anglo-Saxon of homogeneous background, but such was not the case." This statement has been proven to be true in other earlier books such as Ella Lonn's classic "Foreigners in the Confederacy" first published in 1940, and reprinted several times since. As Lonn pointed out diversity was particularly apparent in some units from Louisiana, such as the Tenth Louisiana Regiment, where soldiers from 14 countries were represented, including England, Ireland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, etc.
Cubans in the Confederacy concentrates on three Cubans who provided valauble services to the Confederacy. There are three separate articles written by three different writers.
The first article, and the longest in the book (pp. 9-142) is about Jose Agustin Quintero who served the Confederacy as a diplomat in Mexico.
The second article (pp. 143-224) is about Ambrosio Jose Gonzales who served as a high ranking officer in the Confederate Army.
The third article and the shortest (pp. 225-239) is about Loreta Janeta Velazquez who served the Confederacy as a soldier and spy. She is probably the best known of the three persons covered in the book.
The book is an excellent contribution to our knowledge about the diversity that was the Confederacy. The only disappointment for me was that there are no photographs of the persons depicted in the articles. Some of the articles, I thought were a little too windy, and for these two reasons, I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 stars.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Superv book, Just a little over priced, August 17, 2002

By 

Gustavo Eduardo Carmona (Hurst, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cubans in the Confederacy: José Agustín Quintero, Ambrosio José Gonzales, and Loreta Janeta Velazquez (Paperback)

Been born in Cuba, I was fascinated with the tittle of this book. You have to understand Cuba's role in the Civil War is not really known in our Cuban circles. The book was a little over priced, but I decided to purchase it. In truth, it was a superv book, both from a Cuban an Civil War perspective. The only reason I did not give this book a 5 star was the price tag that comes along such a skinny book.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cubans in the Confederacy, August 14, 2006

By 

Wallace W. Goodey, III (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cubans in the Confederacy: José Agustín Quintero, Ambrosio José Gonzales, and Loreta Janeta Velazquez (Paperback)

This was a most outstanding book. Cubans have enriched our American history so much. I found the section on Jose Augustin Quintero the most impacting. His genius on diplomacy and negotiating with people in adverse environments with multiple agendas is phenominal. Reading about him enduced me to purchase another book, The Matamoros Trade by Dr. James Daddysman. Unfortunately I didn't purchase it from Amazon.

There is another book on J.A. Quintero by Jorge Marban, but it is in Spanish and I don't believe it has ever been translated into English. Quintero was so impacting to both the Confederacy, later the USA government and also to Cuba and their struggle for independance. His abilities were so important to our country, he, a Confederate Diplomat, was appointed as the Consul to Costa Rica and Belgium in 1868, by Andrew Johnson, while the South was in Reconstruction and all connected with the Confederacy were being punished.

His legacy of service lived on through his two sons, Lamar and Marshall. His dueling pistols were sold in 1960 to aid Cuban refugees in their flight from Castro.

I know this because I am his great great grandson and have the original documents - even the letter assigning him as a Confidential Agent.