Through excerpted letters, diary entries, newspaper accounts, and official records, Wiley offers the reader a complete portrait of the ordinary foot soldier in the Union Army during the Civil War.
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About the Author
Bell Irvin Wiley (1906-1980) was a professor emeritus of history at Emory University and one of America's preeminent Civil War historians.
James I. Robertson, Jr., is the author of many books, including the award-winning Stonewall Jackson: The Man, the Soldier, the Legend. Well known for his lectures across the country and his appearances in television documentaries, he is Alumni Distinguished Professor of History at Virginia Tech. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Packed full of information and entertaining to read!,
By
This review is from: Life of Billy Yank: The Common Soldier of the Union (Paperback)
Similar to the book, "Life of Johnny Reb", Bell Irvin Wiley has put together the life of being a soldier in the Union army. From muster to homecoming this books covers many subjects. Subjects such as northern soldier views on visiting the South for the first time, civilians, slavery, camp life and more. There was a chapter which covered Union perspective about going into battle and fighting which I found especially interesting. Chapter content is backed by letters from actual soldiers that add important weight to the quality of information in this book. I simply hated to put the book down when I read it as it had some funny situations of soldier life mixed with the hard drama of warfare. This book is a must have for those seeking to understand the Union soldier from many perspectives. It doesn't get into boring battle detail or mention officers at length which I found refreshing for a change. It simply covers just about every aspect of being a Union soldier during the Civil War and should be in everyones' Civil War library! 5 STARS!!
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent,
By
This review is from: Life of Billy Yank: The Common Soldier of the Union (Paperback)
The late Bell Wiley had an advantage that many researchers of the Civil War did not have: FIRST HAND ACCOUNTS FROM THE VETERANS THEMSELVES. Starting his research in the 1940's, Wiley was able to interview the aging veterans of the War. You can imagine what was going through these warriors minds as they recalled their past. Wiley also spent countless hours combing through letters, diaries, official documents and other papers to get his facts. Billy Yank tells the story of the Union soldiers as few have been able to capture. It covers more than just what the soldier wore, ate, used, etc. From his reasons for fighting, opinions of Lincoln, emancipation (pro AND con) officers, the Southern people, the topics are well covered. Reenactors of the conflict would benefit from this book. This is a gold mine of information for the "first person" impression. Even Southerners will gain insight into their former foes.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful background into the life of a Civil War Soldier,
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This review is from: The Life of Billy Yank: The Common Soldier of the Union. (Hardcover)
Bell Wiley's book is a wonderful way to understand what the common soldier was like in the Civil War. So many books deal strictly with officers or battles that this is quite the refreshing and novel read.There are no detailed descriptions of battles, only of the men who fought them, their emotions, and ways of life. It is a great reference for anyone who has read other Civil War books and been confused by 150 year old terms that aren't always defined in other books. Wiley cautions the reader in the introduction that he tried to remain impartial, despite being a Southerner. I feel he did a great job reporting the facts from the thousands of letters and diaries without prideful opinion.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
TWENTY-EIGHT years ago, when I had completed research for The Life of Billy Yank, I estimated that I had read twenty thousand letters written by the men who wore the blue. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
private wrote, unidentified soldier, hard tack, war letters, soldier letters, soldier accounts, higher commanders Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Billy Yank, Civil War, Union Army, South Carolina, War Department, New Orleans, North Carolina, Johnny Reb, World War, Regular Army, First Manassas, Jeff Davis, Christian Commission, Courtesy National Archives, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Advocate General of the Army, Army of the Cumberland, First Minnesota, Mine Run, Seven Pines, Bull Run, Department of the Gulf, Emancipation Proclamation New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
TWENTY-EIGHT years ago, when I had completed research for The Life of Billy Yank, I estimated that I had read twenty thousand letters written by the men who wore the blue. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
private wrote, unidentified soldier, hard tack, war letters, soldier letters, soldier accounts, higher commanders Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Billy Yank, Civil War, Union Army, South Carolina, War Department, New Orleans, North Carolina, Johnny Reb, World War, Regular Army, First Manassas, Jeff Davis, Christian Commission, Courtesy National Archives, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Advocate General of the Army, Army of the Cumberland, First Minnesota, Mine Run, Seven Pines, Bull Run, Department of the Gulf, Emancipation Proclamation New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
77
books
cite this book:
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- All the Daring of the Soldier: Women of the Civil War Armies by Elizabeth D. Leonard on 5 pages
- Madness, Malingering & Malfeasance: The Transformation of Psychiatry and the Law in the Civil War Era by R. Gregory Lande on 4 pages
- The Black Civil War Soldiers of Illinois: The Story of the Twenty-ninth U.S. Colored Infantry by Edward A. Miller Jr. in Front Matter, Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- The Civil War Letters of Colonel Charles F. Johnson, Invalid Corps by Charles F. Johnson in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Harry Hooper: AN AMERICAN BASEBALL LIFE (Sport and Society) by Paul J. Zingg in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
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