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2Ó0CIVIL WAR HISTORY Many historians, and not a few soldiers, claimed that the commitment of Southern women to Confederate independence was even more fervent than that of the troops in the field, keeping alive a cause that might have died earlier had they not been so fanatical in their determination to win the war. Ellen House's diary confirms that, for at least one woman, this assertion is certainly valid. W. Todd Groce Georgia Historical Society Red Diamond Regiment: The 17th Maine Infantry, 1862-1865. By William B Jordan, Jr. (Shippensburg, Pa.: White Mane Publishing, 1996. Pp. 438. $30.00) The stream of Civil War titles in recent years has included many new regimental histories. Some ofthese are solidly researched but poorly written. Others are badly researched and equally badly written. A few, such as the late Warren Wilkinson's Mother May You Never See the Sights I Have Seen, on the 57th Massachusetts Infantry, or Richard Matthew's The ¡4Qth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Unit in the Civil War, possess that rare combination of well-grounded research and good writing. William B. Jordan Jr's Red Diamond Regiment falls into the latter category. Jordan writes well, and his knowledge of his subject is impressive in detail. Another fault of modern Civil War regimental histories is their concentration on combat at the expense of the other aspects of soldiering. Jordan provides a well-rounded view of the war as the men of the 17th Maine Infantry experienced it. From the recruiting of the regiment to camp life, training , recreation, fatigue duty, marching, and combat, he pays careful attention to them all. Even the homefront is not overlooked. Jordan does not attempt to "prove" anything about the 17th Maine (which must have been tempting, given the fame of the 20th Maine); he simply tells the reader what the men of that regiment experienced as soldiers during the war and how they did their duty. There is no need for bragging or embellishment. The 17th lost more men than any other regiment from Maine, a stark fact that says a great deal about the service they endured. Although it is evident that Jordan knows the men of the regiment very well, he does not allow his closeness to the subject to mar his objectivity. Neither does he lose sight of the fact that the men of the regiment are the story of this book, not the campaigns and battles they participated in. He provides adequate background on these subjects to assist the reader in understanding where the 17th fits into the big picture, but the experience of the men of the 17th remains the focus throughout. In compiling this history, Jordan used a solid array of sources. He might have enriched the depth of his work further by examining the pension records of a sampling of 17th Maine veterans. This is a highly fertile source of information for regimental historians. There is also a sixteen-page insert of photographs, most being wartime images of members of the 17th. For the social historian, or BOOK REVIEWS2ÓI those who enjoy perusing a regimental roster, a complete descriptive roster is included. The maps are plentiful enough and of satisfactory quality. The Red Diamond Regiment is a worthy addition to the scholarship on the experience of the Civil War soldier and a volume that even the old vets of the 17th would be proud of. D. Scott Hartwig Gettysburg NMP Band ofBrothers: Company C, çth Tennessee Infantry. By James R. Fleming. (Shippensburg, Pa: White Mane Publishing, 1996. Pp. xxiii, 155. $24.95.) The growing popularity of Civil War reenactment groups has produced a genre of literature designed to serve the interests of reenactors. As a result, there has been a proliferation of regimental and company histories during the past decade . At their best, these volumes of microhistory allow Civil War enthusiasts to gain an appreciation of the sacrifice individual soldiers were willing to make on behalf of cause and country. At their worst, they are overly romanticized prose, exaggerating the glory and accomplishments ofdistantrelatives involved in a great conflict. Band of Brothers has both the strengths and weaknesses typical of this type of literature. At...

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