Redneck,
Do you have a source for your claim that Lt. Joshua Moses was killed because he was Jewish? I just looked into the record of that time and while it appears the Union did act improperly, killing innocent men in what was described as a massacre, killing men who had surrendered... I cannot find any claim that it was due to his being Jewish that this occurred.
I found this interesting letter written by a relative of Lt Moses..
http://georgiaheritagecouncil.org/site2/commentary/regenstein-ft-blakeley-war-criminals.phtmlDear Blakeley Park officials:
Blakeley Park means a lot to my family, since one of our most distinguished and respected ancestors courageously fought and was killed there and is buried nearby.
I was quite surprised to learn that there are plans afoot to erect a monument at Fort Blakeley, Alabama honoring the United States Colored Troops who executed prisoners of war and other Confederates trying to surrender ( and even shot their own officers !) after that battle, the final large engagement of the War.
Among those tragically shot that day, on 9 April, 1865, a few hours after Lee surrendered at Appomattox, was Lieutenant Joshua Lazarus Moses, from Sumter, South Carolina, the eldest of 17 children, and the brother of my great grandfather, Andrew Jackson Moses.
At the time, Josh was commanding Culpeper's (Artillery) Battery, South Carolina, at Redoubt Number Nine, and his monument at the Confederate Rest Section of Magnolia Cemetery in Mobile states that "he fired the last gun in defense of Mobile." His last words were reportedly, "For G-d's sake, spare my men, they have surrendered."
Unfortunately, his request, and the prevailing rules of war, were not honored that sad day, and he and several of his men were shot by the Union forces you intend to honor.
Josh was the last Confederate Jew to fall in battle, the first being his first cousin, Lt. Albert Moses Luria, who was killed in May of 1862 at Seven Pines, Virginia. At the battle of Fort Blakeley, Josh's brother Perry was wounded, and another brother, Horace, captured.
The Lee-Dixon-Moses Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp in Mobile is named in part in honor of Josh and the courage he showed in the face of overwhelming odds.
If you erect such a monument, you will certainly set a unique precedent, as you will be paying tribute to men who committed documented war crimes against their prisoners, and even shot their own officers who were trying to stop them. To erect a monument to a unit that engaged in criminal behavior, indeed murder, at the site of the atrocity, is something that I am not aware has ever before been done in the United States of America (except for monuments to Union troops who engaged in mass murder against the Native Americans during the "Indian Wars").
Do you really want to generate such publicity and create such an uproar ?
Throughout the War Between the States, on both sides, valor and courage in battle were common, especially at Blakeley, where Josh's beleaguered Confederates were outnumbered 13 to one.
There are so many soldiers and units worthy of honoring, why pick one that is known to have committed atrocities and war crimes, by shooting down prisoners who had surrendered and were attempting to do so.
I believe that the race of the perpetrators is irrelevant, and indeed Black soldiers served honorably on both the Confederate and Union side. But we cannot ignore the fact that by honoring such behavior, committed by U.S. Colored Troops against soldiers who had been defeated and captured, you will without doubt stir up some very bitter racial animosity and controversy.
Can you imagine the pain and outrage this will cause to descendents of those brave confederates who fell at Blakeley ?
There are numerous battles during which the USCT's performed admirably, why bring attention to one incident where prisoners were literally murdered by them ? It seems to me that in honoring acts of murder, as if it were normal, you dishonor not only the brave Confederates who were executed, but also the many Union soldiers who performed their duties without committing war crimes, especially the brave and honorable officers who were shot while trying to prevent the killing of prisoners.
The illegal and heinous actions of these USCT's are well documented, as you know from messages you have received from several reliable sources, including excerpts from the authoritative work "The Siege of Blakeley and the Campaign of Mobile," by Roger B. Hansen & Norman A. Nicolson, (published by Historic Blakley press, with an introduction by Mary Y. Grice, Executive Director, Historic Blakeley Foundation).
As Hansen and Nicolson note, “Fort Pillow” became the battle cry of the black troops, and one of the U.S.C.T. (U.S. Colored Troops) commanders, Brigadier General William A. Pile, “…brought his outspoken abolitionist views into the field with him, "‘advocating death to all supporters of the South, past and present’.” They write that while “…there was no general massacre,…many of the union black troops did attack the Confederate whites after surrendering, and even shot two of their own officers trying to stop them. One white sergeant who was commissioned an officer the day after the assault wrote home …and stated his regiment took no live prisoners, “they killed all they took to a man.”
No good can come from honoring such crimes in the heart of the Old South, where the last thing we need is another provocation or perceived insult that could have the unintended effect of pitting people against each other, raising issues best left buried with their victims, and setting back race relations once again. Such a monument will be widely perceived as a re-writing of history and as another effort, among many, to disrespect and diminish an important aspect of Southern history and heritage.
How much better for descendants of soldiers from both sides to join together in honoring the many troops who served honorably in the armies of the South and the North in this tragic conflict.
Thank you very much for taking the time to consider my views on this matter, which I convey to you respectfully and in a spirit of sincerity and good will.
Sincerely yours,
Lewis Regenstein
Atlanta, GA
Topic: Jewish Legends of the Confederacy (Read 6440 times)