The Fleets of Tidewater Virginia, living near Richmond in their plantation home Green Mount, were close to many of the great events of the Civil War. Their story, told in journal and letters by several members of the family, occupies a unique place among the numerous war memoirs of the South. Central in GREEN MOUNT is the journal of youthful Benjamin Fleet (or Benny, as he is called by the family), commenced in January 1860. This document is without parallel in the literature of the Civil War. Young Benny described the plantation world about him with perception, honesty, and a surprising maturity. He sees it with fresh eyes, uncolored by the rationalizations so common among adults, and records many details not only of the conduct of the plantation itself but also of the education of the time, of boyish diversions, of the society of the Virginia planters, and of the place of religion in the life of his neighborhood. Complementing the journal are letters of Fred, Benny's older brother, who served for four years in the Confederate army. Though his regiment was not engaged in any of the great campaigns until the siege of Petersburg, Fred's letters home show the attitude of the soldiers towards the war and the enemy, most pointedly their confidence and good spirits. He also contributes vignettes of well-known Confederate leaders, among them Beauregard, Lee, and lesser figures like Magruder and Henry A. Wise. The collection is completed by letters of Benny's parents. Pa's duties as a physician often left Benny with the daily management of the plantation, and his correspondence reveals the planter as a man with business interests other than agriculture. GREEN MOUNT, with its combination of soldier and civilian, of age and youth, gives an unusually complete picture of the plantation and the effects of war upon this central southern institution and of morale in the South from the election of Lincoln to the end of the Confederacy.
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This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
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