The Myth of the Lost Cause and Civil War History - Softcover

Well reasoned and timely. * Booklist * The Lost Cause . . . is a tangible and influential phenomenon in American culture and this book provides an excellent source for anyone seeking to explore its various dimensions. * Southern Historian *

The Myth of the Lost Cause and Civil War History posits the notion that the Confederacy was doomed from the start in its struggle against the superior might of the Union, but its forces fought heroically against all odds for the cause of states' rights. In reality, this was and is an elaborate and intentional effort on the part of Southerners to rationalize the secession and the war itself. Beginning with Jubal Early, skillful propagandists have been so successful in promoting this romanticized view that the Lost Cause has assumed a life of its own. By misrepresenting the war's true origins and its actual course, the myth of the Lost Cause distorts our national memory. In this book, nine historians describe and analyze the Lost Cause, identifying the ways in which it falsifies history. This is a thoughtful and provocative volume that makes a major contribution to Civil War historiography.