The disconnect blog

"War Crimes Against Southern Civilians"

Just finished reading “War Crimes Against Southern Civilians” by Walter Brian Cisco. All this heat has given me a little more time to read, which is kinda nice. This book is horrific but well worth reading. Many wars become terror campaigns against the unarmed civilians and the American civil war was no exception. This is a fast read with short chapters shining a light at what that war was really like for the common folk. The official narrative likes to glorify the battlefield. Armies at war fighting heroic battles with one side losing and the other winning leading towards a final victory. The reality is that this war was primarily about abandoning the voluntary union – might equals right. The right to secede was crushed which was a major blow to the state rights and a major advancement to federal powers.

This book showcases the horrors that took place by the union army invading and occupying the southern states. Most of the southern states thought that secession was a little too drastic in the beginning. But as they saw the reaction of the Lincoln federal government over the initial secession movement other states started to reconsider. They reasoned that Washington D.C. was getting out of control and perhaps the union was not worth preserving. So, many votes started taking place, and the people wanted to flee the corrupt union.

Americans often think of this civil war not only as army vs army but it being northern states vs southern states only. Something interesting is that there were a lot of mercenaries hired out. Early on many Germans were brought in to fight for the north, and later many Irish were brought in to fight for the north and some for the south. Over the entire war the northern union army had 2.1 to 2.7 million enlistments with 25%-35% of this being foreigners (mostly German, Irish, and British). And the southern confederate army had 800,000 to 1.2 million enlistments with only 5%-9% foreigners (mostly Irish). Of these armies approximately 600,000-800,000 died with roughly 100,000 more from the union military dying. The official numbers are that about 50,000 civilians died in the war. I seriously doubt this number, hopefully more information comes forward over time. Starvation alone due to the war must have been more than this. Perhaps I’m wrong and those displaced were able to find food and shelter after fleeing a ransacked town or city. Looking at the numbers though, the south held their own pretty well with a smaller army. The death numbers are more than all other United State wars combined. Think of how much trauma that inflicted to those who did the killing, witnessed the killing, and family survivors of those killed…

Another misconception is that this war was only about freeing the slaves or at least the number one factor. Most of the union soldiers and officers could care less about the slaves, this was about showing their domination over the south. The north was disgusted that the south had the audacity to think they had the power to voluntarily leave the union. The war crimes against the south were just as brutal to the African Americans as it was to the whites. All were pillaged, abused, threatened, raped, and killed. The black people were raped by union soldiers more than the whites. This is how many wars go, more civilians are harmed than soldiers – because that is easy. Why would the Union want to dive head first into battle with another army? It’s a lot easier (and lucrative) to ransack towns and cities for loot. Also the south was outnumbered so they often had to use guerrilla warfare tactics. Unarmed people are a lot more fun to torment then an army that shoots back. Don’t get me wrong here, some of the states desiring secession wanted to secure slavery in their state and they thought Lincoln was becoming a threat to that. But that certainly wasn’t the only issue, and was not the main issue overall. Many of the states only joined the secession movement because of how the North was reacting to the initial threat of secession.

This is the reality of the civil war, people should stop glorifying the minimal battles and realize what really happened. Look at what the USA turned into, do you really think that voluntary union relationship was worth destroying to preserve the union? Slavery would not have lasted much longer either way, technology and social pressures would have ended it soon enough. Many prior slaves were already free at that time and it would have only sped up. Abolition mentalities were rising in the north and south. That really may have been partially why the civil war launched when it did. If they had the war after slaves were free they wouldn’t have had any great justification for historic narratives. It would have been a very healthy development to have the south secede. They may have reunited later or stayed separate. Separation of powers and state rights is what made the union worthwhile. Allowing the separation of the south to freely go on their way would have shown respect for the declaration of independence, the constitution, state rights, and show that it was a voluntary union. The sentimentality of abolition as part of the civil war only came in the last half of the war, I believe as preparation to help justify the war. In the beginning of his election into the war Lincoln promised he wouldn’t interfere with slavery in the south.

Read this book if you want to see some of what is often left out of the pro federal government narrative in most books, movies, and series on the civil war. It is a gruesome read but honest. The writer is good at leaving most of their own opinions out of it and lets the facts speak for themselves. It is loaded with quotes, mostly first hand accounts of what happened both from the north and south. Don’t expect the book to cover much of what I’m going into through this writeup it is mostly showcasing the crimes the union army committed against southern civilians.

I might go on a little American civil war tour and read a handful of books to further understand some more of it. If I do I may chime in from time to time about the latest book on the topic.

This little writeup might offend some. As a voluntaryist myself I cannot support the civil war. How could I? If the south wanted to voluntarily secede of course I would not be for violent interference. I desire voluntary association at the individual level so that also would apply at the state and national levels. I desire voluntary association at all levels. Slaves should never have been a thing in the states, that isn’t a voluntary union – some indentured servitude was. I want to let you all know I am very much against slavery. I love reading abolitionist papers from the time, there were many heroes out there helping the cause of liberating the slaves. Adin Ballou and Leo Tolstoy are some favorites on slavery abolition. Lysander Spooner has some worthwhile things to say as well but his solutions turn violent in a self-defense sort of way, with whites joining in to help liberate and arm the slaves. Wish slavery went away a long long time ago, or never became a thing in human history. I believe that the people around the world are still slaves, it’s just not as apparent or as bad as it has been in the past. People are subjects to their nation, often a cog in the wheel in the economy of man supporting their slave masters (governments and cartels of sorts). A fun movie on this is “Jones Plantation." Not the highest budget but important ideas are expressed, my wife and I enjoyed it.

In my view the civil war was primarily about the federal government usurping power from the American sovereigns and the states. It was the beginning of building the US empire that exists today. The federalists won. The people are now weak and powerless to the beast that took over. It used to be “We the people” > states > Feds and this has been flipped. The union looks more like the British army in the revolutionary war and the south more like the colonial army in cause and tactics. Which side do you think the majority of the founding fathers of the United states would have been on if they were still young and ambitious?

Think about this the next time you claim citizenship to whatever nation of man that you are calling yourself its subject. As one pledges allegiance to a government of man and is subject to it does that put that entity between you and God? Yes, and I’m pretty sure the nations know this and love it. So I suggest that we put our allegiance towards God, not man or manmade structures. Let us be citizens of Heaven and progress with the fruits of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. The fruits of the kingdoms of man are rancid and full of horrors. The so-called Christian nations have not been such a thing, they have been kingdoms of men that use the cover of piety to subdue the subjects and gain control. If you aren’t a believer in Christianity based on the fruits of those nations claiming to be living a Christian standard don’t fool yourself. Read the sermon on the mount, what did those nations follow of this? They didn’t even follow the ten commandments. So any believer of our Messiah out there, maybe we could start doing that – following the sermon on the mount and the ten commandments. Then His Kingdom come and the will of the Father will shine forth on earth as it is in Heaven. For those of you of another faith out there, follow your scriptures’ highest ideals. The scriptures I’ve read from Muslims, Hindu, Taoism, and Buddhist all have teachings of treating others well and giving in charity. I can do better, you can do better, humanity can do better – maybe we oughta.

The sermon on the mount taught us to not take oaths (see Matthew 5:33-37). The union military was forcing southern civilians to take oaths in support of the union to save their lives and property. Often any military requires an oath to enlist. We are also taught to not retaliate (see Matthew 5 :38-42). Both sides were killing one another. We are taught to love our enemies, to pray for them and do good to them (see Matthew 5:43-48). Both sides had some of this on the civilian side and both sides were guilty – especially the military.

So what if the Messiah’s principles were actually lived at a macro level even just a little bit, what could have happened with the civil war mess? If the north was considering these teachings then perhaps they would have just allowed the south to secede. Then what of the slaves? I’d imagine it very unlikely to have lasted another 40 years because of social and political pressures as well as the industrial revolution changing the farming industry right around the corner – it likely would have lasted quite less time. The north also had many political ways they could have put pressure on the slave market and liberation of African Americans. Reversal of the Dread Scott case for one. Nullify the “Fugitive Slave Act of 1793” and the “Fugitive Slave Act of 1850.” With the south gone from the union and getting rid of these bad laws imagine what would happen? There could also be a campaign inviting everyone to voluntarily donate to a fund to buy slaves and then set them free. If I remember right Joseph Smith jr. (founder of the LDS faith) had a plan to free the slaves through payment to the owners. All of this combined could have been a peaceful abolition process which may have worked far superior to what did happen. It may have been a little slower but it may have had more gentle and enduring fruits. Violence begets violence. The violent and horrific ways of the civil war led to an aftermath of resentment and hatred. What if done in a more gentle, peaceful, diplomatic, and voluntary way; the results may have been far superior. I am convinced our Messiah is teaching us correct principles so I fully believe that this would be the case. Because it was done with bloodshed, threats, violence, destruction of property, theft, rape, and more there was a whole lot of trauma that has had to play out. Seems like it still flares up from time to time. It took until 1957 for the “Civil Rights Act” to come about and press for more legal protections for African Americans. There is still a lot of hatred, confusion, resentment, and more on many fronts. Seems it is tapering down but it’s not completely healed. I believe a whole lot of what happened in the civil war, slavery, and the aftermath could have been avoided completely. Follow the Messiah’s principles and good things could have been and can be if we begin. When people rely on all of the solutions to be established through concentrated government systems with a monopoly on violence, they tend to use that violence.

Further reading:

“A discourse on the subject of American slavery” by Adin Ballou

“The voice of duty” by Adin Ballou (or click here for a small 60kb PDF download of the pamphlet)

Other works by Adin Ballou

“The Slavery Of Our Times” by Leo Tolstoy

“War Crimes Against Southern Civilians” by Walter Brian Cisco