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The\u2062 Story of One Confederate \u2063Soldier’s Incredible Act\u200d of Mercy<\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\u201cIf your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if \u2063he is thirsty, give him water to drink.\u201d (Proverbs 25:21)<\/p>\n
This week marks the anniversary of the Battle \u2064of Fredericksburg during \u200cthe American Civil War.<\/p>\n
On Dec. 13, 1862, Confederate troops inflicted a costly defeat\u200c on their Union enemies at the base of Marye\u2019s Heights, a ridge line overlooking \u200dthe town of Fredericksburg, Virginia, and beyond it the Rappahannock River.<\/p>\n
The\u2064 Civil\u2063 War had raged for\u200c nearly two years. In \u2063Virginia in 1862, Union forces\u200d had suffered \u200bone disastrous\u200b reversal after another. From the Peninsula Campaign \u2062that spring \u2063and \u2063summer to the Second Battle of Bull Run in \u2062late August, Confederate General Robert E. Lee<\/a> \u2063had repeatedly outmaneuvered his Union counterparts.<\/p>\n
As winter approached, Lee awaited another\u200c attack from his headquarters atop \u2064 Telegraph Hill<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Desperate for a breakthrough on the Rappahannock, General Ambrose Burnside \u2014 the latest commander of \u200cthe Union Army of the Potomac and also \u2062the namesake<\/a> of the bushy facial hair known today as \u201csideburns\u201d \u2014 ordered a series of doomed frontal assaults on the heavily fortified Confederate position along Marye\u2019s Heights.<\/p>\n
The men in blue uniforms<\/a> had no chance.\u2064 \u201cA chicken could not live on that field\u200d when we open on it,\u201d one Confederate artillery officer predicted<\/a> before the battle.<\/p>\n
Indeed, wave after wave of Union troops suffered the same \u2062fate\u200d when \u2062 Confederates<\/a> opened\u200c fire. Union survivors fled in \u200bretreat, while thousands lay dead<\/a>\u2064 or wounded.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is well that \u2064war is so terrible \u2014 we should grow too fond of it,\u201d Lee reportedly<\/a> remarked in homage to his enemies\u2019 courage.<\/p>\n
A cold \u2063darkness fell early over eastern Virginia in \u200dmid-December.<\/p>\n
On the very long night of Dec. \u200c13-14, Confederate troops at the base of Marye\u2019s Heights\u2062 heard cries\u200c of \u200cagony. From behind a stone wall \u2064along what came to be known as Sunken Road, they listened as their wounded and suffering enemies pleaded for help.<\/p>\n
Finally,\u200d one Confederate soldier could take no more of it.<\/p>\n
According to multiple reports, 19-year-old Sgt. Richard Rowland \u200bKirkland of\u2063 the 2nd South Carolina<\/a> Regiment risked\u200c his life by \u2064jumping the stone wall and bringing water to his wounded enemies.<\/p>\n
For his incredible act of mercy, Kirkland earned the nickname \u201cThe Angel of Marye\u2019s Heights.\u201d<\/p>\n
Alas, the young hero did not live to see peacetime. On Sept. 20, 1863 \u2014 nine \u2064months and one week after his \u2063act\u200d of mercy \u2014 Kirkland died at the Battle of Chickamauga.<\/p>\n
Historians and\u200d history buffs<\/a>, of course, have \u2063a well-earned reputation for pedantry. Thus, writers have \u200bscrutinized\u200c every aspect \u2062of the Kirkland legend.<\/p>\n
For instance, as author Pat \u200bLeonard noted<\/a> in The New \u200bYork Times in 2012, not all modern historians<\/a> accept the Kirkland story.<\/p>\n
A key\u200d point of contention\u2064 lies in the story\u2019s primary source.<\/p>\n
In 1880, \u200ba South Carolina newspaper published the recollections\u2063 of Gen. \u2064Joseph Kershaw, Kirkland\u2019s brigade commander.<\/p>\n
According to Kershaw\u2019s account, Kirkland first approached the\u2063 general for\u2063 permission\u200d to undertake the errand of mercy. Kershaw gave reluctant approval, and \u2064then\u2062 Kirkland made his way into the no-man\u2019s land between Union and Confederate<\/a> lines.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnharmed he reached the nearest sufferer. He knelt beside him, tenderly\u2063 raised the drooping head, rested it gently upon his own noble breast, \u200dand poured the precious life-giving \u2062fluid down the\u200c fever \u200dscorched throat,\u201d\u2062 Kershaw wrote.<\/p>\n
Kershaw,\u2062 however, could not have witnessed the act of mercy from his nearby headquarters<\/a>,\u200d where Kirkland sought him out for permission before returning to \u2062the stone wall\u200b along Sunken Road.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, Kershaw did \u2064not\u2064 provide the only source for\u200d the story. Years later, other South Carolina soldiers also identified Kirkland as \u201cThe Angel of Marye\u2019s Heights.\u201d Furthermore, according to the poet Walt Whitman, in early 1863 a wounded Union \u200bsoldier reported several Kirkland-like acts of kindness from Confederates at Fredericksburg.<\/p>\n
Indeed, not all historians question\u200b the\u200d Kirkland legend. On Virginia<\/a> public radio in 2019, for instance, Virginia Tech history <\/p>\n
What does Richard\u200b Rowland\u2064 Kirkland’s act \u200cof mercy \u2064during \u2062the\u200d Battle of Fredericksburg remind us about the nature of \u200cwar and humanity<\/h2>\n
Om\/2013\/12\/12\/whats-the-story-about-the-confederate-angel\/” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>points out<\/a>, there\u2064 are conflicting accounts of \u2063whether Kirkland actually crossed the stone \u2063wall\u2063 to help the\u200c wounded Union soldiers, or if he merely showed \u2063compassion from a distance. Some argue \u200bthat the events were \u2063exaggerated and embellished over time.<\/p>\n
Regardless of the specifics, the story of Richard Rowland \u200dKirkland remains a powerful reminder of humanity in the midst of \u2064war. In a time when both sides were \u2063locked in a \u2064brutal \u2064and deadly struggle, Kirkland’s act of mercy stands \u2064out as an extraordinary act \u2064of compassion \u200dand empathy.<\/p>\n
It is important to remember that war \u2062is not just about battles and strategies; it is also about the individual lives that are affected \u2063and the suffering that is\u200b endured. Kirkland’s actions serve as a testament to the innate \u2063goodness and kindness that can still exist in the hearts of even those engaged in the most violent of conflicts.<\/p>\n
In a world often defined by division and animosity, Kirkland’s story \u2064is\u200b a beacon\u200c of hope and a reminder of our shared humanity. It serves as a challenge for us to seek empathy and \u2062understanding, even \u200bin the midst\u2062 of our differences.<\/p>\n
As the Bible verse from \u2063Proverbs \u200creminds us, even in \u2062the midst of conflict, we are called to show compassion and provide help\u200d to those in need. Kirkland’s act of bringing \u2062water to his wounded enemies embodies\u2062 this principle, and serves as a\u200b timeless example \u2063for\u200c us all.<\/p>\n
So, as we reflect on the anniversary of \u200dthe Battle of Fredericksburg and the story of Richard Rowland Kirkland, let\u200b us strive to carry forward his \u2063spirit of mercy and compassion. Let us\u200c remember \u200dthat even in the darkest hours, there is \u200balways room for kindness and understanding.<\/p>\n
May we all find the courage to be angels of mercy in\u200b our own lives, and may Kirkland’s story\u2064 inspire us to be better and to seek peace, even in the midst of war.<\/p>\n
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On the anniversary of the Battle of Fredericksburg, a significant event in the American Civil War, it is worth remembering the wisdom of Proverbs 25:21. In this battle on Dec. 13, 1862, Confederate forces triumphed over the Union troops, resulting in a significant loss for the latter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2056,"featured_media":2125466,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[548],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2125465","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conservative-news-daily"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2125465","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2056"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2125465"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2125465\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2125466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2125465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2125465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2125465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}