Description
First edition of the Military Memoirs Of A Confederate: A Critical Narrative by Confederate Brigadier General Edward Porter Alexander.
Octavo, xviii, [2], 634pp. Dark green cloth, title stamped in gilt on the spine. Black endpapers. Light wear to heel of the spine, faint soiling to covers. Complete with a frontispiece portrait, two illustrated plates, numerous in-text maps and a fold-out map of the “Operations of the Army of Northern Virginia.” Solid text block, internally clean. A second edition of this work was published in 1910.
(Tall Cotton, 1) (Nevins I, 50) (Eicher, 174) (Howes, A114)
Includes an ownership inscription in pencil on the front free endpaper, dated 1907.
Edward Porter Alexander (1835 – 1910) was born in Georgia and graduated from West Point in 1857. During the war, Alexander gained distinction as an artillery officer, playing a key role in several major battles. His most notable service was at the Battle of Gettysburg, where he oversaw the massive artillery bombardment preceding Pickett’s Charge, one of the war’s most famous assaults. Alexander’s skills in artillery deployment and his innovative use of signal flags for communication significantly impacted Confederate military tactics. He continued to serve with distinction throughout the war, participating in the Seven Days Battles, the Battle of Fredericksburg, and the Battle of Chancellorsville, before surrendering with General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Court House in 1865.
In retirement, he wrote this book on his military experiences, which has been called “a superb history of Lee’s army” and “the best critique for operations of the Army of Northern Virginia.” An unpublished memoir, intended for his family, was discovered, and published in 1989, titled “Fighting for the Confederacy: The Personal Recollections of General Edward Porter Alexander.” From Tall Cotton: “A hard-hitting, authoritative narrative by one of Lee’s finest young officers. The artillerist’s assessments of the military operations of the Army of Northern Virginia are honest, fair, and sound.”
