diane
that gal
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Thank you to JGG for setting up this forum dedicated to a unique Civil War general. We should have some fine debates and discussions here!
Controversial, legendary, heroic, wicked, genius, temperamental - just about any descriptive word fits some aspect of Nathan Bedford Forrest. He was one of the most effective, innovative and feared cavalrymen of the war, and at the same time one of the most difficult, insubordinate and unrelenting. There was none of the cavalier about Forrest, no swords and roses. A natural leader, he was strong willed, clear minded, extremely smart as well as tough, disciplined, ordered. A man of extremely limited education and no military experience, he kept the Union's attention with numerous successful raids and campaigns, some brilliantly executed - such as Brice's Crossroads, universally acknowledged to be his masterpiece. Forrest's personal life before the war and after the war is very complicated - he was a slave trader and a klansman, an alderman of Memphis and a constable, a gambler and a shootist, a dedicated family man and deeply loving husband, a dedicated warrior of the Confederacy who put his blood and treasure into that cause. It died and he accepted that, accepted that slavery was gone, and that the South he knew was no more. He never gave up the dream of some day seeing a Southern nation. His life in that complicated world of change and defeat will forever be the source of much contention and evaluation.
It is the study of such an individual that gives us an understanding of who we are today. In current times, Nathan Bedford Forrest is the symbol of racism, white supremacy and terror; and also the symbol of heritage, history, and - one might say strangely - of hope. By understanding this man, we can understand better who we all are, how we came to be, and what we can do together to make the future better. If Forrest, the very flawed slave trading klansman, could come to a point in his life where he could say with sincerity to a black audience, "We live in the same country, we were born on the same soil, we breathe the same air - why can we not be brothers and sisters?" then we know we can all come to a better understanding of ourselves, not just as Americans but as human beings.
Controversial, legendary, heroic, wicked, genius, temperamental - just about any descriptive word fits some aspect of Nathan Bedford Forrest. He was one of the most effective, innovative and feared cavalrymen of the war, and at the same time one of the most difficult, insubordinate and unrelenting. There was none of the cavalier about Forrest, no swords and roses. A natural leader, he was strong willed, clear minded, extremely smart as well as tough, disciplined, ordered. A man of extremely limited education and no military experience, he kept the Union's attention with numerous successful raids and campaigns, some brilliantly executed - such as Brice's Crossroads, universally acknowledged to be his masterpiece. Forrest's personal life before the war and after the war is very complicated - he was a slave trader and a klansman, an alderman of Memphis and a constable, a gambler and a shootist, a dedicated family man and deeply loving husband, a dedicated warrior of the Confederacy who put his blood and treasure into that cause. It died and he accepted that, accepted that slavery was gone, and that the South he knew was no more. He never gave up the dream of some day seeing a Southern nation. His life in that complicated world of change and defeat will forever be the source of much contention and evaluation.
It is the study of such an individual that gives us an understanding of who we are today. In current times, Nathan Bedford Forrest is the symbol of racism, white supremacy and terror; and also the symbol of heritage, history, and - one might say strangely - of hope. By understanding this man, we can understand better who we all are, how we came to be, and what we can do together to make the future better. If Forrest, the very flawed slave trading klansman, could come to a point in his life where he could say with sincerity to a black audience, "We live in the same country, we were born on the same soil, we breathe the same air - why can we not be brothers and sisters?" then we know we can all come to a better understanding of ourselves, not just as Americans but as human beings.
This where the good, the bad and the downright ugly can be discussed! Whatever one may think of Forrest, at least all can agree he won't bore anyone...
