Complex Numbers

Uncivil

I do like the occasional "well, actually..." piece, so here's one from Mental Floss:

    7 Misconceptions About the Civil War  

By "Civil War" they mean the American one in the 19th century, not the one we're in now, not another country's war, and not the Captain America sequel.

I should note that I didn't fact-check this, but I did go to some of the links and it looks like they did their due diligence. Just don't blame me for any continued inaccuracies on their part.

The American Civil War is a pivotal and ugly moment in American history, but it's more misunderstood than you would think.

I wouldn't think. Given the near-deific significance it's accorded by Americans, northern and southern alike, I'd expect people to get its history right. But as is often the case, I overestimate people—or, at least, ACW fanatics.

1. Misconception: Lincoln’s policies enjoyed widespread support in the North.

I find that, in hindsight, an event in history is usually more clear-cut than it was at the time. I wouldn't expect that everyone in the North supported Lincoln, or that everyone in the South wanted to secede. It's kind of like "the colonies wanted to break away from oppressive England" without considering how many colonists wanted to keep saying "pip-pip-toodleoo."

Take a look at the article for some well-sourced examples.

2. Misconception: Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis were staunch secessionists.

I've known this was wrong for a long time (again, details in the link), but pointing it out now seems to be a failure to read the room.

3. Misconception: The Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery

When President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, it declared: “[All] persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”

Well, clearly not, as slavery still exists. Even after the 13th Amendment (which the article covers).

4. Misconception: All amputations were done without anesthesia.

Sure, but it makes for a more compelling movie to ignore that.

5. Misconception: Only men fought during the Civil War

Pretty sure that if you look at wars throughout history, there were almost always women finding a way to join in the fun.

6. Misconception: Abraham Lincoln was the keynote speaker on the day of the Gettysburg Address.

Honestly, this one's pretty interesting. Not surprising to me, but has details I wasn't aware of.

One thing that you might not know about the address is that Lincoln wasn’t pegged to be the main speaker on that day. That honor belonged to Edward Everett, a distinguished scholar and orator who took the stage before the president.

Everett’s speech would go on for around two hours, totaling upwards of 13,000 words...

After Everett finished his speech, the president shook his hand and told him, “I am more than gratified, I am grateful to you.” Then the Thunder-Stealer-in-Chief rang out with “Four score and seven years ago ...” and made Everett’s magnum opus a historical footnote in under 180 seconds.

The original Rap Battle.

7. Misconception: The war was fought entirely in the U.S.

Well, duh, because technically, the CSA wasn't part of the US; hence the war.

But no, this part's mostly about naval battles.

I'd also add misconception #8: Everyone knows the war is over.