Joshua L. Chamberlain: A Life in Letters

Edited by Thomas Desjardin

An icon of the Civil War, Joshua L. Chamberlain lived a life of perseverance, tragedy, and triumph.  From the battle of Fredericksburg to the Confederacy's formal surrender at Appomattox, Chamberlain participated in many landmark events of the War Between the States.  A volunteer in the Union Army, his rise in rank to brigadier general and Medal of Honor recipient remains one of the most inspiring stories in American military history.  He was also a great chronicler of the conflict, an eloquent and contemplative writer, though much of his most personal correspondence has remained unpublished, until now.

This new volume brings together three hundred never-before-seen letters, from Chemberlain's college years in 1852 to his death in 1914.  Arranged chronologically, the book sheds light on both his courtship of his wife Fannie -- as well as romances with other women -- and his time on the battlefields of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, offering readers a rare glimpse at the man behind the myth, at the hopes, fears, and lifelong loves that shaped him into the icon he was destined to become.

Historian and acclaimed author Thomas Desjardin, author of Stand Firm Ye Boys From Maine, puts Chamberlain's words in contemporary and historical context and uses this extraordinary collection of letters to reveal -- for the first time -- the full and remarkable life of Joshua Chamberlain.

-From the jacket.

Hardcover.