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CONFEDERATE
HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION OF BELGIUM |
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Due
to the renovation works at the Communal
Museum, the CHAB Club House has moved into
temporary premises at Wolubilis, Woluwe-Saint-Lambert.
Our monthly meetings will thus be held there until
further notice. New Address: 1 place du
Temps Libre - Local A300 - 3rd floor (right when
leaving the elevator).
The building is located along the Cours Paul-Henri
Spaak, just opposite the Woluwe Shopping Center.
The entrance is on the ground floor, left of
the bookstore/restaurant Cook & Book.
See access map |
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NEXT MEETINGS |
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Saturday 11 February 2023 at 3 PM |
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BURNSIDE'S
NORTH CAROLINA EXPEDITION
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At our temporary
premises in Wolubilis, lecture by Gerald
Hawkins: Burnside’s North
Carolina expedition of 1862. At
the start of the Civil War, the American navy
seized Hatteras Inlet, a channel allowing the
passage through the Outer Banks of North
Carolina – a string of islands facing the
Atlantic Ocean – to deprive the State of
sanctuaries for blockade runners and southern
privateers. A larger expedition followed in
February 1862, led by General Ambrose Burnside.
With the support of some twenty gunboats, Union
troops entered the North Carolina sounds through
Hatteras Inlet and invaded the weakly defended
Roanoke Island. Events followed swiftly. The
Confederate Mosquito Fleet was cut to pieces at
Elizabeth City, then New Bern fell after a
pitched battle. The cities bordering the sounds
suffered the same fate. Finally, after a brief
siege, Fort Macon surrendered. In less than five
months, General Burnside had taken control of
eastern North Carolina, which would remain in
Union hands until the end of the war.
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Saturday 11 March 2023 at 3 PM |
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GUSTAVE
CLUSERET, A FRENCH MERCENARY ON THE UNION PAYROLL
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At our temporary
premises in Wolubilis, lecture by Farid
Ameur: Gustave Cluseret
(1823-1900), a French mercenary on the Union
payroll. Since the spring of 1861,
French individuals, seeking adventure or seduced
by an ideological cause to defend, did not
hesitate to cross the Atlantic Ocean to offer
their sword to one of the belligerents. Among
them was Gustave Cluseret, an experienced
soldier of fortune, full of panache and brave to
the point of recklessness. Veteran of the
Algerian and Crimean campaigns, and of the war
in Italy, this close friend of the Republican
Party with a tough character, intended to become
the new Lafayette in the United States and cover
himself with glory to satisfy his ambition. But
his dream did not come true. During the
conflict, despite his undeniable qualities and
courage on the battlefield, he led a
controversial career as an officer to the point
of attracting the wrath of the main political
leaders. He was considered an intriguer and a
born conspirator, who constantly tried to take
advantage of events and manipulate his
interlocutors – a colorful and fascinating
character, in line with the popular mercenary
tradition of the 19th century.
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Saturday 8 April 2023 at 3 PM |
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THE
KNOXVILLE CAMPAIGN or THE SETBACK OF JAMES LONGSTREET
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At our temporary
premises in Wolubilis, lecture by
Jean-Claude Janssens: The
Knoxville campaign or the setback of James
Longstreet (September 3 - December 4, 1863).
Already in April 1863, General Pete
Longstreet had failed to capture Suffolk in
Virginia. After the Pennsylvania campaign of
1863, Longstreet and part of the 1st Corps of
the Army of Northern Virginia were rushed to
Tennessee, where the situation was becoming
precarious for the Confederates. They participated
at the Battle of Chickamauga and at the
beginning of the siege of Chattanooga. On
November 17, 1863, they besieged Knoxville in East
Tennessee, which had been in Union hands since
September 3. The siege was poorly conducted and
on November 29, culminated in a resounding
setback at Fort Sanders. On December 4,
Longstreet had to retire. He held on with
difficulty in Tennessee during the winter of
1863-64 and did not reach Virginia until the
spring of 1864. An excellent tactician,
Longstreet did not, however, shine at the head
of independent commands. Siege warfare was
clearly not his specialty.
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CHAB NEWS END OF PUBLICATION NOTICE |
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The CHAB committee
wishes to inform its foreign and American
friends that due to severe budget constraints,
the English version of the CHAB News is
no longer published. However, the French
version of our quarterly remains available to
the contributing members of our
association. Thank you for your understanding.
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BY THE MILKY
WAY |
GOLDEN SKY |
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The year of 1862 had been amazing for General
Lee. He had been commanding the Confederate Army
for only seven months, and yet incredibly,
during that time his outnumbered armies had won
victories at Port Republic, Cross Keys,
Mechanicsville, Gaines’s Mill, Savage Station,
Frayser’s Farm, Malvern Hill, Cedar Mountain,
Second Manassas, Boonsboro, Harpers Ferry,
fought a draw at Sharpsburg, and now the great
win at Fredericksburg. Southern forces had
fought thirteen battles, large and small, and
held the field in every instance except
Boonsboro, and Sharpsburg. As the winter winds
of December and January brought snow and
freezing temperatures, morale in the ranks of
the Army of Northern Virginia was high. New
Year’s Day found General Stuart and his cavalry
back in camp after his successful Christmas
raid, with six hundred prisoners and bountiful
plunder from federal camps. General Lee had
great admiration for Stuart in his abilities as
a battlefield commander. General Stuart’s easy
going, and happy disposition contrasted with
Lee’s more stoical and serious inclination. But
this difference in personality seemed to
complement each other, and the two leaders had
become good friends. Lee would often worry when
his friend was in harm’s way, because of
Stuart’s reckless courage and bravery which
needlessly exposed himself to danger. Perhaps
from Stuart’s example, General Lee decided to
set an example of good cheer that winter.
Whether General Lee was inspecting his troops,
visiting his brigadiers, entertaining
dignitaries, or in council with his commanders,
Lee tried to keep the spirits high of his
lieutenants and soldiers during winter quarters.
Stuart would often accompany Lee, on his rounds,
as the two conversed over strategy and plans on
how best to counter the next move of Lincoln’s
armies.
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© All copyrights reserved
by John Paul Strain Historical Art
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A distant crack of a Federal sharp-shooter’s
rifle was instantly heard, as the bullet
whistled past Generals Robert E. Lee and
Stonewall Jackson, barely missing them. The two
commanders made a dash to some nearby woods. It
had been a close call, one that easily could
have changed the whole course of the war. But
this was the risk these brave leaders often
faced leading their armies in battle. Lee and
Jackson had been scouting the ground southeast
of the Plank road on a small pathway leading to
Catherine’s Furnace. In the early morning of
April 27, the Army of the Potomac under the
command of General Joseph Hooker had begun an
offensive towards the Confederate left, by
crossing the Rappahannock River on pontoons. On
the 29th, General Stuart dispatched a telegram
to Lee reporting that his men had engaged the
enemy at Maddens, nine miles from Culpeper.
They had captured Federal troops from the V, XI,
and XII Corps of the Army of the Potomac. The
dispatch also informed Lee that large columns of
federal troops were headed for Germanna and
Ely’s Ford on the Rapidan River. With this vital
information Lee was able to determine General
Hooker’s plan was to turn the Confederate left
flank. General Lee ordered Stuart to rejoin the
main body of the army post haste. On the 30th, a
courier arrived from General Anderson at
Chancellorsville, informing Lee the federal
force had crossed the Rapidan and was heading
his way. Anderson requested reinforcements, and
Lee ordered Anderson and his four brigades to
dig in. Hooker’s advance was tentative. When
confronted by southern brigades, the Federals
would stop, retreat and regroup before advancing
again. General Lee felt there was something
suspicious about the situation, as numerically,
General Hooker’s army was far superior than his.
In the late evening of May 1st, he met up with
Jackson near the Plank road to get a better feel
of things. After retreating from the sniper into
the woods, Lee and Jackson dismounted and began
discussing how best to deal with the invading
federal force. They were soon joined by General
Stuart in this night conference. Lee had already
left part of his army at Fredericksburg to
counter any federal moves there. His new plan
was to divide his army again sending General
Jackson’s Corps on a flanking maneuver at 4am
and attack the unsuspecting Federal XI Corps in
their camps. The plan the commanders came up
with would lead to one of the greatest victories
for the Confederacy, and one of the costliest.
General Jackson would be mortally wounded.
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© All copyrights reserved
by John Paul Strain Historical Art
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For
information or online orders: |
www.johnpaulstrain.com |
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