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The Draft Riots of 1863 - US Civil War

🕑 Added 2023-10-20 17:30:00 +0000 UTC

Comments

Jacob White

It's a tune that humanity has heard many times, even Shakespeare got in on the act with his "Macbeth", and "The Merchant Of Venice" and its clear anitsemitism.

The Rogue Chief

It’s amazing what people will allow themselves to fall into when they let frustration boil over into anger & scapegoat blaming

Jacob White

Agreed, as you'd have to cover not just the Union perspective, but the Confederate perspective, as well the Foreign and enslaved perspectives as well. Not to say there aren't plenty of episode deserving people, Robert Edward Lee, Tecumseh Sherman, Hugh Ulysses Simpson Grant, Abraham Lincoln, Harriet Tubman, just to name a few. Or even how the Civil War produced several future Presidents. Ulysses Grant, Commander In Chief of the Army Of The Potomac, (18th President). Rutherford B. Hayes, 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry (19th President). James A. Garfield, 42nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry (20th President). Benjamin Harrison, 70th Indiana Volunteer Infantry (23rd President) William McKinley, 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, commanded by Rutherford B. Hayes (25th President). Grover Cleveland isn't among these venerable gentlemen as he paid for a substitute.

Jacob White

New York City, 1863, the infamous draft riots as the Irish inhabitants thought that freed black slaves would "come north and steal our jobs" Sound familiar anyone?. In order to put down this riot, Secretary of War, Edwin M. Stanton bought in five regiments of Union troops, Veterans, or better described as "survivors" of the Battle Of Gettysburg. The Draft Riots descended into race riots, again, does this ring a bell to anyone? or is it just me?. Those five regiments of infantry and cavalry had only been at Gettysburg practically the week before being shot at by confederate troops. Now they faced rioting people who were armed, but not as well as the soldiers. So you can understand how troops who were tired, battle weary, and maybe even hungry from being rushed to put down the riots would have felt. Long story short, the Union troops brought artillery with them, it almost seemed like a replay of how Napoleon Bonaparte "cleansed the Paris streets with a whiff of grape shot". But there was FAR more to this then the fighting between 13th and 16th of July 1863, there was also political, racial, military, and monetary stresses involved. If anyone has seen the 2002 "Gangs Of New York" then you'll see part of the reasons why the Draft Riots happened.