Before his death in 1870, Robert E. Lee penned a letter to Col. Charles
Marshall in which he argued that we must cast our eyes backward in times
of turmoil and change, concluding that "it is history that teaches us to
hope." Charles Pierce Roland, one of the nation's most distinguished and
respected historians, has done exactly that, devoting his career to
examining the South's tumultuous path in the years preceding and
following the Civil War. History Teaches Us to Hope: Reflections on the
Civil War and Southern History is an unprecedented compilation of works
by the man the volume editor John David Smith calls a "dogged
researcher, gifted stylist, and keen interpreter of historical
questions."Throughout his career, Roland has published groundbreaking
books, including The Confederacy (1960), The Improbable Era: The South
since World War II (1976), and An American Iliad: The Story of the Civil
War (1991). In addition, he has garnered acclaim for two biographical
studies of Civil War leaders: Albert Sidney Johnston (1964), a life of
the top field general in the Confederate army, and Reflections on Lee
(1995), a revisionist assessment of a great but frequently misunderstood
general. The first section of History Teaches Us to Hope, "The Man, The
Soldier, The Historian," offers personal reflections by Roland and
features his famous "GI Charlie" speech, "A Citizen Soldier Recalls
World War II." Civil War--related writings appear in the following two
sections, which include Roland's theories on the true causes of the war
and four previously unpublished articles on Civil War leadership. The
final section brings together Roland's writings on the evolution of
southern history and identity, outlining his views on the persistence of
a distinct southern culture and his belief in its durability. History
Teaches Us to Hope is essential reading for those who desire a complete
understanding of the Civil War and southern history. It offers a
fascinating portrait of an extraordinary historian.
