
Commentary


Published: 5/28/25
Enemies No More
Reflections on the 1913 Battle of Gettysburg reunion that attracted over 50,000 Union and Confederate veterans.
Published: 5/5/25
Smoothbore vs. Rifled Muskets
A look at the military philosophy of Colonel George Willard, whose advocacy for the use of the smoothbore (not rifled) musket in battle flew in the face of contemporary thinking.
Published: 3/18/25
First Steps to Greatness
Reflections on the Monitor's Spring 2025 cover story on Ulysses S. Grant
Published: 3/18/25
Spring 2025 | Dispatches
Letters to the editor published in the Spring 2025 issue
Published: 12/5/24
Rebel Hopes Renewed
Contrary to conventional wisdom, Confederate hopes for victory were far from dashed in the early months of 1864.
Published: 10/7/24
All About Us
Historian Gary W. Gallagher weighs in on the ongoing debate over the terminology used to discuss the American Civil War.
Published: 10/2/24
Silent Rebel
Reflections on the cover story—"Rebel Revival" by William Marvel—of The Civil War Monitor's Fall 2024 issue.
Published: 10/2/24
Fall 2024 | Dispatches
Letters to the editor published in the Fall 2024 issue of The Civil War Monitor.
Published: 8/8/24
The Teenagers’ War
A consideration of the vast number of underage soldiers who served in the Union and Confederate armies.
Published: 8/2/24
Summer 2024 | Dispatches
Letters to the editor published in the Summer 2024 issue.
Published: 3/18/24
The Power of a New Year
New Year reflections inspired by an 1862 letter written by Union officer William Thomson Lusk.
Published: 3/18/24
Spring 2024 | Dispatches
Reader feedback published in the Spring 2024 issue of The Civil War Monitor.
Published: 7/10/23
Changing Times—And Names—at U.S. Military Bases
Uncover the story behind U.S. base military base names and their relevance in the context of contemporary values and policies.
Published: 6/14/19
Extra Dossier: J.E.B. Stuart
Library of Congress Major General J.E.B. Stuart We recently asked a panel of Civil War historians a series of questions about Major General James Ewell Brown “J.E.B.” Stuart—a way of...
Published: 5/9/14
An Interview with Nicholas Marshall
Our conversation with Nicholas Marshall, an associate professor of history at Marist College and recent author of “The Great Exaggeration: Death and the Civil War,” featured in the March issue...
Published: 3/15/12
How I tried and failed to escape the Civil War
My interest in the Civil War should have been a wonderful accident of birth and geography. I was born, raised, studied, and worked around key sites in that event’s...
Published: 10/25/11
Respect My Heritage; You Can Stick Yours
Several news stories appeared in the media recently updating recent developments in a neighborhood dispute in South Carolina that’s been brewing for about year now. The brief recap is that...
Published: 10/13/11
Bolting On the Civil War Navy
Several months back, my friend Matthew Eng, coordinator at the Hampton Roads Navy Museum, asked me why the naval aspects of the Civil War tend to stand off from the...