Battle of Gettysburg

The confederacy is doing very well under the commands of Robert E. Lee. They are leading our unit of about 71,699 strong. In total we have had 23,231 casualties in total (4,708 killed 12,693 wounded 5,830 captured/missing). We are using some very efficient and dangerous weapons, including; railroad artillery, land mines, ironclad ships, and new battle muskets. I hope that you can come up with ways to compete with our superior weaponry. Just to give you a heads up for when we meet in battle, we are the ones wearing Linen battle shirts with black silk trimmings. Just so you know what to look for when you are looking for us.

We have some good food at our base, it often consisting of meat, coffee, sugar and hardtack - a type of dried biscuit. The meat is often salted or dried so it would last a bit longer. Fruits and vegetables are rarities on the battlefield, but we can come without them. Real men only eat red meat and biscuits. Because the soldiers were often in the field, they needed to carry food with them. That’s why we give them a special bag; called a haversack, which is made of canvas with an inner cloth bag that could be washed to get food debris cleaned out once in a while. But even with this amazing design, the bags are often quite contaminated and foul smelling, but who cares.


Cleanliness is typically not high on the Civil War soldiers’ priority list, and that is what real men believe. We are not like the union soldiers that you command, we are not sissy girls running around in skirts, we are men. Here on the confederate side of the battlefield we sleep on rugs and homemade pillows and sometimes even the ground. Our soldier is a young man in his early 20s, unshaven, unkempt, gaunt, but tough from months of difficult living.

Our soldiers carry a flint-lock rifle or a musket, also known as Confederate Spring fields. He kept his ammunition in a cartridge box attached to the right of his belt. He also carried a small rolled-up blanket, a haversack, a cloth-covered canteen, a tin cup, and a small frying pan. As the war went on, more and more Rebels carried Enfield rifles which they had taken from dead Union soldiers. Once a Confederate had acquired such a rifle, he would wear its bayonet in a scabbard attached to the right of his belt.

I don’t agree and disagree with the cause of this war since it was never planned. It occurred simply by circumstance. The only reason id don’t agree with it is because it took many lives that did not have to be taken. Our two sides were just very violent. We would destroy any part of our enemy, if it were a woman, or a dog, we would kill anything that bellowed to the opposing side.

I would not want to change sides though; I would never want to fight for the union. They are fighting for the freedom of the slaves, but if the slaves get freedom, they are still not entirely free. They can earn money but they also have to pay rent and pay for their own food. They are also living the same lives they were living when they were slaves since they cannot get a better job. They cannot get a better job since most of them are illiterate and don’t know anything else besides the job they did when they were a slave. I want them to be free but if they are given their freedom they won’t have such an “upgrade” in their living conditions. Mr. Gaurav I would like to hear from you soon, but until we meet again,

My best,

Robbert van Doorn