The thin light of freedom : the Civil War and emancipation in the heart of America

Resource Information

The work The thin light of freedom : the Civil War and emancipation in the heart of America represents a distinct intellectual or artistic creation found in Manchester City Library. This resource is a combination of several types including: Work, Language Material, Books.

Label

The thin light of freedom : the Civil War and emancipation in the heart of America

Title remainder

the Civil War and emancipation in the heart of America

Statement of responsibility

Edward L. Ayers

Creator

• Ayers, Edward L., 1953-

Author

• Ayers, Edward L., 1953-

Subject

• Augusta County (Va.) -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
• Franklin (Venango County, Pa.) -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865
• Slaves -- Emancipation -- United States
• United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865

Language

eng

Summary

"A landmark Civil War history told from a fresh, deeply researched ground-level perspective? At the crux of America?s history stand two astounding events: the immediate and complete destruction of the most powerful system of slavery in the modern world, followed by a political reconstruction in which new constitutions established the fundamental rights of citizens for formerly enslaved people. Few people living in 1860 would have dared imagine either event, and yet, in retrospect, both seem to have been inevitable. In a beautifully crafted narrative, Edward L. Ayers restores the drama of the unexpected to the history of the Civil War. He does this by setting up at ground level in the Great Valley counties of Augusta, Virginia, and Franklin, Pennsylvania, communities that shared a prosperous landscape but were divided by the Mason-Dixon Line. From the same vantage point occupied by his unforgettable characters, Ayers captures the strategic savvy of Lee and his local lieutenants, and the clear vision of equal rights animating black troops from Pennsylvania. We see the war itself become a scourge to the Valley, its pitched battles punctuating a cycle of vicious attack and reprisal in which armies burned whole towns for retribution. In the weeks and months after emancipation, from the streets of Staunton, Virginia, we see black and white residents testing the limits of freedom as political leaders negotiate the terms of readmission to the Union. Ayers deftly shows throughout how the dynamics of political opposition drove these momentous events, transforming once unimaginable outcomes into fact. With analysis as powerful as its narrative, here is a landmark history of the Civil War."--Amazon.com

Cataloging source

YDX

Dewey number

973.7/3

Illustrations

• illustrations
• maps

Index

index present

LC call number

E470.2

LC item number

.A94 2017

Literary form

non fiction

Nature of contents

bibliography