Explore a late 19th-century Confederate memory through the voice of C. B. Denson.
This nonfiction volume gathers a Raleigh speech that honors Jefferson Davis, the Confederate cause, and the role of faith, loyalty, and motherhood in shaping regional memory. It offers a window into how memory was framed in the aftermath of the Civil War and how public rhetoric sought to keep the Confederate story alive.
In these pages, the speaker links religious faith, civic duty, and Confederate identity. The address frames Davis as a Christian leader, celebrates the endurance of the “gray” soldiers, and urges monuments and public memory to reflect a particular vision of the past. The text also highlights the contributions of Confederate women and the memory projects that sustained their cause in North Carolina and beyond. The tone is reverent, political, and reflective, focusing on loyalty to state and the nation-as-remembered.
What you will experience
- A firsthand look at how Confederate memory was presented to the public in 1900.
- Discussions of faith, leadership, and the alleged moral aims of the Confederate cause.
- References to historical figures, battles, and ceremonies that shaped regional identity.
- A portrait of public rhetoric that ties memory to monuments, education, and national narrative.
Ideal for readers of Civil War history, regional memory, and studies of postwar Confederate rhetoric, this edition is a resource for understanding how a major memory culture was constructed and sustained.