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Presentation to the
at the Fort Myer Officers' Club in Arlington, VA
on December 10, 2019
The images used during his presentation are available by clicking HERE or at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uQN0785oKYEcZSS7SqtipebmyriErmnK/view
The images used during his presentation are available by clicking HERE or at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uQN0785oKYEcZSS7SqtipebmyriErmnK/view
The sculptor who designed the Confederate Monument on the Shiloh Battlefield wanted to explain why the Confederate army lost the engagement. The central feature of the monument is a sculpture of a trio of women called “Defeated Victory.” The figure in the middle, representing the Confederacy is surrendering the laurel of victory to two hooded women depicting "night" (which brought Union reinforcements) and "death" (which came to take the Confederate army commander Albert Sidney Johnston only about nine hours after the battle began), offering the view that these were the two reasons why the Confederates were defeated.
General Johnston had a resume second only to Winfield Scott among active soldiers in the United States Army at the time the war broke out. But as the Confederacy’s ranking field general, Johnston made mistakes resulting in the loss of 12,000 veteran soldiers captured at Fort Donelson in February 1862. The subsequent evacuation of most of western Tennessee had many Southerners clamoring for his removal. But Confederate President Jefferson Davis stuck by the man he had known so well, based in part on their time together as West Point cadets.
General Johnston’s plan for the battle of Shiloh was riddled with obstacles and, on the very eve of battle, his key subordinates advised him to abort the campaign. Nevertheless, Johnston insisted that the army would attack at daylight, and he directed the battle from the front. After achieving a substantial degree of success, and just as the famous “Hornets’ Nest” Union position began to collapse, Johnston fell from a serious wound. Subsequent Confederate attacks made by his successor G.T. Beauregard against Union General Grant’s final line were not successful.
General Johnston’s fall before the battle ended left the Confederate people and Civil War historians to ponder whether Johnston’s reputation as the top Confederate soldier was deserved. What decisions would Johnston have made compared with the choices of Beauregard for the remainder of the battle of Shiloh? Would Johnston have performed better during other battles than did Beauregard, Bragg, J.E. Johnston, and Hood? The symbolism in the Confederate monument laments the judgments made by Beauregard and the Confederate loss at Shiloh.
About the Speaker:
Greg Mertz was born and raised near St. Louis, Missouri. His interest in the Civil War and in parks was sparked by annual hiking and camping trips his Boy Scout troop made to the Shiloh battlefield every spring. He held several leadership roles in the Boy Scouts and attained the rank of Eagle Scout.
Since Greg already enjoyed learning about history, he decided to study more formally about park management and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation and Park Administration from the University of Missouri. He was able to land his first seasonal position with the National Park Service in the wake of the many new positions that opened at Gettysburg National Military Park when the Eisenhower National Historic Site was added as a new National Park unit. Within a year, Greg was a permanent employee at the Eisenhower home.
While stationed in Gettysburg, Greg took classes at night and earned a Master of Science degree in Public Administration from Shippensburg University. He has worked in a variety of positions at Fredericksburg for the past 35 years, and he currently selects, trains and evaluates the employees and volunteers who staff the park’s visitor centers and historic buildings and who conduct walking tours.
Greg has written a book titled, Attack at Daylight and Whip Them: The Battle of Shiloh, April 6-7, 1862, in the Emerging Civil War Series. He has also written an essay “Defeated Victory: Albert Sidney Johnston’s Death at Shiloh” for the book Turning Points of the American Civil War. Greg has written articles for periodicals as well, including four features in Blue and Gray Magazine.
In addition to his work and presentations, Greg has served as the initial President of the Rappahannock Valley Civil War Round Table and a Vice President of the Brandy Station Foundation.
And thankfully for our local CW organizations, he often volunteers to offer presentations and and attends many of our events. For his most recent talk to our Round Table, click HERE or visit http://cwrtdc-audio.blogspot.com/p/mertz-audio.html
General Johnston’s plan for the battle of Shiloh was riddled with obstacles and, on the very eve of battle, his key subordinates advised him to abort the campaign. Nevertheless, Johnston insisted that the army would attack at daylight, and he directed the battle from the front. After achieving a substantial degree of success, and just as the famous “Hornets’ Nest” Union position began to collapse, Johnston fell from a serious wound. Subsequent Confederate attacks made by his successor G.T. Beauregard against Union General Grant’s final line were not successful.
General Johnston’s fall before the battle ended left the Confederate people and Civil War historians to ponder whether Johnston’s reputation as the top Confederate soldier was deserved. What decisions would Johnston have made compared with the choices of Beauregard for the remainder of the battle of Shiloh? Would Johnston have performed better during other battles than did Beauregard, Bragg, J.E. Johnston, and Hood? The symbolism in the Confederate monument laments the judgments made by Beauregard and the Confederate loss at Shiloh.
About the Speaker:
Greg Mertz was born and raised near St. Louis, Missouri. His interest in the Civil War and in parks was sparked by annual hiking and camping trips his Boy Scout troop made to the Shiloh battlefield every spring. He held several leadership roles in the Boy Scouts and attained the rank of Eagle Scout.
Since Greg already enjoyed learning about history, he decided to study more formally about park management and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Recreation and Park Administration from the University of Missouri. He was able to land his first seasonal position with the National Park Service in the wake of the many new positions that opened at Gettysburg National Military Park when the Eisenhower National Historic Site was added as a new National Park unit. Within a year, Greg was a permanent employee at the Eisenhower home.
While stationed in Gettysburg, Greg took classes at night and earned a Master of Science degree in Public Administration from Shippensburg University. He has worked in a variety of positions at Fredericksburg for the past 35 years, and he currently selects, trains and evaluates the employees and volunteers who staff the park’s visitor centers and historic buildings and who conduct walking tours.
Greg has written a book titled, Attack at Daylight and Whip Them: The Battle of Shiloh, April 6-7, 1862, in the Emerging Civil War Series. He has also written an essay “Defeated Victory: Albert Sidney Johnston’s Death at Shiloh” for the book Turning Points of the American Civil War. Greg has written articles for periodicals as well, including four features in Blue and Gray Magazine.
In addition to his work and presentations, Greg has served as the initial President of the Rappahannock Valley Civil War Round Table and a Vice President of the Brandy Station Foundation.
And thankfully for our local CW organizations, he often volunteers to offer presentations and and attends many of our events. For his most recent talk to our Round Table, click HERE or visit http://cwrtdc-audio.blogspot.com/p/mertz-audio.html
For information about the Round Table and to apply for membership, see the Tab above marked "About Us/ Membership Information" or click HERE
