Gentlemen and the Roughs

Gentlemen and the Roughs Synopsis

Finalist for the 2011 GilderLehrman Lincoln Prize"e;A seminal work. . . . One ofthe best examples of new, sophisticated scholarship on the social history ofCivil War soldiers."e;-The Journal of Southern History"e;Will undoubtedly, and properly, beread as the latest word on the role of manhood in the internal dynamics of theUnion army."e;-Journal of the Civil War EraDuring the Civil War, the Unionarmy appeared cohesive enough to withstand four years of grueling war againstthe Confederates and to claim victory in 1865. But fractiousness bubbled belowthe surface of the North's presumably united front. Internal fissures were rifewithin the Union army: class divisions, regional antagonisms, ideologicaldifferences, and conflicting personalities all distracted the army fromquelling the Southern rebellion. In this highly originalcontribution to Civil War and gender history, Lorien Foote reveals that these internalbattles were fought against the backdrop of manhood. Clashing ideals ofmanliness produced myriad conflicts, as when educated, refined, and wealthyofficers ("e;gentlemen"e;) found themselves commanding a hard-drinking group offighters ("e;roughs"e;)-a dynamic that often resulted in violence and even death. Basedon extensive research into heretofore ignored primary sources, The Gentlemen and the Roughs uncoversholes in our understanding of the men who fought the Civil War and the societythat produced them.