Overview
Robert E. Lee's name still echoes with great power through many American homes. Respected by his foes and admired by students of military history, Lee's Civil War achievements are well known. In "Icons of the Confederacy" HistoryAmerica TOURS will investigate General Lee's partnership with Confederate President Jefferson Davis and with his best-loved subordinate, General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson.
2008 marks the 200th anniversary of Davis’s birth, an appropriate time to focus on the iron-willed, disputatious, well-meaning president of the Confederate States of America. Several stops never before visited by HistoryAmerica will focus exclusively on Jefferson Davis.
Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, will be our base for this event. Most days will mix battlefield tours with visits to domestic sites associated with the icons. Our group will visit the churches of the three men, Lee's home, the capitol building where Jackson's body lay before thousands of mourners, and many other places that mark the short history of the Confederacy.
Historian Guide Robert E. Lee Krick is a young, energetic historian with the National Park Service. HistoryAmerica is always thrilled when this expert on the Confederacy shares his time and knowledge with our travelers. |
 Robert E. Lee Krick
A historian based at the Richmond National Battlefield, Richmond, Virginia, Bob Krick specializes in Confederate military history. He grew up on Robert E. Lee’s greatest battlefield, Chancellorsville, near Fredericksburg. He has written numerous scholarly articles, and his second book, Staff Officers in Grey, was published in 2003. |
Day by Day
Day 1, Monday, October 6 Gathering day at the Omni Hotel in Richmond, Virginia, and a welcome briefing and dinner hosted by Bobby Krick and HistoryAmerica.
Day 2, Tuesday, October 7 Your travels begin with a visit to Manassas where you will tour sites of the first and second battles. You will see where Jackson earned his memorable nickname “Stonewall” and where Davis rode in triumph among the victors of the war's first great battle. Second Manassas is one of Lee's most complete victories, and you will see his headquarters and key ground associated with Jackson's role in the battle.
Day 3, Wednesday, October 8 The morning will be spent in Richmond, touring sites connected with Lee, Jackson, and Davis. After lunch you will go to the Seven Days battlefields, where in the summer of 1862, Lee won his first victories and laid the foundation for his legendary career.
Day 4, Thursday, October 9 Today you will visit the battlefields of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. Fredericksburg stops will include Lee Hill and Prospect Hill. You will follow Jackson's flank march at Chancellorsville and see the spot where he was mortally wounded. After dinner in Old Town Fredericksburg, you will take a candlelight tour of the house where Jackson died.
Day 5, Friday, October 10 Another half day in Richmond will precede visits to battlefields at North Anna and Cold Harbor. Jackson was dead, but Lee continued to win battles without him, including a sweeping victory at Cold Harbor on Jefferson Davis's 56th birthday.
Day 6, Saturday, October 11 Today you will see still more places connected with the icons. You will stop at Drewry's Bluff, the “Gibraltar on the James,” so vital to the plans of Lee and Davis in 1862, and the powerful earthen defenses south of Richmond, including Fort Harrison. Lee so deplored the loss of that fort that he personally organized and supervised a failed counterattack. The farewell dinner will be held this evening.
Day 7, Sunday, October 12 After breakfast you may depart at your leisure. |
