Daniel Harvey Hill: Lee's Conscientious Commander

“The commander must have contact with his men, the soldier must have confidence in him. There is one cardinal principle which must always be remembered: one must never make a show of false emotions to his men. The ordinary soldier ha…

“The commander must have contact with his men, the soldier must have confidence in him. There is one cardinal principle which must always be remembered: one must never make a show of false emotions to his men. The ordinary soldier has a surprisingly good nose for what is true and false.” Hill was this kind of commander. He earned the respect and admiration of his students, his peers, and his men by being exemplary, without any of the show of a self-promoter having to appeal to title or rank, and Dr. Rumburg has ably reinforced these impressions in this excellent book. Daniel Harvey Hill: Lee’s Conscientious Commander comprises 14 chapters ranging in subjects from his ancestry, early life, education, and Christian faith, to his military and post-war career. Jefferson Davis writing to Joseph M. Hill said of Harvey Hill, ” I can say conscientiously and not in the set phrase of eulogy, that a more pure, vigilant and gallant soldier did not serve the Confederate cause.” Beauvoir House, Oct. 31, 1889