"Seeing the Elephant": Raw Recruits at the Battle of Shiloh

by Joseph Allan Frank, George A. Reaves

One of the bloodiest battles in the Civil War, the two-day engagement near Shiloh, Tennessee, in April 1862 left more than 23,000 casualties. Fighting alongside seasoned veterans were more than 160 newly recruited regiments and other soldiers who had yet to encounter serious action. In the phrase of the time, these men came to Shiloh to “see the elephant.”
Drawing on the letters, diaries, and other reminiscences of these raw recruits on both sides of the conflict, “Seeing the Elephant” gives a vivid and valuable primary account of the terrible struggle.
From the wide range of voices included in this volume emerges a nuanced picture of the psychology and motivations of the novice soldiers and the ways in which their attitudes toward the war were affected by their experiences at Shiloh.
 

Genres: Civil War, American History

232 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Sean Chick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of the many books written about the experiences of soldiers in the American Civil War, I rate this one above the rest. It is well written, argued, balanced, and unafraid to make points that are against the grain. As of late, Civil War soldiers are viewed in a much more ideological lens, but Frank and Reaves point out that over time ideology and abstractions faded away in the letters. Furthermore, the relationship the soldiers had to each other, their officers, democratic government, and the question of slavery is far more complicated than one might assume. If I were still teaching college, I would assign this book.

[Bfisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shiloh was one of the deadliest battles of the American Civil War. Over two days of fighting, about 100,000 combatants suffered 23,000 casualties. Moreover, most of the troops who fought at Shiloh were raw recruits who had not seen combat before. Before Shiloh, most Americans believed it would be a short glorious war; Shiloh shattered that illusion.

In the American Civil War era, “seeing the elephant” was used frequently to mean going on a life-changing adventure, often involving great discomfort or danger, in the case of Civil War soldiers, anticipating fighting in a battle. For one Ohio soldier moving further South, “...the further we get...the larger the elephant gets”. Ambrose Bierce, approaching the battle, described “a dull distant sound like the heavy breathing of some giant animal below the horizon”

It was surprising how many soldiers maintained contact with their home - Union soldiers had free mailing privileges, which accounts for the large amount of surviving material available.
This book is a study of the correspondence and diaries of green troops who saw the elephant at Shiloh. It is a window into their motivations for enlisting initially, staying in the armies, and going into battle at Shiloh. Some of these persons are well-known, like Bierce and the ever-present Sam Watkins of Company Aitch, First Tennessee; others are obscure.

For anyone interested in the American Civil War, it offers some interesting insights. For example, the correspondence indicates that many soldiers were reluctant to change their terms of enlistment from 90 days to three years. They were convinced that there would be a short war decided by a great battle. They were willing to fight that battle, but feared being sent to a frontier garrison at the end of the war to complete the term of enlistment. In many cases, troops approached the battle without ammunition, or received no resupply beyond the basic 40 rounds they carried into battle, which would have lasted them for about 30 minutes of fighting.

[Robert Oakley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good account of the impact that the Battle of Shiloh had on both sides. Very few of the soldiers had any prior combat experience, and as a result, most went into battle with highly romanticized expectations. The large number of casualties changed these attitudes. But it did not cause the soldiers to abandon their determination to keep fighting.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book. It recounts the battle of Shiloh starting from the days leading up to it and days thatr followed through the eyes of the soldiers whose first experience in battle occurred there. The book gives a lot of detail as to how the soldiers felt about the war and why they decided to join the army(sense of duty to protect their country, defend/ against slavery). The story gives a good sense of what the troops thought of the war and what the battle would be like. The soldiers having never experienced battle before believed it would be pretty straight forward just like they were drilled in camp. However, as the battle started it showed that the strick command structure that they were used to became every regiment fight for themselves.
After the book finishes talking about the battle it then looks at how those troops viewed the battle as well as the war itself. The views held by both union and confederate showed that they were shocked at the carnage that the battle created. However, the soldiers were not fazed and essentially accepted what happend and would continue to serve until either their enlistment ran out or the war ended.
The one main issue I had with the book was the limited use of Confederate material on certain issues throughout the book. The book uses numerous sources for the Union soldiers in particular those from Ohio. Confederate material may of been lacking regarding certain issues, which I think takes away from creating a complete picture.
I think the overall scope of the book is well written and I did feel like I got a good view of what "raw" recruits from both sides felt and experienced. I would recommend this book to others who are familiar with the battle of Shiloh or atleast have a basic understanding of the battle and what Civil War combat was like.

[Candace Simar · Rating 5 out of 5]

great reference book about the Battle of Shiloh