Earlier today, in observance of Tennessee's Confederate Decor-ation Day (June 3rd, Jefferson Davis' birthday), I attended the annual commemoration by the United Daughters of the Confederacy at McGavock Confederate Cemetery on the grounds of Carnton Plantation in Franklin, TN, in . Kraig McNutt has a nice write up of the service on his blog. You can even see me in the 2nd picture in the article, standing just left of center, in the blue plaid shirt with the yellow t-shirt underneath. Included in the service was the reading of a poem, We All Drank From The Same Canteen. Another nice blog entry about the service can be found at the McGavock Confederate Confederate Cemetery At Carnton blog.
Being a transplanted Iowa Yankee, this was the first event of this kind that I have attended. Though I must say, I found it a bit odd to recite The Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag, and then immediately thereafter to recite a pledge to the Confederate flag. There is, however, something so very poignant about Amazing Grace played on bagpipes in a cemetery followed by Taps. It's hard, if not impossible, not to be moved by such ceremonies, no matter the color of the uniform.
After the service Carnton historian, Eric Jacobson, led a brief ceremony to dedicate a bronze marker honoring Maj. Gen. William W. Loring and his division of Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana troops and their role in The Battle of Franklin.
Being a transplanted Iowa Yankee, this was the first event of this kind that I have attended. Though I must say, I found it a bit odd to recite The Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag, and then immediately thereafter to recite a pledge to the Confederate flag. There is, however, something so very poignant about Amazing Grace played on bagpipes in a cemetery followed by Taps. It's hard, if not impossible, not to be moved by such ceremonies, no matter the color of the uniform.
After the service Carnton historian, Eric Jacobson, led a brief ceremony to dedicate a bronze marker honoring Maj. Gen. William W. Loring and his division of Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana troops and their role in The Battle of Franklin.
No comments:
Post a Comment