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After crossing the
Rappahannock River and taking possession
of the small town of Fredericksburg in
December of 1862, the Federal Army of the
Potomac set its sights on taking the
surrounding high ground where the
Confederate Army of Northern Virginia had
withdrawn. General Robert E. Lee, being
the tactical genius that he was,
anticipated this and intentionally backed
up through the city and fortified his army
behind cover and on high ground. It was
simple battlefield science, but it was
absolutely brilliant at the time.
Topography wins battles. Gettysburg was
won by the North because of the high
ground and Fredericksburg was exactly the
same. The philosophy: "Dig in and let
those fools come to you."
The most impenetrable of
these positions was a long stone wall at
the base of a sloping hill known as
"Marye's Heights." After several
unsuccessful charges, the fighting ceased
for the day, leaving the field littered
with thousands of bloody Union bodies.
Father Corby's boys of the Irish Brigade
were among them.
Simply put, the Rebel army
slaughtered the Yankees. One of the
artillery officers stated that a "chicken
couldn't live on that field," and I
believe it was Lee's 'Old War Horse,'
General Longstreet who said "give me
plenty of ammo and I'll kill them
all."
Wave - after wave - after
wave of bluecoats marched across an open
field to their deaths. It was senseless,
and stupid, and an absolute trainwreck for
Union General Ambrose Burnsides. It
ultimately cost him his job. The guy had
been successful down along the North
Carolina Coast, but as soon as he was
handed the keys to the whole Union army it
was a disaster waiting to happen.
Fredericksburg became that disaster. To
this very day, it has tarnished the legacy
of Burnsides much like 'Pickett's Charge'
has altered our memory of poor George
Pickett.
Now imagine the stones
that it took to make that charge. You're
talking about men with a sense of duty
that we can't even fathom. They knew it
was suicide, and they still did it. If you
stop for a minute and think about it,
that's what every battle in this war came
down to: two groups of guys, lining up in
a field and tearing each other to pieces.
Last one standing won the day. Imagine
four years of that. Four years of killing
everyone in front of you. That's the Civil
War folks.
Throughout the night,
screams and cries of the wounded
penetrated the peaceful silence of the
cease-fire. One soldier, Richard Rowland
Kirkland, an infantry sergeant with the
2nd South Carolina Volunteers, struggled
to rest amidst the horrid sounds of
suffering that echoed across the
battlefield.
One Confederate soldier
stationed at the stonewall later wrote
that, "Weird, unearthly, terrible to hear
and bear, the cries of the dying soldiers
filling the air -lying crippled on a
hillside so many miles from home-breaking
the hearts of soldiers on both sides of
the battlefield." Imagine hearing that for
hours upon hours. By the next morning, he
could take it no longer and requested
permission to aid the enemy. Originally he
was denied, but he kept pressing it again
and again.
With total disregard for
his life, Kirkland grabbed several
canteens and leaped over the
fortification. Going back and forth over
the wall for an hour and a half, Kirkland
only returned to the safety of his own
lines after he had done all he could do.
Union sharpshooters sited Kirkland, but
realized what he was doing and lowered
their guns. Periodically cheers went out
from both sides.
Most of the guys that he
tended to probably died. There was no
medical aid in this no-man's land between
the two armies. But what is so magnificent
about this is the fact that is stopped the
war. It suspended all actions and both
sides stopped to allow Kirkland to conduct
this mission of mercy. All of the politics
and military conflict was suspended so
that this scruffy rebel could give comfort
to the dying.
One man stopped the war.
One man.
This was before the Geneva
Convention and a Rules of Engagement
standard. It was simply a guy with
compassion in his heart and a willingness
to help his fellow man. No matter who that
was. Now honestly, I'm not exactly sure of
how religious Kirkland was. I haven't gone
back and investigated it, but whatever his
piety was, on that day he was certainly a
Christian. These guys were trying to kill
him and his comrades just a few hours
before. I don't think that I would have
jumped over that wall to help the enemy.
And that's not very Christian is
it?
Because that is what being
a disciple of Jesus Christ is all about.
It's what separates true believers and
true religions from the false ones. I mean
how many Atheist or Muslim, or
Scientologist organizations operate
missions and orphanages in some of the
worst and most violent and impoverished
parts of the world while giving aid to
those in need? Not many I assume. I'm not
aware of any "Atheist Foundation" going
down to rebuild homes in New Orleans after
Katrina. Their doctrine is about serving
themselves, while ours is about serving
others.
You know the saying, "We
are to become smaller and He is to become
bigger."
Kirkland rose above
everyone and everything on that day. He
rose above the war effort, the politics
that caused it, and the social differences
that fueled it. He risked his life to
serve others. He left the safety and
security of that stone wall to walk among
the dead and dying. That is real mercy and
a sign of discipleship that everyone who
witnessed took with them.
Unfortunately Kirkland did
not survive the war. However in 1965, a
monument was sculpted by the famous artist
Felix DeWeldon and unveiled in front of
the stone wall on the Fredericksburg
Battlefield where Kirkland performed his
humanitarian act.
The inscription on the
statue reads: "At the risk of his life,
this American soldier of sublime
compassion brought water to his wounded
foes at Fredericksburg. The fighting men
on both sides of the line called him the
Angel of Marye's Heights."
If you've never been down
to the stone wall or the Kirkland monument
I highly recommend it. Its located down at
the Fredericksburg Battlefield Visitor's
Center.
KJV VERSES: SGT. RICHARD
KIRKLAND (MERCY)
Surely goodness and mercy
shall follow me all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for ever. (Psalm
23:6)
Let us therefore come
boldly unto the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy, and find grace to help
in time of need. (Hebrews
4:16)
Blessed are the merciful:
for they shall obtain mercy.
(Matthew 5:7)
O' my God, incline thine
ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold
our desolations, and the city which is
called by thy name: for we do not present
our supplications before thee for our
righteousnesses, but for thy great
mercies. (Daniel
9:18)
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