Douglas Southall Freeman ( Douglas Southall Freeman ; May 16, 1886 - June 13, 1953 ) - American historian, biographer, newspaper editor and writer. He is mainly known for his multi-volume biographies of Robert Lee and George Washington, for which he received the Pulitzer Prize .
| Douglas Southall Freeman | |
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| Douglas southall freeman | |
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| Date of Birth | |
| Place of Birth | Lynchburg , Virginia |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
| A country | |
| Scientific field | History of America |
| Alma mater | University of Richmond |
| Awards and prizes | Pulitzer Prize |
Content
Early years
Douglas Freeman was born May 16, 1886 in Lynchburg , Virginia, into the family of Betty Ellen Hamner and Walker Burford Freeman, an insurance agent who served General Lee for four years in the North Army . Walker was a private of the 34th Virginia Infantry Regiment and received several injuries at the battle of Seven Pines .
Freeman has been interested in the history of the American South since childhood. In Lynchburg, his family lived at 416 Main Street, near the home of Confederate General Jubal Earley . In 1892, the family moved to Richmond.
Historian career
Lee's Dispatches
In 1911, Freeman got into the hands of an archive of correspondence between General Lee and President Jackson, which had long been considered lost. Freeman spent 4 years working on documents and in 1915 published the book " Lee's Dispatches ". The work was enthusiastically received by the historians of the Civil War and became an important primary source for military history. Letters written between June 2, 1862 and April 1, 1865 allow a better understanding of General Lee’s strategy, understanding some of his decisions, and also show how closely he worked with President Davis. In the preface, Freeman collected seven of the most important facts contained in the correspondence: for example, letters show that the Confederation leadership considered, but then rejected, the risky plan of strengthening Jackson’s army in the Shenandoah Valley and, at the risk of losing Richmond, invading the northern states .
Rewards
- 1935 Pulitzer Prize for RE Lee: A Biography (4 volumes)
- 1958 Pulitzer Prize (posthumous) for George Washington: A Biography (6 volumes)
- Douglas S. Freeman High School in Enrico County, Virginia, is named after him.
- Freeman Hall at the University of Richmond is named after him.
- Virginia Historical Marker Q-6-17 , on Rivermont Avenue in Lynchburg, is set to perpetuate his life and work.
Bibliography
- A Calendar of Confederate Papers (1908)
- Lee's Dispatches to Jefferson Davis, 1862-1865 (1915)
- RE Lee: A Biography (4 volumes) (1934-1935)
- The Cornerstones of Stratford: Address at the Dedication of Stratford, October 12, 1935 (1935)
- The South to Posterity: An Introduction to the Writings of Confederate History (1939)
- Lee's Lieutenants: A Study in Command Volume 1: Manassas to Malvern Hill (1942)
- Lee's Lieutenants: A Study in Command Volume 2: Cedar Mountain to Chancellorsville (1943)
- Lee's Lieutenants: A Study in Command Volume 3: Gettysburg to Appomattox (1944)
- George Washington Volume 1: Young Washington (1948)
- George Washington Volume 2: Young Washington (1948)
- George Washington Volume 3: Planter and patriot (1951)
- George Washington Volume 4: Leader of the Revolution (1951)
- George Washington Volume 5: Victory with the help of France (1952)
- George Washington Volume 6: Patriot and President (1954)
- George Washington Volume 7: First in Peace (1957, by John Alexander Carroll and Mary Wells Ashworth, based on Freeman's original research)
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 Encyclopædia Britannica
- ↑ 1 2 SNAC - 2010.
Literature
- Johnson, David E., Douglas Southall Freeman, Pelican Publishing, ISBN 1455603678