The 1938 Gettysburg Reunion
Blue and gray veterans reunite at Gettysburg in 1938. Historians explain why the Civil War matters.
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The 1938 Gettysburg Reunion
Clip: Episode 1 | 3m 9sVideo has Closed Captions
Blue and gray veterans reunite at Gettysburg in 1938. Historians explain why the Civil War matters.
Why does the Civil War still matter? Historians argue it defined who Americans are, for good and ill, and turned on questions of human dignity and freedom. Begin with 1938 newsreel footage of aging Union and Confederate veterans at Gettysburg, and end with a young Lincoln's warning: "As a nation of free men, we will live forever or die by suicide." From Ken Burns's The Civil War.
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Production made possible by grants from General Motors Corporation, National Endowment for the Humanities, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation
The 1938 Gettysburg Reunion
Clip: Episode 1 | 3m 9sVideo has Closed Captions
Why does the Civil War still matter? Historians argue it defined who Americans are, for good and ill, and turned on questions of human dignity and freedom. Begin with 1938 newsreel footage of aging Union and Confederate veterans at Gettysburg, and end with a young Lincoln's warning: "As a nation of free men, we will live forever or die by suicide." From Ken Burns's The Civil War.
From
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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The Civil War | Timeline
Explore a multimedia timeline that is a companion to Ken Burns's acclaimed documentary series, The Civil War. The timeline provides a comprehensive overview of the war, from its political origins to its social and military consequences.Providing Support for PBS.org
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Clip: Ep1 | 13m 1s | Accounts from Grant, Lee, Sherman, and others are presented. (13m 1s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 3m 16s | "A house divided against itself cannot stand." In the 1850s, slavery pushed the nation toward war. (3m 16s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 3m 27s | After Bull Run, George McClellan built a magnificent Union army. Then he did nothing with it. (3m 27s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 3m 20s | The feeling among the Southern members for dissolution of the Union becomes more general. (3m 20s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 3m 25s | "Sarah, my love for you is deathless." Hear the letter Sullivan Ballou wrote a week before Bull Run. (3m 25s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 3m 35s | The Civil War was fought in 10,000 places. (3m 35s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 2m 35s | At Fort Sumter, a Confederate general fired on his old West Point teacher. The Civil War began. (2m 35s)
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Clip: Ep1 | 4m 30s | Fewer than 4 in 100 enslaved people lived to 60. Yet they resisted and kept their families together. (4m 30s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship
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Production made possible by grants from General Motors Corporation, National Endowment for the Humanities, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation