The Confederate Soldiers Monument, also known as the Confederate Dead Monument, is a Confederate memorial installed outside the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas.[1][2] It was erected in 1903. Its sculpture was designed by Pompeo Coppini, and its base was designed by Frank Teich.[3] The sculpture was cast by Roman Bronze Works (New York City).
| Confederate Soldiers Monument | |
|---|---|
 The monument in 2015 | |
 | |
| Artist | |
| Year | 1903 |
| Medium | Sculpture |
| Location | Austin, Texas, United States |
| 30°16′23″N 97°44′27″W / 30.273111°N 97.740792°W | |
| Owner | Texas State Preservation Board |
The monument consists of five bronze figures on the base that represent the Confederate Military: Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery and Navy.[4] At the top of the monument standing far above the other figures is Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederate States.[4]
Alongside 11 other Confederate monuments at the capitol, it was largely funded by United Daughters of the Confederacy, a group of women descended from Confederate soldiers.[5]
Historical inaccuracies
editThe listed sizes of the Confederate (600,000) and Union (2,859,132) forces are incorrect, greatly exaggerating the advantage held by the Union.[6] While the inscription dedicates the statue to Confederate soldiers who "died for states rights guaranteed under the Constitution", the Texas Declaration Of Causes (1861) does not use the phrase “states rights”, and repeatedly cites opposition to the abolition of the slavery and granting black Americans legal rights.[7][improper synthesis?]
Inscription
editDIED
FOR STATES RIGHTS
GUARANTEED UNDER THE CONSTITUTION
THE PEOPLE OF THE SOUTH, ANIMATED BY THE SPIRIT OF 1776, TO PRESERVE THEIR RIGHTS,
WITHDREW FROM THE FEDERAL COMPACT IN 1861. THE NORTH RESORTED TO COERCION.
THE SOUTH, AGAINST OVERWHELMING NUMBERS AND RESOURCES,
FOUGHT UNTIL EXHAUSTED,
DURING THE WAR THERE WERE TWENTY TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY SEVEN ENGAGEMENTS;
IN EIGHTEEN HUNDRED AND EIGHTY TWO OF THESE, AT LEAST ONE REGIMENT TOOK PART.
NUMBER OF MEN ENLISTED:
CONFEDERATE ARMIES 600,000; FEDERAL ARMIES 2,859,132
LOSSES FROM ALL CAUSES
CONFEDERATE, 437,000; FEDERAL, 485,216
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ "A Guide to Confederate Monuments in Austin". The Austin Chronicle. Austin Chronicle Corp. August 18, 2017. Archived from the original on August 18, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2017.
- ^ "The Hidden Confederate History of the Texas Capitol". Texasobserver.com. 17 February 2015. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ Board, Texas State Preservation. "SPB - Confederate Soldiers Monument". Tspb.texas.gov. Archived from the original on 18 August 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ a b "Confederate Soldiers Monument". tspb.texas.gov. Texas State Preservation Board. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
- ^ Jukam, Kelsey (2015-02-17). "The Hidden Confederate History of the Texas Capitol: An Unofficial Guide". The Texas Observer. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
- ^ "Facts - The Civil War (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2022-08-13.
In July 1861, the two armies were nearly equal in strength with less than 200,000 soldiers on each side; however at the peak of troop strength in 1863, Union soldiers outnumbered Confederate soldiers by a ratio of 2 to 1. The size of Union forces in January 1863 totaled over 600,000. Two years later, that number had not changed dramatically for the Union Army but had dropped to about 200,000 for the Confederate Army.
- ^ "Avalon Project - Confederate States of America - A Declaration of the Causes which Impel the State of Texas to Secede from the Federal Union". avalon.law.yale.edu. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
External links
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Media related to Confederate Dead Monument (Texas State Capitol) at Wikimedia Commons
