August Willich's Gallant Dutchmen - Civil War Letters from the 32nd Indiana Infantry

Translated and edited by Joseph R. Reinhart
Illustrated, maps, notes, bibliographic essay, index, hardcover, 262 pp., 2006. The Kent State University Press, 307 Lowry Hall, Kent, OH 44242, $35 plus shipping.

Reviewer: John Deppen
John Deppen is past president of the Susquehanna CWRT, a member of General John F. Hartranft Camp #15 of the SUVCW and a living historian who portrays Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock. His articles and reviews have appeared in Military Heritage, Gettysburg Magazine, Civil War News and The Daily Item in central Pennsylvania.

Review:
My awareness and appreciation of the Civil War service of German immigrants is perhaps greater than that of the general public due to my upbringing in central Pennsylvania. The graves of countless German veterans can be found in local cemeteries, and many of the descendants of these men make their homes in the Susquehanna Valley.

While the topic of Germans in the Civil War has been addressed in several publications, rarely have the voices of these men spoken so tellingly of their military experiences. Author Joseph R. Reinhart deserves considerable accolades for rescuing these letters of the men of the 32nd Indiana from obscurity and translating them for a modern audience.

The letters reveal a unit of patriotic men who adored their leader, August Willich, and who - at least earlier in the war - yearned for the chance to prove their mettle, not only to their Confederate foes, but to all those who scoffed at the fighting abilities of German soldiers.

Willich's gallant Dutchmen took great pride in their service, and in some cases the letters reveal a touch of arrogance about their superiority to other Yankees in uniform.

The 32nd Indiana saw combat on some notable and bloody battlefields in the Western Theater, including Shiloh. The accounts of battle action in the men's letters are accompanied by several useful maps. Throughout the book, readers do not lose sight of the regiment, even as the men plunge into the smoky chaos of the battlefield.

For those students of the Civil War who desire to expand their understanding of the contributions of this significant minority, August Willich's Gallant Dutchmen is a valuable and impressive addition to the ever-expanding list of titles on this topic.