Company Aytch

“Company Aytch is one of my favorite Civil War books, ever.”–Ken Burns

Among the plethora of books about the Civil War Company Aytch stands out for its uniquely personal view of the events as related by a most engaging writer–a man with Twain-like talents who served as a foot soldier for four long years in the Confederate army. Originally published in 1881 as a series of articles in the Columbia, Tennessee, Herald, Sam Watkins’s account has long been recognized by historians as one of the most lively and witty accounts of the war. Parallels between this text and The Red Badge of Courage suggest that Stephen Crane was also among Private Watkins’s readers.

This edition of Company Aytch also contains six previously uncollected articles by Sam Watkins, plus other valuable supplementary materials, including a map and period illustrations, a glossary of technical and military terms, a chronology of events, a concise history of Watkins’s regiment, a biographical directory of individuals mentioned in the narrative, and geographic and topical indexes. This new edition of a Civil War classic is bound to become the edition of choice for students, military buffs, and general readers alike.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars For WBTS history buffs this book is a must for your library
This book is like sitting beside a veteran of the War Between The States and being led through this conflict as a foot soldier. Since the beginning of warfare, the average foot soldier knows little of what is happening beyond what he himself observes and hears from his fellow soldiers. Watkins is a very good observer and has the unique ability to put it on paper in an interesting and informative way. You can smell the blackpowder smoke and hear the screams of wounded and dying men.

I give it my unqualified recommendation.

Dale Roberts, author of Tales of Travis Hawkins McCleod

5 Stars The best firsthand account of the war
Sam Watkins is amazing and a part of you wishes he were still around signing books.

There are primarily two first hand accounts of the Civil War that get qouted a lot this one and Eliha Hunt Rhodes’s “All for the Union.” I like this one the best because unlike the guy who wrote “All for the Union” Watkins never moved beyond the rank of corporal. When Sam Watkin’s joined the “glorious cause” in 1861 1,200 marched away from his home town 65 returned including Watkin’s himself. Sam states many times that this is not a history of the war, just a few things that have stuck in his memory 20 years later.

The book flows in a mostly chronological order and includes personal observations of Jackson, Bragg, Johnstone, the Honorable Jefferson Davis (who shook Sam’s hand) and many others. These accounts are extremely insightful and even eloquent.

There are the accounts of battles in which Watkins fought 1861, Murfreesboro, Shiloh, Corinth, Perryvile, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge and the darkest of all Frnaklin.

There are also extremely entertaining elements of social history that are not directly related to battles but give you a good idea of how an average solider of the south lived and how they had fun; of these the segment “pass the butter” is probably the most hilarious. Then there is also the story of how Sam was arrested while on leave and one of his old friends from his home town got him out of trouble.

Overall-This book has something for everyone and if Watkin’s is correct and this book was not intended as a history it is definatly one of the most entertaining not-histories that I have read.

5 Stars Sam Watkins would have been an amazing guy to talk to!
This book lives up to its reputation. If you have any interest whatsoever in the Civil War, whether you’re from the North or South, you need to read this book. It has an immediacy that’s lacking in history books, because the author was there and lived through some of the most hellish events in the war. And the kicker is that he was a great writer… Imagine if Mark Twain had fought in the Civil War and then wrote about it afterward. He has a gift for making you feel the exhiliration, terror, heartbreak, and drudgery of life as an infantryman in the Civil War… with a degree of literacy and introspection that raises the writing above merely a ‘this happened and this happened’ sort of account. His writing style is very accessible, too- this book is timeless.

5 Stars Wonderful Book
My wife and I enjoyed reading this book together. It captured the day to day grind of life during the war years that southern people love to read about. We both recommend this insightful book.

5 Stars Great insight from the common solider

While this book is not for the beginner Civil War reader it is a must have for those that want to understand just how it must have been. Along with “All for the Union” “Bayonet’s forward” and other Company level collections.

This is an editted version and has cleaned up some of the grammer and errors per the author.

Further the text presumes that the reader knows what is going on and makes scant reference to the common names for the battles he fought in or other forms of reference, hence the not for the casual reader comment earlier.

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