{"id":3216,"date":"2016-05-05T07:34:12","date_gmt":"2016-05-05T11:34:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/?p=3216"},"modified":"2016-05-02T07:42:59","modified_gmt":"2016-05-02T11:42:59","slug":"poet-inspired-by-american-flag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/poet-inspired-by-american-flag\/","title":{"rendered":"Poet inspired by American flag"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Walt<\/a>
Walt Whitman during the Civil War. (Library of Congress)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Walt Whitman, one of America\u2019s finest poets, spent much of the Civil War in Washington, D.C., working in hospitals and caring for wounded servicemen. In April 1864, he sent a letter to his mother to share how the American flag<\/a> affected soldiers and himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t know,\u201d he wrote, \u201cwhat a feeling a man gets after being in the active sights & influences of the camp, the Army, the wounded &c. \u2013 he gets to have a deep feeling he never experienced before \u2013 the flag, the tune of Yankee Doodle, & similar things, produce an effect on a fellow never such before. I have seen some bring tears on the men\u2019s cheeks, & others turn pale, under such circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A Civil War soldier poses with a flag ca 1863. (Library of Congress)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

He then shared his own emotions: \u201cI have a little flag (it belonged to one of our cavalry reg\u2019ts) presented to me by one of the wounded. It was taken by the [Confederates] in a cavalry fight, & rescued by our men in a bloody little skirmish. It cost three men\u2019s lives, just to get one little flag, four by three. Our men rescued it, & tore it from the breast of a dead rebel. All that just for\u2026getting their little banner back again.\u201d<\/p>\n

The soldier who rescued the banner, the poet continued, \u201cwas very badly wounded, & they let him keep it. I was with him a good deal [and] he wanted to give me something\u2026.He didn\u2019t expect to live, so he gave me the little banner as a keepsake. There isn’t a reg\u2019t, cavalry or infantry, that wouldn’t do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Troops<\/a>
Troops lower American flag in Washington, D.C., during the War Between the States. (Library of Congress)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Whitman\u2019s love for the American flag was often evident in his poems, such as this paean to the banner:<\/p>\n

FLAG of stars! thick-sprinkled bunting<\/a>!
\nLong yet your road, fateful flag! \u2013 long yet your road, and lined with bloody death!
\nFor the prize I see at issue, at last is the world!
\nAll its ships and shores I see, interwoven with your threads, greedy banner!…<\/p>\n

Walk supreme to the heavens, mighty symbol\u2014run up above them all,
\nFlag of stars! thick sprinkled bunting!<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
An officer rallies his flag-following troops<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In \u201cDelicate Cluster,\u201d the poet offered this salute to the American flag:<\/p>\n

Delicate cluster! flag of teeming life!<\/p>\n

Covering all my lands \u2013 all my seashores lining!<\/p>\n

Flag of death! (how I watch’d you through the smoke of battle pressing!<\/p>\n

How I heard you flap and rustle, cloth defiant!)<\/p>\n

Flag cerulean \u2013 sunny flag, with the orbs of night dappled!<\/p>\n

Ah my silvery beauty \u2013 ah my woolly white and crimson!<\/p>\n

Ah to sing the song of you, my matron mighty!<\/p>\n

My sacred one, my mother!<\/p>\n

One of Whitman\u2019s most famous verses \u2013 \u201cO Captain! My Captain!\u201d \u2013 was written to mark the death of Abraham Lincoln. In one portion of the poem, the poet wrote:<\/p>\n

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;<\/p>\n

Rise up \u2013 for you the flag is flung \u2013 for you the bugle trills….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Walt Whitman, one of America\u2019s finest poets, spent much of the Civil War in Washington, D.C., working in hospitals and caring for wounded servicemen. In April 1864, he sent a letter to his mother to share how the American flag affected soldiers and himself. \u201cYou don\u2019t know,\u201d he wrote, \u201cwhat a feeling a man gets… continue<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":3221,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[10,43,348],"class_list":["post-3216","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history-lessons","tag-american-flag","tag-civil-war","tag-walt-whitman"],"yoast_head":"\nPoet inspired by American flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gettysburgflag.com\/blog\/poet-inspired-by-american-flag\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Poet inspired by American flag - Gettysburg Flag Works Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Walt Whitman, one of America\u2019s finest poets, spent much of the Civil War in Washington, D.C., working in hospitals and caring for wounded servicemen. 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