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Letters of Marcus M. Spiegel: Preface
The historical importance of the letters became apparent to Colonel Spiegel’s great-great-granddaughter, Jean Soman, after her freshman year at the University of Wisconsin. Her brother-in-law, James Soman, a Civil War buff, read the letters in their entirety and encouraged her to do something of significance with them. As a junior majoring in history, she wrote a paper based on them for a course on the Civil War. Intrigued by the writings of Marcus Spiegel, she continued to research his life. The idea of compiling this book of letters became an obsession for Jean. For more than a decade, the project has dominated her free time. Her most difficult task was deciphering these difficult to read, handwritten letters and putting them into typed form. Caroline Frances Powers, Jean’s mother, who was named after Marcus’s wife, instilled in her an early appreciation for history and a great interest in her great-great-grandfather. Unfortunately, Caroline passed away before the publication of this book, but her encouragement and assistance will be forever appreciated. Marcus Spiegel has given Jean a feeling of deep respect for her American Jewish heritage and extreme love for her country. For this she will be eternally grateful. It has been especially rewarding for Jean to travel with her husband and daughters to many of the locations mentioned in the letters. While touring the battlefield in Vicksburg, Mississippi, she walked through the area where the Ohio regiments were stationed. She approached a large, handsome granite monument and was completely astonished when she read the engraving across the front: “One Hundred and Twentieth Infantry, Col. Marcus M. Spiegel.” It was absolutely thrilling to discover this historic remembrance located on the exact piece of land that Colonel Spiegel had described in his letters during the siege of Vicksburg. Frank L. Byrne, a Civil War historian, has spent the four years coediting the letters with Jean Soman. While studying the life and times of Marcus Spiegel, he too has become a sincere admirer of the colonel.
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It is hard to believe that only twelve years prior to
the writing of these letters, Spiegel arrived in America from Germany with
little, if any, knowledge of English. He very rapidly developed an
extensive vocabulary and an impressive command of his new country’s
language. At times his writing is almost poetic and his vivid narrative
descriptions are often works of art. He is able to paint a detailed
picture of the day-to-day life of a Union soldier in camp and on the
battlefield. The trials and tribulations of war are brilliantly described
in his eloquent and lucid letters. Living conditions good and bad; sweet
victory and agonizing defeat; many aspects of the war in both its eastern
and western theaters can be seen in Spiegel’s letters. This perceptive
observer comments in great depth on politics, including the issue of the
abolition of slavery. Especially revealing is his gradual change in
attitude toward emancipation. Interwoven through Spiegel’s writings are
his extreme feelings of patriotism, his love for his family and fellow
man, and his general philosophy of life. Never did he abandon his belief
in God or in the Jewish religion. A Renaissance man in his interests, he
was adventurous and brave, hard-working and dutiful, compassionate,
romantic, and to his beloved wife ever true. Despite all the hardships he
remained an eternal optimist.