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The Union's Secret Rebels: The Story of Gettysburg's Five Rebellious Double Crossers Who Returned as Foreign Invaders
May 24, 2018
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46:10
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The Civil War is called the war in which brother fought against brother. But few knew of the
“Gettysburg Rebels”: the five privates from that very town who moved south to Virginia in the 1850s,
joined the Confederate army, and returned home as foreign invaders for the great battle in July 1863.
I talk about this story with Tom McMillan, author of Gettysburg Rebels: Five Native Sons Who Came
Home to Fight as Confederate Soldiers. It is the story of Gettysburg’s five native sons who abandoned
their hometown ties to join the Southern cause. But that's not to say they forgot their families
altogether. At least one of these soldiers receive a leave of absence to cross enemy lines at night and
visit his family...while in full Confederate uniform.
Willing to relinquish familial ties, Henry Wentz, Wesley Culp, and the three Hoffman brothers kept
their hometown connections hidden from Confederate leaders—a decision that would ultimately
determine the fate of the Confederacy.
“Gettysburg Rebels”: the five privates from that very town who moved south to Virginia in the 1850s,
joined the Confederate army, and returned home as foreign invaders for the great battle in July 1863.
I talk about this story with Tom McMillan, author of Gettysburg Rebels: Five Native Sons Who Came
Home to Fight as Confederate Soldiers. It is the story of Gettysburg’s five native sons who abandoned
their hometown ties to join the Southern cause. But that's not to say they forgot their families
altogether. At least one of these soldiers receive a leave of absence to cross enemy lines at night and
visit his family...while in full Confederate uniform.
Willing to relinquish familial ties, Henry Wentz, Wesley Culp, and the three Hoffman brothers kept
their hometown connections hidden from Confederate leaders—a decision that would ultimately
determine the fate of the Confederacy.
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Meet Your Host

Scott Rank is the host of the History Unplugged Podcast and a PhD in history who specialized in the Ottoman Empire and modern Turkey. Before going down the academic route he worked as a journalist in Istanbul. He has written 12 history books on topics ranging from lost Bronze Age civilizations to the Age of Discovery. Some of his books include The Age of Illumination: Science, Technology, and Reason in the Middle Ages and History’s 9 Most Insane Rulers.. Learn more about him by going to scottrankphd.com.