Sherman

[Saxondog]

Since I am a southerner,and raised in the south.The story of Tecumseh Sherman is well know.He had one policy,burn every thing to the ground.This included towns and cities,He even burned Atlanta,Ga.to the ground.Many southerners hated this man,and many with good reason.His actions starved many people,and effected the south for decades.That makes it all the more Ironic that the largest monument in the south and in the United Stated is a mountain in Ga.called stone mountain,and much like mount Rushmore has the images of the leaders of the Confederacy.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Mountain" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; But their is no mountain dedicated to Sherman,just the history of his actions.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Tecumseh_Sherman" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; The Sherman Tank may well be his most notable legacy.

[Saracen]

I was under the impression that the US M4 Medium Tank was "named" Sherman by the British, who I doubt did it out of any particular desire to immortalise the General himself.

Adrian.

[Saxondog]

you are right about the British naming the Sherman,they named Tanks after famous Civil War generals,as to them Immortalizing Sherman I don't see how that has not been the result? Why pick a Union General considering the British were supporters of the Textile trade with the south,needing our cotton,and they provided the C.S.N. with several fine ships.My purpose was to share the Souths experience with Sherman.And it seems wither intended or not,the British did name the M4 AFTER William Tecumseh Sherman,and it has become his legacy,more than his drive to the sea.Cheers Blake http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M4_Sherman" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Saracen]

I don't disagree that the named has achieved immortality but I doubt that was the reason they picked Sherman. I may be doing them a misservice and it may have been a name familiar to the troops from tactical training or whatever but I would have thought they'd picked it to be easy to read, spell and say. They could have picked Schimmelfennig

I don't know if it's different in the US but I doubt many people in the UK associate the M1 Abrams tank with the Vietnam War.

Adrian.

[Saxondog]

I mean no disrespect,as a boy scout we were required to earn badges,being in Tennessee we of coarse walked the Shiloh battle field,it's not to bad 12miles.Many monuments to both sides,a nice grave yard.But one thing is missing in the graveyard no confederate troops,well look closer you might find two.Well what happened to all the Confederate troops?They were buried in mass graves,as were many of the Union troops.the bloodiest battle in American history.More Americans killed in Shiloh,Tennessee than all the wars America had ever fought.Unfortunately their were bloodier battles to come in three more years of fighting.But another side note is Shiloh saw the first Command under fire of William Tecumseh Sherman,he was responsible for stopping and rallying Union Troops,as Nathan Bedford Forrest cavalry 300 strong attacked so close that soldiers were screaming kill him,kill his horse.One Union soldier placed his musket into the side of Forrest and shot,the bullet hit his spine.He survived to fight another day,as did Sherman who decided from that moment on to burn every Town,village and southern city to the ground.Understanding that the people supported Forrest,and raiders like him. My point is Sherman was know for his scorched earth policy in the south,and his ability to see the bigger picture by Northern Generals and Lincoln supported him as well. 25,OOO Dead,wounded,and missing in two days.All within an area called Shiloh,after a small church.Their is a pond that to this day is kept blood red with dye,because on that day the pond beside the church turned red with blood so thick it killed the fish in the pond.

Did You Know?
In Shiloh’s bloody aftermath, the dead of both armies were hastily buried across the battlefield. The U.S. dead were later re-interred in Shiloh National Cemetery (1866-1868), and the mass graves of Confederate dead preserved through the creation of Shiloh National Military Park in 1894.

[Saxondog]

Don't know why the M4 was named Sherman By the British,I just live in an area where history Happened,where family Histories are passed down,many through family Bibles,another result of the Civil War.We are a proud people,I know that the slavery issue was secondary to the real issues of states rights against a Federal Government That many believed was growing to strong,and something not often discussed in History classes of today.Lincoln was shot and died,many don't know that his vice president was Andrew Johnson,a Tennessee Senator.He became president and fought to restore the Union,he is also the only person to be Senator,vice President,President,and Senator again.A remarkable man.I hope I have not bored to many.Perhaps the story of the Sherman Tank could be better told by someone British,I cannot find out why it was named Sherman tank.

[jrc]

I think Sax it's just the British quirk of having to name things, all our tanks begin C--, Comet, Churchhill, Chieftain etc. Our armoured cars with S, Saladin Saracen, Scimitar etc. The US tanks were numbers we needed names, M3 - Lee, M4 - Sherman, M5 - Stuart :~

[Saxondog]

I think your correct as it seems logical,and the kind of logic that makes sense.I hope that my writing was not overboard,it so personal after you stand over the Graves of a thousand confederate soldiers,they were stacked like cord wood and their are other reason lately of a political nature that has brought Shiloh back into the head lines in the small town papers,none of the mainstream media would dare print what is being done to these monuments,all for the political correctness of the powers that be.But that is not a conversation I will print here,now an interesting point was made about the ABRAMS and VIETNAM.I don't now the story,two brothers served.Both came home but never talked about it,I am much younger than them so we never really were around each other.But the link is interesting Saracen could you post some details of what you stated? Or anyone for that matter maybe in a new post? Thanks for reading my experience at Shiloh.Cheers Blake

[Saracen]

My comment about the M1 Abrams was simply that it is another vehicle honoring a US General, in this case General Creighton Abrams, who commanded forces towards the end of the Vietnam war but whose link to the vehicle may not be widely known.

Adrian.

[Saxondog]

Thanks for the information I never new the story about Abrams.I am glad you shared that story, Blake