Program, i im pleased to introduce our guest, author dr. Ken rutherford. Ken rutherford, ph. D. , is professor in the department of Political Science at James Madison university. He cofounded the Landmine Survivors Network and escorted Princess Diana on her last humanitarian mission to visit landmines. Survivors in bosnia and herzegovina. Brother rutherford was prominent also as a leader in the International Campaign to ban landmines, which won the 1997 nobel peace prize. He has served as director of the center for Internet National stabilization and recovery at gmu. Hes been a peace corps volunteer in mauritania, unhcr emergency refugee coordinator and somalia humanitarian and emergency relief officer in northern kenya and somalia. And as a fulbright scholar in jordan, he holds a ph. D. In government from georgetown university, a b. A. And mba from the university of colorado, where he lettered in football and was inducted into their hall for distinguished alumni. Dr. Rutherford has also served on the board of trustees with the Shenandoah Valley battlefield foundation, which preserves and interprets the regions significant civil war battle fields and related historic sites. As a quick note, we will have a question and answer period after dr. Rutherford speaks. If youd like to ask a question, just please form a line behind the mic to the left and without further ado, ken. The floor is yours. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you, bob. And thank you all for being here on a saturday with nice weather here in beautiful appomattox. Its a honor and a privilege for me to present this topic to you. Youll soon find out that its been a labor of love regarding the civil war. I grew up in colorado, or theres not a lot of civil war history, but i remember our east coast battlefield trips and arsenal landmine issue, an issue that ive been working with for in for over a quarter of a century. And its matching up to my passion. So what i hope to do today is highlight the use of landmines in the civil war and the world. Landmines have killed and maimed more people than chemical, biological and Nuclear Weapons combined. Traditionally, it was thought that world war one was the first time that landmines were used. I wrote a book in 2010 at the international landmine issue, and it wasnt until 2011, which ill show you, that i started discovering Civil War Battlefields where landmines were used in a thesis that the American Civil War was the first time that victim activated mines command detonated mines or landmines of any kind were used in the worlds history. And a widespread basis. Briefly on personal introduction, land landmines. This may be some of your first introductions to my mines, or if test test test test test test test test test test test test test test test test test test test test evolution that the technology and the tactics in the American Civil War. This is a brief introduction to landmines. If you dont know landmines are mostly victim activated. It theyre triggered by the footfall of a human being or the pressure of a vehicle. This is a chinese type 72 anti personnel mined. Its pressure sensitive that does not detonate unless somebody steps on it. On the left is the china is a type 72. Brand new. You could buy it for a couple of bucks in cambodia easily come top hoppers of an adult stepson. They usually most lose their toes or foot. And on the right is a study that we did at jmu, looking at the deteriorating effects of explosives in the soil. And this is how the same landmine looks. After about a decade in tropical soil. This is an antitank mine or a anti vehicle mine. Theres no explosive agent in it, but its designed to for a vehicle or cart or something heavy, the trigger. In other words, it doesnt go off by itself. It goes off when the victim or the vehicle puts pressure on it. So thats the type of weapon well be discussing. Land mines are in many countries around the world, about 80, and most of those countries are ip. The darker colors are where land mines are heavily infested. This map is somewhat old, but the only one that i could find colombia right here is now one of the top three or four countries in the world with land mines, mainly. 25 years ago, when i entered into the land mine field, it wasnt in the top ten. Americas little bit yellow, not because of the American Civil War, but because of the japanese use of landmines in alaska. I was just there about ten days ago. I was in aleutians islands, dutch harbor. Its where i filmed deadliest catch. But dutch harbor was bombed twice by the japanese in world war two. Pearl harbor, once the only two places in United States where the United States was bombed during world were two. But the japanese had taken over two islands and used land mines on a two. And kiska, which is the subject of an article i have coming out in october in a journal. So my accidental discovery was in 2012, actually, i misstated. In 2011 i had a book come out in 2010 on the International Movement to ban landmines, moved to virginia in 2010. No idea that landmines were used in the American Civil War. A neighbor was the math teacher at Harrisburg High School and was taking the Robotics Team from harrisonburg high school. The vcu, to richmond for a robotics competition and they needed a chaperon. In other words, a vehicle to take some the students. So i volunteered. I have no engineering background and i want to visit for the first time the richmond area battlefields. And i said, ill drop the kids off at vcu and im going tour the battlefields. And i was driving down the fort harrison, where the park service has an office, and i pull over at fort johnson. This little sign right here, theres a way marker here, and this house is behind it. Id never heard of fort johnson. Im sure some of youve never have, but maybe some of you have. It doesnt exist anymore. But the way marker says that artillery shells were repurposed as land mines in 1864 and 1865. And this blew me away. Like what was a live transforming moment for me . Because for the next eight years, i spent research on this subject that i never took that right turn. I would have had a different life the last eight years, four and 6 to 7 a. M. Every day. I wrote and i wrote and i researched and land mines were not called landmines in the civil war that five or six different names sub terrors land torpedoes, infernal devices. So you just cant google civil war landmines. It doesnt show up. And so i chased for the next eight years personal records of confederate and Union Soldiers, primarily through the official records of the war, the rebellion, and other documents. The story that im going to share with you today. So this is the beginning of todays presentation. But first, if you just had your brief introduction, land mines, some of you for the first time, some of you, again, if you had training in the military, this is my introduction in early 1996. Thats me. I was in somalia running a humanitarian aid program. Half a Million People are just starved. Half a Million People are about to die. Well, its heavily covered by cnn right after gulf war one. Drove drove all over the southern southeastern part of somalia, south western part of somalia. This is right during black hawk down. This happened ten weeks. Theres my vehicle right front. Tire hits the landmine. I had no idea was a landmine. I knows my right foot came off. I was in a middle front seat. My legs wrangled to the right. And what really helped save our life beyond the topic of this discussion. But ill share it with you, was that donkey cart in the lower right . We slowed down, hit the mine. We slowed down because of the donkey cart and because we had slowed our speed, our vehicle didnt carry over the explosion. Its almost at a perpendicular angle. My rightoot came off in somalia. I was trying to put it back on myself. I had a radio to call for help. Killer romeo. Killer romeo for ken rutherford, we hit a landmine bleeding. Oh, positive. Send an airplane. My rest of my right leg came off that night and nairobi, kenya. And on my left leg in the United States. Soon after, i was on tv, different news shows about somalia. Then i was interviewed. We are invited to the white house and the Senate ForeignRelations Committee to testify about landmines. And thats when i started to research about landmines. I really had no idea what a landmine was really, that i wasnt unique, that the story you just heard isnt unique, but it happens 26,000 times a year. Organize the Landmine Survivors Network with a friend of mine, jerry white, who lost his leg in israel. These are all american landmine survivors. Different parts, different wars, bosnia, vietnam, korea promoting prosthetics to go overseas for the thousands of people who need legs. Im standing before you with no legs. And a lot of people dont know. I dont have legs. But thats the American Technology told my story. And oprah trying to get the story out about landmine survivors and then work with Princess Diana. You heard of my introduction to bring her to bosnia, a newly independent country. I think she was one of the first celebrities to visit bosnia. She passed away a couple of weeks after this photograph was taken. But the whole world watched. And on the right, her sons, Prince William and prince harry, did a documentary about their mother, which is now on hbo. And they asked me and gerry to be in the video to highlight the humanitarian impact of their mother. This is the book i wrote on the Global Movement to ban landmines, which was published in 2010. Moved to virginia in 2011, discovered for johnson and the use of landmines in 2012. And thats where the story begins of americas buried history. So let me just start here and grab some might grab some of my notes at the beginning of the American Civil War and the south new that the union was going to try to shut down the harbors and the ports, the union had developed a plan called the anaconda plan a, much like the bow constrictor of south america that squeezes its prey, the snake, the anaconda. The union was going to do that to the confederate. The Confederate States of america shut down the mississippi be blocked. The ocean ports. So the south could not export its cotton and could not import raw materials. And third is take richmond up the james river. This plan proposed by general Winfield Scott was laughed at by the northern media as a joke. A cartoon of a snake trying to wrap around the Confederate States of america. His plan was ridicule. Ridicule, but it was effective. It strangled the confederacy, trading about 90 of confederate ships were able to leave southern ports. In 1861, within one year, that figure was cut down to 15 because of the union blockade. What does that have to do with the story . The Confederate States of america invested money in military technology to counter the anaconda plan. This technology would for the sea was going to make its way inland in about a year or two. But let me highlight three examples of this explosive technology that the Confederate States was using to develop countermeasures against the anaconda plan. On the left is a propeller explosive device. On the right is a stationary explosive device. This was to attack shipping union shipping or union vessels and blow them up if they came in contact with these explosives. The one on the right was from mobile, alabama. Thats in the museum in mobile, alabama. Most of these photographs are my own. Let me just. Well, im going to call for some support here for. Not air support, but that was the two slides ago. How to call an air support to get me out of that somali minefield. Oh, there you go. There you go. Im glad its your presence. The second is to see us torpedo boats are the torpedo class. These were sort of a form of kamikaze, but the crew would survive to live, to fight another day. It was a low, low vessel. It wasnt a submarine. Much of it wasnt our water. Bu much of it was e in the water b the service was the smokestack earning the cold that doesnt get smoked and on the end, im going to highlight this, was an explosive, right there. They ran the ship, the Confederate Navy would pick up on union ship, being rammed, to expose the device and raise the last second to blow a hole in the shell of the ship and carry it down. And it was hoped that when he hit the targeted ship, it would result in an explosion that would create a hobo below the waterline and sink the federal vessel. It was an offensive explosive weapon. A third type of weapon was this floating explosive water cat, this is the only explosive device the west point museum in new york. They have 13 different explosive that the confederates used or brought to west Point Engineering school. This is the only one on public display. And it was designed to target union ships as a contact device. So you can see, where the Confederate States of america invested in technology but as the anaconda plan became start applying on land. 1861, the first time landmines were used in the western hemisphere in the United States, was columbus, kentucky. Columbus, kentucky is on the Mississippi River and known as the gibraltar of the mississippi because you could see the bluffs here and a choked union shipping and general grant wanted to take it. He couldnt take it because of the defenses and part of the defenses where the landmines and all surprised. These are landmines that are used, these are maps that design for the book. I told him where to put the minds. By planting mines in these roads, general polk of the Confederate States army allowed him to redeploy his manpower to other areas of the fortification. Columbus was never attacked. It was so powerful. The confederates, evacuated after fort donaldson in kentucky fell, and the defenders were ordered to evacuate, to fight another day. They didnt want to leave. But general beauregard who is running the area, told the general polk, get your man out of there. But they are going to be surrounded and sure enough, in columbus, kentucky, union troops entered evacuated town and came across a weapon that they had never seen before. Which was the landmine, this is from harpers weekly and these are the minds right here. Copper kettle filled with explosives, in a box, with a line that would run into the fortification. There is zero casualties because this explain something, these were commanded that native explosives. We could lay an explosive at a parking lot here, say a car comes in from we dont like we can press a blow a button and blow it up. As opposed to a contact or victim act debated explosives which he lay in a parking lot and it can be the dominoes delivery person, it can be a school bus, it could be the nightguard. These were calm command detonated, so even if you stepped on them, they wouldnt go off because they are triggered by electricity. And the confederates did not use them because they evacuated their position out of four hudson. This is the first time landmines are used but they are effective, they never attacked columbus, they just walked in. Virginia, the state of many firsts. General mcclellan landed down here in i cant see, i cant read days fort monroe area. They are going to march up, this is 1962. The largest army underwent american soil to date was going to much of the peninsula and attack d take richmond. Part three of the anaconda plan. General johnston ordered delaying measures along the peninsula, primarily right here at yorktown. The macgregor line, to build up defensive fortifications to delay or defeat federal forces. But as the federal foes started to pile up, the confederates knew that this was a delaying action, to give the confederate government and the military and high command, more time to build defenses around richmond. Some of the measures the Confederate Army tk were quicker guns. Just logs, like lincoln logs. Just put them out and the federals looked at them through binoculars and thought they were a canon. Does have a parade here, march the men secretly and have a parade. Create noise so that federals thought that they were facing a larger army than they thought was possible. The Confederate Army received intelligence that on the morning of may 5th, 1862, the federals was launch a major assault and defenders knew that they should resist the assault. And on the evening they withdrew from yorktown and the macgregor line and the Union Soldiers cheered because they knew they could take yorktown, peacefully and there would be zero casualties. And these are some of the impressions of the Union Soldiers. Im just going to read from the book here, just a couple of times. To the army surprise at dawn, the advancing union troops found abandoned and mud filled rubble trances. No bloody assault would be needed. Yorktown was in union hands. The news spread like wildfire. And i quote, loud cheers resounded along the line from the river to the creek. When the result was officially announced, recalled captain henry blake of the 18th massachusetts. And the bands, which had been done for so long, again and livened the soldiers. And it notes 1000 drums and five and bugles filled the words with the discord of melody. The federals raised, and i quote, the federals raised to win everlasting glory by being the first to place their unit flags atop the confederate earthworks. The initial jubilation proved to be shortlived when the advancing of the enemies works encountered in a weapon, the confederates had planted victim activated landmines. Powdered filled artillery shells, topped with friction primer set to explode when stepped on or moved, just a few inches under the soil. Union soldiers found the monster at the area, and i quote, in the vicinity of springs, hospitals and other places, which they suppose the soldiers would visit, recalled an eye witness. Nearly 30 Union Soldiers were killed or maimed by what would be referred to as infernal devices. Some federals encountered torpedoes, while in front of the towns defenses. In other words, the union faced an enemy that they could not see. This is the cover of harpers weekly. Of Union Soldiers, stepping on these minds. Again, no army in the world had faced such widespread use of victim activated weapons. This is from Richmond National park museum, a repurposed confederate artillery shell. I was just in richmond at the museum, the park service this is no longer on display. But the idea was to put explosives, here is the friction primer. Union soldier steps on it, it presses it and diffuses and it blows up. That wasnt the end of the peninsula campaign. As the confederate troops retreated toward richmond, the federals were in hot pursuit and late landmines on the yorktown river and the williamsburg road. The idea was to use not much quickly or fast to pursue the retreating calvary confederates due to the landmines, and it worked. He was responsible for the use of them activated mines . General Gabriel Raines. His brother george was ahead of the powder arsenal, the number one supplier to the confederacy. Born in new bern, North Carolina, now a national now it is a state park and they are known as the bomb brothers. Gabriel studied explosives my pickup truck i used to show im doing research when i did that. To prove i was there. This is their house. General raines. He experimented with explosives in the 1850s and applied the practice of sensitive fuses for the mind in the peninsula campaign. So let me go back here. George Gabriel Raines was heavily criticized in june of 1862, one month later went general mcclellan, head of the union forces said, this is inhumane and uncivilized. This weapon should not be used. And General Johnson of the confederates, agreed with them. This is inhumane and shouldnt be use. General longstreet order raines, do not use landmines. They are inhumane, they are uncivilized. They are overruled by defense secretary, war secretary randolph and Jefferson Davis. He said mines could be used with military purposes. Gabriel raines s argument proved justified when in november of 1852, the Confederate Congress gave him 100,000. In 1980 63 18 63 to set up the first bureau to develop mines. There is not a lot is known about it because it is called the torpedo bureau but it was under the Construction Bureau under the confederate service. To keep it a secret. Port hudson was 1863, the longest siege and American Military history to date, 48 days. The confederate defenders were completely surrounded by union forces. General banks, the confederates ran out of food, were running out of food. Eating mules and dogs, they are running out of ammunition and repurposed Union Artillery for landmines and there is a high unexploded rate of munitions, even today. The industry says 5 of all munitions do not explode when use. Back then it was about 30, 40 . So the confederates repurposed union shells at fort desperate, prescab, and at the citadel. Right here, victim activated the first time in the worlds history that both types of mines command detonated, and victim activated were used. This is fort desperate. You can see how desperate the defenders were. They are in a position, they are outmanned and outgunned. The union kept assaulting this position as art the confederates as you can see here, used explosives. This is a Historical Marker at port hudson and fort desperate, subterranean torpedoes is what they are call. These are command detonated with a line going through the trench, with explosives out here. I would pull the trigger when the union forces were there. And other parts of port hudson as i showed you on the map, victim activated mines were used. The message here was, these are union munitions, being used against union trips. This is the port hudson Military Museum or state park, it is a beautiful state park. Highly recommended. These are the types of shells, that were found, that did not go off. And this is not a unique situation, a repurposed thing unexploded ammunition. This is from iraq, moving to the present. These are american cluster bombs that did not go off in iraq. These photographs were brought back from a former student of mine. It has a high dud rate. Of port hudson and their union unexploded ordinance. They are taken by insurgents, used as ied and provide explosive device and attack on american convoy. With american weapons. This is the same idea, that the confederates are using, defending port hudson. Taking unexploded shells and repurposed thing them to attack and defend the enemy. 1864, the photograph on the left was taken by me, at west point Military Museum basement. These are all the active scene mines, at the end of the war, or most of them that were intact or brad. These are in the basement, nobody will see these. This one right here, this was used on the road to savannah, georgia. General sherman came in contact. His troops came in contact with these mines. And he was very unforgiving. At two of his enemies, as you all know, and several of his men were killed and maimed by landmines in the road. On the way to savannah. He was so upset, that he wanted wagon loads of confederate prisoners of war to be dragged over the minefields. As a lesson. And he was talked down from that. But what he did do, and that didnt happen, but what he did do, he marched confederate visitors of war in front of his lines. So on the way to savannah, to ensure that no landmines with the in the road. And sure enough, he said it was not a surprise. We didnt phase landmines again until Fort Mcallister, which is the 1864 example. Fort mcallister was designed to defend from attack from the sea. The major guns were pointed at the sea and the river that goes out to the sea. Never expanding a landbased assaults. As general sherman neared savannah, Fort Mcallister is 10 miles south of savannah. The confederate defenders cut down the woods around the fort and laid hundreds, if not thousands of landmines. This is Fort Mcallister today. And this is really well preservedefensive fortifications, the landmines were laid out here. There is a sign that here saying that landmines were laid at Fort Mcallister. You can see the sine. It was designed as a force multiplier, that mcallister wasnt designed to defend from the land, but instead from the union forces. And thats the way i start off my introduction, because of the assault on Fort Mcallister and i read this and i could taste my own blood in my mouth from the experience, literally, that the soldiers cut. And i wanted to read this opening. Soldiers in the 30th ohio volunteer infantry needed knew the dangers they faced on december 13th, 1864 but followed orders and charged toward the confederate held Fort Mcallister, nonetheless. Sergeant hartman was moving ahead with his comrades during the afternoon attack when he was done violently to the ground by an explosion. The southern changes sudden change of circumstances left him momentarily days and when he recovered and realized what happened, he searched his body for wounds and discovered shattered bones in his left foot, a flag, hand and face, and badly swollen eye among other injuries. He was not the only man from the 30th ohio to paul in that matter. Private s james warner of company d saw a comrades but blown off at the ankle. And i quote, at least five boys in blue were torn into fragments during the battle and scores were hurled to the ground, in a crater, recalled another soldier from ohio. The next morning, a man fighting the 70th of ohio, visited a comrade who lost both his legs in a short but deadly fight. This is what he wrote. There is no hope or possibility of his living. He was trying to pieces from his stomach, all the way down to his bowels which were mashed. Each were victims of what the federal army called infernal machines. Fort mcallister fell pretty fast. There are a lot of casualties and right here, general sherman ordered confederate prisoners of war to clear the mindset Fort Mcallister. Lets move on to 1865. Gibraltar of the atlantic ocean, wilmington, North Carolina. Port fisher defends the cape fear river, which leads into wilmington. Wellington, North Carolina was the last open port of the confederacy. Generally who was defending his he and his men were defending petersburg and richmond said, if wilmington falls, the confederacy falls. It was the last supply line and fort fisher was holding off the federal forces. Very heavily fortified with a well down here, shaped like a l across the peninsula and down here, right here, the largest organized minefield to date in the civil war was late. These were command detonated lines which allowed the confederate high command to redeploy their men to other areas of the fort. To move them down here and move them down here. The night before, the january 15th attack, on land, on january 14th, the union launched the Largest Naval bombardment of the war on fort fisher. Sort of like predday on june 6, the naval forces softening the cspan defenses on normandie. Doing so snapped the wires, leading to the command and the mind of the fort. Confederates that now and the union didnt know. So when the Union Soldiers, when the federals attacked, the fort fell in a matter of hours. It was predicted that it would take weeks to take the fort. And when the confederates pushed the trigger, to blow up the union attacking forces, nothing happened. There were zero casualties because command detonated mines, much like fort much like columbus, kentucky. At Fort Mcallister, the month before, you had a massive amount of casualties due to victim act debated mines. The confederates at fort fisher used command detonated mines. There is more ad hoc, more than centralize. My last battle, or battles, are in alabama, outside mobile, alabama, spanish sports. You see the confederates cut down the trees, theyre expecting the union of salt and laid landmines, right around the southern position of the spanish fort. Defended against the water invasion and on land. And when i went to the spanish fort i knew the landmines were in the area but i never heard of fort mcteer month and discovered it by accident. I was driving down around stopping in the neighborhood, Walking Around with my map, looking for the mines. And i see the confederate battle flag appear. And i pulled my truck on the road here, walked up the hill and this is the area where landmines were used. In this direction. The confederates evacuated their position, the night before they heard or knew or their intel gave information the federals were going to attack. Much like what happened in yorktown. Half went to fort blakely and half crossed the river into mobile. Blakely is eight miles up the road, was the last battle of the americans major battle of the civil war. Fort blakely is a state park now. You see, fort blakely is here, landmines were used, right here. U. S. Colored troops were up here, which is very important, part of the story. But the confederate defenders were outnumbered 1300 against 15,000. And landmines were used in this valley, protecting rebound number four. The ohio troops, from iowa, and u. S. Colored troops ran over that area, filled with mines and had wires tied between trees. So when the soldiers would trip, they would fall in the mines. They also laid landmines underneath rocks, so somebody stepped on a log or a plank board, the whole thing would go off. This infantry assault, some would argue is the last infantry assault of the American Civil War, which occurred in april 9th, 1865. In the afternoon. They didnt know what happened right down the road here that morning, when general lee surrendered on april 9th. 1865, they didnt get the memo or the email that the war was going to be over. But this is the last time that landmines were used in a hostile situation. That american soldiers would face until world war i and american soldiers wouldnt use landmines again until world war ii, for another 70 years. So theres four days and is one of the story with the u. S. Colored troops, i could talk for an hour about every sigh. Im trying not to. Ive been speaking for about 40 minutes now. The u. S. Colored troops were moved to the behind and complained. They wanted to be at the front, much like the 54th massachusetts, at battery wagner. In the movie glory, they wanted to move to the front. Because of what happened that fort pillow and the massacre of u. S. Colored troops and they tied red bandannas under bayonets and charged. And several of them were killed by the landmines, planted in the ground and they kept running. There is a couple of more slides, two more slides. This is the academic part of the presentation. This is a chart of every single battle the landmines were used, that i could find in the American Civil War. There may be some more, but this is eight years of research, early in my life, on one side. Command detonated mines were used in three different battles, port hudson, yellow tavern, and fort fisher. I explained the two of them. Tripwire mines, which didnt really explain, but these are ways that cross, tied to explosives, pressure mines, what i call contact or victim activated, were used in almost every single battle. New since mine, this is more of days theres not a military utility to these mines. Yorktown, ron springs and dennis port have around water wells. Not a defensive purpose, now in war, isis, the taliban, they use landmines in many cases, nuisance mines. If we cant control the land, we will make it horrible for you. Now that with russia, in ukraine, they are laying farmers fields with landmines. If we are never going to use them again, we are never going to have these fields again and the ukrainians want to farm, go ahead, we blow them up. The russians are laying landmines in many spots of ukraine. That is according to the washington post, six weeks ago, the russian types they are using in ukraine. Which is not the case in the American Civil War, except in two cases. And that delay, tactical, using landmines as a delay weapon, where were we are being pursued and we use landmines to slow down the pursuing forces. Past is prologue, the photograph on the right and left. From the west point Military Museum. These are different types of explosive devices, designed and used by the confederacy, mostly on water, but i found three of them that were used on land. Including the one in the middle and the right, which was used on the roads in georgia, trying to defend against shermans march to the sea. The photograph in the middle is from an iraqi police department. And these are modern explosive that are repurposed, to use as landmines and there is a landmine manufactured, a landmine in the middle. The middle photograph is actually from baghdad. You see the past is prologue, an argument ive made in the book. And here is the first time in the World History that landmines were used on a widespread basis. Both command detonated and victim activated what the American Civil War. And we as a nation, wouldnt use them again for another 70 years in world war ii. And our soldiers wouldnt face landmines again until world war i. On that note i would like to thank you for your time and for listening. It gives me energy to keep pursuing the subject. Thank you very much. [ applause ] any questions . The research, did you find any examples of union troops using mines and defensive positions . That is a great question. The answer is no, because landmines as you said in your question, landmines are defensive weapon and the union was on the offensive, most of the time. It also, part doesnt fully explain my response to your question but the union developed a lot of newer technologies, canons camino more advanced as the war went on. And landmines are defensive weapon. As you know, the union, the answer is no. Thats not to say they dream were under pressure but the answer is no. I was thinking of around like nashville. The city of nashville or franklin. That is a great question. I could not find any, any. And on your question, one of the some of the challenges on this project, which ties to your question, is general raines, the head of the Confederate Torpedo Bureau under the Sacred Service bureau, wanted training manuals on landmines to be distributed to confederate forces. On how you use landmines. And Jefferson Davis said, no, because we dont want our insidious devices to file into our enemies hands. So that could be another, where training manuals never went to the federal forces. You know, because maybe they did put the money into these explosive technologies and tied to that, when the confederate government evacuated richmond in the spring of 1865, there was a fire in richmond, but the secret Service Building was purposely burned, to burn all the records. Which included all the torpedo records. And just one more part of this, sorry to go along. Is the federal army, the union army, was ordered to execute any confederate officer ordered the use of mines or any confederate soldier using mines. Because its inhumane. The confederate soldiers and officers involved in landmines, wouldnt have anything under packets. No maps, no orders, because if they are taken prisoner, they dont want to be executed. That could be another reason why this information never got out. The secret service, Jefferson Davis overruled the training manuals, which also explains the ad hoc methods that the landmines had been used for different battles and the confederate Engineering Bureau enter peter bureau did not keep records because i didnt want to be held accountable. So there wasnt a lot of information to go on. I had to dig deep on this, but it probably explains why the federal student pursue landmines. Again, the assumption, of the question, was that landmines are defensive weapon and that is entirely accurate. The union was never under pressure as much. We had a full front of days we had a gettysburg every four months, maybe they would have developed it. That is all speculation. Thank you. Did you ever have to worry about unexploded ordinance are landmines in your Civil War Research . Were any of the battlefields still hot . But that is a great question. The answer this brings me back to work blakely. In alabama. I went to fort blakely, which is a state historical park. I would say it was the spring. It rained the night before. It was like a wednesday. Big state park. I drove there, i found where the mines were used. Walked away from my truck and realized, im working on a former minefield. And i dont want to do that. You know, its not like and actually like im out here by myself. Nobody is out here. My next footfall could be my last. And i actually was scared, for a second. But the answer is, no, and it leads me to very interesting part. And the answer is this. Almost every single case, confederate prisoners of war were used to clear their own landmines and walk across the minefields. You know the clearance rate is going to be pretty good. And also, many of the mines, as you saw were almost improvised explosive devices where the gunpowder could be easily wet and self neutralize itself. There are stories about relic countries, finding landmines once or twice. And i have been in somes house who had a confederate landmine in the basement. And they asked me if i wanted to hold it. I said, no. So that is something to say, they could be out there. They are not out there but i wasnt that worried about it, just because of the technology. And the way they are clear. Thats why in western europe we dont have to worry about landmines a lot. Because german prisoners of war were forced to clear them. The netherlands beaches, the normandy beaches, and it wasnt until 1949 that using prisoners of war to clear the landmines was a legal like the geneva convention. That is why we cant use isis prisoners to clear the mines they deployed were ukraine would be unable to use russian soldiers to clear the mines that they used. Great question. My question pertains to the foot soldiers path use of mines. During the war, it was seen as cowardly method of warfare. Infernal machines, by world war i, world war ii, its just common practice. Its an accepted way to engage war. Today, it seems like through international pressures, the banning of the use of landmines, i dont know if youve talked with todays foot soldiers, u. S. Or otherwise, do they you view the use of landmines, the way that confederate soldiers thought of them, as far as a cowardly way to engage in warfare . Those are all great questions. So i have two sons in the field, one as an explosive, he received his certificate in explosives. He works for one of the Largest Companies that makes bombs and explosive detectors. Actually, his mother blames his father for his career decision. And you know, he doesnt think like that. He has a job to do. Tripwire detectors for the army and developing that. s second son, is a weapons commander in the marines, of all things. And so, he works with ordinance and calling strikes and all that. And i dont know if i should say, hes not trained in using landmines. So the american soldier, i can assume, is not trained. And americans have not use landmines and 1991, since the gulf war and we stopped producing mines and in 1997 and were the first country in the world to ban the export of mines in the 1992. Unilaterally. 100 to zero, republicans, democrats supported the export ban on mines. But we didnt find the treaty on landmines. And i was heavily involved in the effort. And i think the u. S. Government made a decision, that we are not going to use landmines. But we are not going to ban them either because it created a legal slippery slope where if we ben mines for humanitarian reason, because 90 of civilians more civilians died during the war than unlike the civil war mines, the last 100 years. And when the peace treaty is signed between ukraine and russia, and civilians go home or the soldiers go home, the civilians will come back and be blown up by these. So it is an instrument weapon and instrument weapons are illegal under international law. We do use command detonated mines. Which are not illegal. Because you can discriminate, who is going to be targeted. And so the treaty only bans indiscriminate weapons. In june and july of 1862, within the confederate high command, and i apsley marked this, because i figured there was going to be a question about it. Is there a moral debate within the confederate high command, whether landmines should be banned or not. And i just wanted to read to you this, the General Johnson and long General Johnson of the Confederate Army the general, before he got injured and was replaced by lee, agreed with the general longstreet. General longstreet said raines should not ban the use of landmines. I dont know if im drifting from the question or not. I eat the stuff for breakfast. Okay . Johnson agreed with longstreet that raines should cease using landmines. In response, raines defended his deployment as part of inaction during the withdrawal to richmond and offered his own recent experience as evidence of their effectiveness. Boom, boom, boom. In midmay, confederate secretary of war general randolph reviewed and examined the landmines correspondence between raines and his superiors, including johnston and longstreet. They were saying it is unethical. It is uncivilized. And Gabriel Raines was making an argument of why it is civilized. And he said, this is the decision of Jefferson Davis and randolph, the confederate secretary of war. This would be his words, not mine. It would be admissible, landmines would be admissible. However, to plant shells, not to plant shells to destroy life and without other design, then of a few men without materially injuring them. He saying landmines can be used with the military purpose. The goal is to take life with no other object in the destruction of life, explained to the war. Hence, it is inadmissible to shoot centennial sentinels and pickets because nothing is obtained at the destruction of life. Randolph placed great emphasis on the intended purpose of mines, and said the purpose of military. So back to your question, but within two months, the confederate campus gave raines 100,000 to develop landmines warfare. So again, most of the world has banned the use of landmines, about 160 countries. Every country in nato has been landmines that that the United States and every country in the western amateur has banned landmines except cuba and the United States. Those countries who didnt been landmines are the usual suspects. Russia, china, india, pakistan, and the United States. But i think, this is just my personal views of being in the field, is that made a decision not to ban the use of landmines because then it would open up our whole weapons arsenal. To legal inspection. Your bullets are too big, you are dropping bombs too high, that type of stuff. Okay, yes, sir. I will go again. In a recent conversations with another researcher, he said that ep alexander planted mines for the defense of richmond. But lee never planted mines for the defense of petersburg. And was lee personally against the use of landmines . That is such an awesome question. Ive never heard that before. But it was the big mystery of the book. Why were landmines used outside of richmond . North of the james river. 24, like 2470 the largest minefield in the world until world war i. But they werent used around petersburg. I dont know who used the reference, but hes absolutely right about that, that they werent used about petersburg. People had read the book and said that they were used around petersburg. But we dug into the research and it was north of james river. My view is that the confederates , they didnt have enough engineers. They were being wiped out. So they kept their best engineers to protect richmond and not to spread. Materially, they are deficient and it takes a lot of resources. They use the landmines to defend the capital and didnt have enough time or material to use them around petersburg. Petersburg, i read almost every major book on petersburg. I could not find one source or one reference for mines around petersburg. It is one of the great mysteries of this book. So, no findings on how we felt about these use of mines . Lee felt like, he took over from johnston in 1862 after johnson was winded. He did not disagree with the use of landmines. But gabriel rains had a trouble with longstreet. This debate, he moved raines this is what lee did. He moved raines to defend the james river and other areas and empowered him to use these weapons. So there is no opposition to lee at all. But how lee felt about mines, i cannot and anywhere that he addressed it. And in a different direction, but i dont know if youre dressed to before i came in. This photograph of your vehicle, hitting that mine. How did you get that photograph of it happening . Somebody was actually there . I think out of 10 years, youre the second person to say, how did they shoot the photograph when your vehicle got blown up . The after israel. That day, they wanted to figure out what happened. Because the military group wanted me around. I think they wanted me around, maybe they got rid of me though. It was a movie. The movie about kansas diana and about 15 minutes of the re enactment of my accident. I had the movie actor playing me and i was blown up in a Toyota Land Cruiser but that was a mercedes and the filming took place in kenya but i was blown up in somalia. That they actually, with a cart put in such a position that enforced your car into the landmines . So what happened that morning, is december 16th, 1993, i could just remember like it was yesterday. Even though it was like 30 years ago. A major source of water was donkey cart. And empty washed out oil drums bringing water to the huts. There like 30 donkey carts and i was going to double the capacity to have two water tanks on each donkey cart. I went to the office and only like 10 of them showed up. It was a thursday, muslims dont work on a friday. The situation was going down, i had a job offer to go to his pakistan. I was going to drive to kenya and, like beyonci. And my staff said, we have to wait until everybody comes in. So there are refugees outside who came from ethiopia. Again, theres only two americans in the whole region. Me and the american nurse. And my staff said, lets go visit this refugee project site, the construction site outside of town. Is what you do with buildings. So i said, lets go. I got an hour. Thats go and we are driving out there. And i had all my papers on my lap. Like take down the chicken cage at the airport, put the wire away. And i looked up, when the car slowed down. And theres this donkey cart. And i was coming in to meet me but yet it really saved our lives because we slowed down, went a little bit to the right and that is when everything went blind. I couldnt see. I just, mohammed my assistant manager, my translator, he was white. Is black but he was covered with dust. I was like, is that your foot are my foot . He got out and i couldnt move. That is when i grabbed the Steering Wheel and pulled myself out and tied a tourniquet around my legs or what was left of my legs. But i drift. Why did i go in to that . Just the cart. It wasnt intentionally place. Im sorry you had the land mine. I live that accident every day. Every day and i am grateful, every day, to be above ground. I had 19 blood transfusions, five hospitals in four countries. I had a plane come get me. I should have been dead three or four times. I dont even know why im standing here. All i know is every day is a great day to be alive. When i read what the soldiers would say during the American Civil War, i can taste what they are going through. I actually get myself up like im ready to go. Coughing up blood. My foot was gone. I said, god, i love you so much. Im ready to cross the river. Ready to go. I thought it was seven hours out there but they didnt tell me until geneva, my third hospital, i was only out there for 45 minutes. And i thought, you know if i live, i want to marry my girl. I just got married, drove to kenya, asked her if she wants to get married. I drive back to kenya and get blown up. She wouldnt leave me. And we have a bunch of kids now. And i said, i want to be a teacher. My dad was a teacher. At the age of 31, that morning being a teacher was one of my top 100 goals. And i wanted to be a father. And you know, it really clarified all the noise. My 100 goals went out the window. A cleared out the noise and distilled in me, to be a teacher, a father and a husband. I said, god, whatever comes after that is icing on the cake. I started breathing slowed and fought for every breath. Like im not, ive got a life to live. God gave me that strength. Back to the picture, that was a movie. I just looked at that. Like oh my god, how did we live through that . If we rolled forward, we would have been 20 been a blunder. Great eyes, man. We are glad you made it. Thank you, sir. Thank you all so much. [ applause ] weekends on cspan 2 are an intellectual feast. 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