Another focal point is the Burnside Bridge, which an army of Union soldiers, led by General George B McClellan, attempted to cross, against a continuous curtain of Confederate fire from the bluffs above. The Federals finally made it, but too late – Southern reinforcements had arrived. I walk across the bridge and stroll the Snavely’s Ford Trail through a tranquil province of oak, poplar, sycamore and American beech.
The trim town of Fredericksburg, about an hour south of Washington, lies midway between Washington, DC, and Richmond, Virginia (the Northern and Southern capitals respectively during the war), making it one of the conflict’s most hotly contested regions.
There are four pivotal battlefields in the vicinity, including Fredericksburg city proper, Spotsylvania Court House, The Wilderness and Chancellorsville. This trip I stick to the city proper. Many of its red-brick buildings – now housing shops, historic inns and restaurants – existed during the Fredericksburg battle of December 11-15 1862, and I conjure in my mind a time when Union soldiers quickstepped along these very streets toward entrenched Confederates defending the heights behind the city – most of them headed for certain death.
President Lincoln meets Union generals
After visiting the battlefield and seeing the infamous Sunken Wall behind which the Confederates hid, I retreat to my attic-level, antique-filled room at the Richard Johnston Inn.
The two terraced houses that comprise the inn existed during the battle (they date from 1770), and I could still see damage inflicted during the war on my attic room’s wooden beams. The proprietor tells me that a Confederate sniper named David haunts the house, but that doesn’t prevent me from having an exceedingly sound sleep.
My triumvirate of Civil War towns is not complete without the biggest and most famous of all (at least in the North): Gettysburg. The South’s high-water mark of the war, Gettysburg is the farthest point fought in by the Southern forces. Here, on July 1-3 1863, they confronted (and lost to) the hunkered-down Northern troops, and were forced to retreat south to Virginia.
| Did you know? |
| An estimated 620,000 soldiers died during the Civil War. Two thirds of them were killed by disease |
Perhaps the most significant event here, however, came several months after the battle, when President Lincoln presented The Gettysburg Address to dedicate the cemetery, one of the most celebrated yet briefest (at just over two minutes) “key” speeches ever delivered in the United States. Acknowledging the dead, he said: “The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.”
At first glance, Gettysburg is a touristy destination, with the entire town given over to marketing the war in battle-themed restaurants, hotels, souvenir shops and ghost tours (21 different companies offer them). Walking along Baltimore Street, I see a Northern soldier and a Southern soldier, re-enactors in town for a special event – sitting side-by-side on a pavement bench, while a bevy of Confederates mill about nearby.
A memorial at Gettysburg
Once on the famous battlefield, however, I can’t help but be pulled in by the visceral realities of war, by the sense of loss and tragedy and a sense of awe at the events that unfolded here. I stand atop Little Round Top, a granite knoll at the extreme left of the Union line, where Union soldiers had to fend off a desperate Confederate flanking move. The open view below makes it easy to visualise the various manoeuvres that occurred over those fateful three days: Pickett’s Charge across the mile-long open field; hand-to-hand combat at Devil’s Den; the famous Union defensive “fishhook” that followed strategic landmarks all the way to Culp’s Hill off to the right.
It’s on the last, Culp’s Hill, where most people don’t go, that the war truly touches me. The rough terrain is steep and boulder-strewn and tangled with vines and trees. I head down a pretty trail through the woods, replete with monuments and historical markers that record the events of July 2-3, 1863, when 3,800 died in one of the seminal moments in the forging of America and its character.
Later, back in town, I dine at the Dobbin House Tavern, a celebrated inn and restaurant that serves colonial-style cuisine in an authentic, candlelit setting – complete with hostesses wearing period dress and a menu with what, at first glance, appear to be spelling mistakes but actually are 18th- and 19th-century renditions.
Leaning back on a soft armchair in the antique-filled dining room, tucking into pork tenderloin with raspberry sauce and sipping moscato, I revel in the relaxing, enjoyable ironies of spending a weekend on a battlefield.
Getting there
British Airways (0844 493 0787; britishairways.com) flies to Washington from Heathrow, as do United Airlines (0845 844 4777; united.com) and US Airways (0845 600 3300; usairways.co.uk).
Getting around
Rent a car to drive from Washington to Antietam (70 miles north west), Fredericksburg (50 miles south) and Gettysburg (75 miles north); it’ll also be useful for the battlefields; or cycle – all towns have local bike rentals; inquire at visitor centres.
Further information
Antietam National Battlefield (001 301 432 5124; nps.gov/ancm); Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park (540 373 6122; nps.gov/frsp); Greater Fredericksburg Tourism (540 373 1776; visitfred.com); Gettysburg National Military Park (717 334 1124; nps.gov/gett); Gettysburg Convention & Visitors Bureau (800 337 5015; gettysburg.travel/150).
Anniversary events
Battlefields throughout the South are arranging special events over the four-year course of the war’s 150th anniversary, typically including re-enactments, concerts, battlefield hikes, firing demonstrations, and more. Further information at the Civil War Trust website (civilwar.org/150th-anniversary/150-events).
More Civil War sites
Arlington House, Arlington National Cemetery
General Robert E Lee and his family once lived in this Greek Revival-style mansion. In 1864, the army started burying soldiers on the Arlington estate – the beginning of Arlington National Cemetery (nps.gov/arho).
Harpers Ferry
Radical preacher and abolitionist John Brown staged his raid on the federal armoury in Harpers Ferry in 1859, kick-starting the southern states’ move toward secession. You can visit the armoury and museums that detail aspects of the war (nps.gov/hafe and historicharpersferry.com).
Harpers Ferry
Manassas
The first major battle of the Civil War unfolded in July 1861 at this strategic railway junction 25 miles west of Washington. Washingtonians packed picnics and headed out in their carriages to “see the wah”. Union troops fled back to Washington, marking the First Battle of Manassas a Confederate victory. The next year, the armies clashed here again, with another Confederate triumph (nps.gov/mana).
President Lincoln’s Cottage
In 1862, 1863 and 1864, Lincoln and his family escaped Washington in this Gothic Revival, 34-room “cottage” three miles north of the White House. He wrote the Emancipation Proclamation here (lincolncottage.org).
Richmond, Virginia
Visit the American Civil War Center (tredegar.org), which examines the Civil War from the points of view of the Confederacy, Union and African Americans; the Richmond National Battlefield Park (nps.gov/rich); the Museum of the Confederacy (moc.org), including the former White House of the Confederacy; and Hollywood Cemetery (hollywoodcemetery.org), where Davis and 22 Confederate generals are buried.
Appomattox Court House
At the end of it all, on April 9 1865, General Robert E Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S Grant in this central Virginia village. A six-mile History Trail connects most of the historic sights (nps.gov/apco).
The best hotels
Antietam/Harpers Ferry
The Jackson Rose B & B £
General Stonewall Jackson headquartered in this 1795 federal town house at the beginning of the war; three guest rooms (001 304 535 1528; thejacksonrose.com; from $120/£77).
The Angler’s Inn ££
Victorian b & b on main street, with gourmet breakfasts and guided fishing trips (304 535 1239; theanglersinn.com; from $115/£74).
Antietam Overlook Farm ££
A 19th-century Keedysville farmhouse atop a secluded ridge overlooking Antietam Battlefield, with superb views and big breakfasts (800 878 4241; antietamoverlook.com; from $165/£105).
Gettysburg
Baladerry Inn £
A field hospital during the war; three miles from the battlefield visitor centre. Rooms are warm and cosy, some with fireplaces and patios (717 337 1342; baladerryinn.com; from $124/£79).
Brickhouse Inn £
In the heart of the old town, this inn is located in two historic buildings: an 1898 mansion and a 1830 house that Confederate sharpshooters occupied during the Battle of Gettysburg (717 338 9337; brickhouseinn.com; from $114/£73).
Gettysburg Hotel £
Established in 1797 in the heart of town, with 119 rooms and suites with modern amenities and a rooftop pool (717 337 2000; hotelgettysburg.com; from $85/£53).
The Gettysburg Hotel
Fredericksburg
The Kenmore Inn £
A beautiful late-1700s mansion, with a sweeping staircase, high ceilings, canopy beds and nine guest rooms (540 371 7622; kenmoreinn.com; from $130/£83).
Richard Johnston Inn £
A genteel inn in two 18th-century houses with seven guest-rooms and two suites; it witnessed fighting on its doorstep (540 899 7606; therichardjohnstoninn.com; from $115/£74).
The Schooler House B & B £
Occupying a house built in 1891 and filled with antiques (540 374 5258; theschoolerhouse.com; $150/£96).
The best restaurants
Canal House Café, Harpers Ferry £
Soups, salads, sandwiches and fresh baked goods (1226 W Washington St; 304 535 2880).
Carl’s Ice Cream, Fredericksburg £
Locals have been coming to this roadside stand since 1947; it’s now a national historic landmark (2200 Princess Anne St; 540 372 4457).
La Petite Auberge, Fredericksburg £
Traditional French cuisine with a menu that changes daily; the early bird four-course menu during the week is a steal at $23/£15 (311 William St; 540 371 2727).
TruLuv’s: A Modern American Bistro £
A neighbourhood bistro on the Rappahannock featuring seafood, sandwiches and burgers. Eat in the white-tablecloth dining room or on the patio overlooking the river (1101 Sophia St; 540 373 6500; truluvs.net).
Gettysburg Food and Restaurant Saloon £
Replicates a Civil War-era saloon in the museum and visitor centre.“Taste of the period” menu, including cast-iron chicken pot pie, chilli with Grandma Sarah’s cornbread, and peanut soup with “hardtack” soda crackers (1195 Baltimore Pike; 717 338 1243; lunch only).
Bavarian Inn, Shepherdstown ££
Overlooks the Potomac, across the river from Antietam; it’s a formal restaurant with an extensive German/American menu (164 Shepherd Grade Rd; 304 876 2991).
Dobbin House Tavern, Gettysburg ££
Beautifully restored Revolutionary War-era inn, with candlelit tables, waitresses in period dress, and a colonial-style menu (89 Steinwehr Ave; 717 334 2100; dobbinhouse.com).
![<em>Illustration: Simon Letch</em>” />
<p><em>Illustration: Simon Letch</em></p>
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<p>In the hilltop Shwedagon Pagoda, whose gold-covered stupas gleam far across Rangoon, are countless statues and images of the Buddha, sitting, standing, reclining in timeless fashion.</p>
<p>One little shrine, drawing small crowds of worshippers, is different. Inside the gilded archway is a large disc of flashing, multicoloured, light-emitting diodes, a bit like a Japanese pachinko machine, surrounding a Buddha image.</p>
<p>What price culture? Is it to be preserved in classic fashion, or updated generation to generation? Is it to be kept for the people raised in it? Or marketed around the world?</p>
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<p>The questions arise because big money is attached. In many countries, the responsibility for tending to culture and cultural properties used to be attached to education ministries. It was part of nation-building. Now, it is often joined to the tourism ministry, to boost invisible exports.</p>
<p>States value relics and ruins if they prove lineage to a glorious past or assist in territorial claims. Only a year ago, Cambodians and Thais died in a clash over an 11th-century Hindu temple sitting on their border. In Jerusalem recently, I climbed around new excavations of what appears to be the remains of King David’s palace, just down from the Temple Mount.</p>
<p>But there is also big money in culture, thanks to the explosion of mass travel. For Burma, inward-looking and isolated for half a century but now opening up and losing its political stigma, tourism presents tantalising opportunities and dilemmas.</p>
<p>Recreational travel into Burma is now mainly filled by small groups of prosperous, well-educated older travellers from Western countries and Buddhist pilgrims from other parts of Asia. They are there for self-education, to savour the ”real” Burma before it is all spoiled by consumerism and mass tourism. There are some nice resorts, but for most, comfort and luxury is not the drawcard.</p>
<p>All that could be about to change. Burmese officials see the 350,000 to 400,000 arrivals last year growing to 2 million or 3 million a year over the next decade. Damian Evans, who directs Sydney University’s archaeology project at Siem Reap in Cambodia, near the Angkor Wat temples, thinks they are ”radically underestimating” the potential growth.</p>
<p>”Thailand had 20 million tourists last year, double the number of 10 years ago,” Evans said. ”Myanmar [the official name of Burma] has everything that Thailand has, and better in many respects. For example, as cultural sites go, there is nothing in Thailand to rival Bagan.</p>
<p>”It also has a lot of things that Thailand doesn’t – snow-capped mountains, the finest intact colonial streetscapes in all of south-east Asia, vast undisturbed wilderness areas, and is a great living storehouse of ancient south-east Asian cultural practices and traditions – such as lost-wax bronze casting of Buddha images, and hand-pounded gold leaf production – that have been lost, forgotten, interrupted or diluted elsewhere.</p>
<p>”Unfortunately, it is these less tangible aspects of Myanmar’s cultural heritage that are most threatened by a mass influx of tourists. The one thing that Thailand has that Myanmar doesn’t have (and presumably won’t have), on any scale, is sex tourism, which I think is the one major variable that will potentially differentiate tourism in the two countries.”</p>
<p>So far, the new government of President Thein Sein, result of the Burmese military’s withdrawal from direct political control, seems to be thinking mostly about trade opportunities in physical goods that arise from the country’s position at the junction of China, India and south-east Asia.</p>
<p>But Evans points to a building human flow across borders, too. ”What we’re seeing in China and increasingly India is the emergence of a vast demographic of leisure travellers,” he said. ”People don’t fully understand the implications of this, which will be a mass movement of people over the landscape and across borders that is completely unparalleled in all of human history.</p>
<p>”Myanmar is perfectly positioned and exceptionally well endowed with the resources to take advantage of this phenomenon, and if the regime is very serious about reform and opening up to the outside world, then within a decade, or a decade and a half, tourist numbers could easily rival those of Thailand.”</p>
<p>How fast it can happen is shown at Siem Reap. It used to be a collection of quiet little fishing and farming villages. In 10 years it has become a boomtown with a six-figure population. It had only a couple of international standard hotels to cater for visitors to Angkor Wat. Now it has more than 100.</p>
<p>The tourism explosion initially overwhelmed Cambodian authorities with new problems, including transport access and communications, urban planning, care of the monuments, and sustainable use of water resources.</p>
<p>The Cambodians have been wise enough to accept outside expertise, channelled through the Angkor International Co-ordinating Committee chaired by UNESCO, on what research and restoration should be allowed, any urgent interventions, and how visits should be managed.</p>
<p>It is a possible model for Bagan, the site of an ancient city near Mandalay where more than 2000 temples and pagodas still dot a semi-forested plain, that is the Angkor Wat of Burma in terms of tourist attraction.</p>
<p>Even before Burma really opens up there has been conflict over local restoration work, often undertaken in the Buddhist way to gain merit for the next life, that doesn’t preserve the original character of the building. But if Burmese did this, like Shwedagon’s flashing light Buddha, does this make it less authentic?</p>
<p>A previous military regime built a concrete viewing tower, regarded as an eyesore unless you happened to be looking out from it.</p>
<p>But that is how many Parisians saw the Eiffel Tower.</p>
<p>Mass tourism into Burma still has many barriers. Its two main airports have limited capacity. Its big hotels tend to be owned by tycoons who are still on international sanctions lists. Its visas are relatively harder to get. Many would-be visitors worry about sending the wrong message on political reform.</p>
<p>Its government is still in a position to choose what kind of tourism it will foster. ”The only question is whether Myanmar wants to sell its soul in achieving [big] numbers, or whether it should think seriously of adopting some form of the Botswana or Bhutan model for limiting tourism and its impact,” said Evans.</p>
<p>”Personally I think the financial lure of the churn-and-burn model of mass east Asian package tourism will prove irresistible in Myanmar, as it has at Angkor, and will raise a whole series of issues to do with sustainability, impact on the environment, and heritage preservation.”</p>
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