"In early 1861, Professor Thomas Jonathan Jackson was an unhappy, unpopular professor of artillery, optics, mathematics and astronomy at the Virginia Military Institute. Remarried after the death of his first wife, the deeply religious Jackson believed in predestination: Everything that happened to him was intended to happen. Conversely, one of his frequently stated maxims was, "You can be whatever you will." Guided by these two contradictory ideas, he became a fearless commander. If the Civil War had not happened, Jackson likely would have passed the rest of his life as a teacher, spending his spare time boning up on unfamiliar subjects, practicing his lectures, and spending time with his daughter. Instead, he was thrust into leadership positions. The Civil War changed his life forever, and his death changed the course of the war."
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Educators from the United StatesPresbyterians from the United StatesPeople from West VirginiaConfederate military leaders
Original Language: English
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Sources
Emilee Hines, It Happened In Virginia (2010), second edition, p. 73
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Stonewall_Jackson
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Stonewall Jackson
Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Virginian teacher and soldier. He became a famous Confederate general during the American Civil War as a corps commander in the Army of Northern Virginia under General Robert E. Lee.
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