Civil War 'Death Moon' Blamed for Killing 'Stonewall' Jackson (VIDEO)
Two researchers have blamed a full moon for the death of Confederate soldier "Stonewall" Jackson.
"The Moon was shining very brightly, rendering all objects in our immediate vicinity distinct," one confederate captain wrote years later. "The Moon poured a flood of light upon the wide, open turnpike."
It was by the light of that very moon in the Spring of 1863 that a Confederate officer in the Civil War would spot a man riding on top of horse near the battle line. He would order his men to shoot only to find out later that the man, now fatally wounded, was the general of the Confederate army- Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson.
150 years after his death, which largely contributed to a Union victory and the freeing of slaves, two researchers have forwards stating that if it were not for the moonlight, Jackson may not have been killed. Appearing in this month's issue of Sky & Telescope magazine, astronomer Don Olson and researcher Laurie E. Jasinski from Texas State University put forward the new theory.
Jackson died May 10, 1863 after complications from an arm amputation- a result of the injury he incurred when his men opened fire on him. The men should have recognized the general, but they didn't because of the moon.
"The bright moon would've silhouetted Jackson and his officers, completely obscuring their identities," the researchers have argued according to a report by CNN, citing specific scientific evidence that includes the exact angle the moon would have been position in at the time the battle occurred.
The new evidence, however, will not save the man who ordered his men to shoot, from guilt. Maj. John D. Barry, the officer who told his men to fire, died at age 27 -- just two years after the end of the war.
"His family believed his death was a result of the depression and guilt he suffered as a consequence of having given the order to fire," the Virginia Military Institute site said according to CNN.
