For lovers of American history, the ‘Rebel’s Yell’ provides a fascinating glimpse into the past as it documented Confederate soldiers years after the conclusion of the Civil War.
The collection is named after the battle cry of the Confederate Army, and shows veterans taking turns bellowing into the camera.
The Smithsonian, who houses the footage, prefaces the film by stating: ‘From the early 1900s through the 1940s, Civil War veterans were filmed, recorded and interviewed at reunions, parades and other patriotic events where, as the century advanced, they came increasingly to seem like… trophies from some distant age of heroes.’
‘In this 1930s clip from the Library of Congress,’ the remarks continue, ‘ veterans stepped up to the mic, taking their turns with their version of the ‘Rebel Yell.’
The Smithsonian says it’s unclear where the Rebel Yell originated, but experts believe that it was influenced by Native Americans war cries or Scottish war cry traditions.
The footage is stored with The Smithsonian Institute, which is a group of museums and research centers administered by the Government of the United States
A Confederate veteran soldiers takes his turn to bellow the ‘Rebel’s Yell’ into a camera, footage now preserved with the Smithsonian
The film opens to a chorus of loud yelps as veteran soldiers holding Confederate flags make their way the middle of a gathering
The ‘superintendent’ (pictured left) looks into the camera and says ‘we can’t give you much, but we’ll give you what we got left.’
The audience then lets out three yelps in unison, with a voice in the background stating: ‘Charge em’, boys, charge em’!’
The superintendent also introduces individual veterans and invites them to perform their own ‘Rebel Yell’
The footage is stored with The Smithsonian Institute, which is a group of museums and research centers administered by the Government of the United States