Attack on a Man of Straw

Attack on a Man of Straw – A Union Officer’s Reflection on the Battle of Big Bethel (1861)A raw folk ballad told from the perspective of a Union officer who survived the disastrous night march to Big Bethel. What started as a confident plan to crush a weak Confederate outpost turned into chaos when poor coordination, missing passwords, and friendly fire caused Union troops to shoot their own men in the dark.As the officer reflects on the panic, the fleeing soldiers, and the empty "man of straw" they came to fight, the song captures the bitter realization that they were their own worst enemy that night.Inspired by a real post-battle quote from a Union officer who described the operation as an attack on "a man of straw."