Leatherbreeches : Hero of Chancellorsville

An historical, researched biography of the Union's best artillery officer, Hubert Dilger (1836-1911), popularly known as Leatherbreeches. Dilger commanded Battery I, First Ohio Volunteers, and later served as Adjutant General of Illinois. The book details Leatherbreeches' German boyhood, ancestry (back to 1685), & his exploits at Cross Keys, Second Bull Run, Chancellorsville (Medal of Honor), Gettysburg, and the advance on Atlanta (Bishop Polk's death) & includes maps & descriptions. Insubordination & absence without leave almost resulted in the fiery captain's court martial. Leatherbreeches met Friedrich Hecker, exiled German revolutionary & Union officer, leading to marriage with Hecker's niece, Elise Tiedemann, Philadelphia daughter of German revolutionary expatriates. Elise, youthful spiritualist, describes occult experiences. Dilger eventually settled in Virginia where he developed a life-long affection for his wartime antagonists. Life on an 1800 acre farm (where the country's first Holstein-Friesian cows were bred) is described. Hubert & Elise raised twelve children in a refined atmosphere reflecting the best German traditons. Four daughters married Germans & a son became a German physician.Keyser, Carl A. is the author of 'Leatherbreeches : Hero of Chancellorsville', published 1989 under ISBN 9780962605819 and ISBN 0962605816.