Origin of the title
General Orders No. 9 is a nickname for General Robert E. Lee's Farewell Address in 1865, which is as follows:
Headquarters, Army of Northern Virginia, 10th April 1865.
General Order
No. 9
After four years of arduous service marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources.
I need not tell the survivors of so many hard fought battles, who have remained steadfast to the last, that I have consented to the result from no distrust of them.
But feeling that valour and devotion could accomplish nothing that could compensate for the loss that must have attended the continuance of the contest, I have determined to avoid the useless sacrifice of those whose past services have endeared them to their countrymen.
By the terms of the agreement, officers and men can return to their homes and remain until exchanged. You will take with you the satisfaction that proceeds from the consciousness of duty faithfully performed, and I earnestly pray that a merciful God will extend to you his blessing and protection.
With an unceasing admiration of your constancy and devotion to your Country, and a grateful remembrance of your kind and generous consideration for myself, I bid you an affectionate farewell.
— R. E. Lee, General, General Order No. 9
Lee gave this address to his fellow Confederates in Virginia the day after surrendering at Appomattox Court House. In other words, it is a bittersweet goodbye to his compatriots and an admittance of defeat. It was the end of an era, so to speak.
Apparently, the filmmaker is indeed longing for the idyllic past of the South, which is at first somewhat heartwarming, but after gaining this new knowledge about the title, I have a sneaking suspicion that it is not only the idyllic landscapes the filmmaker longs for.
Perhaps I am in error and the narrator of the film is meant to be seen as untrustworthy and his words ironic; however, given the pathos employed throughout this film, it seems that General Orders No. 9 is, at best, longing for the old glory days of Southern hospitality and living off the land. At worst, it is nostalgic for the days when human bondage fed the Southern way of life and the cotton industry boomed--and that when Lee surrendered to Grant, he paved the way for the South to be "urbanized" by future generations.
Thoughts? share