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For most of history, the natural effects of beard growth have caused bearded men to remain united in solidarity with their brethren. But there is one case of facial hair factionalism that nearly tore our country apart.
I’m talking about the bitter beard battle that was President Abraham Lincoln’s Union vs. General Robert E. Lee’s Confederacy.
Our understanding of the American Civil War evolves and grows with us as we progress through the school system. Our simplistic understanding of the conflict moves past the view that sees the war between the states as one of northern abolition versus southern slavery to a more nuanced understanding of the war as one with many economic motivations and philosophical divides – of which slavery was but one. But it seems safe to say that both sides of the conflict had, at least, their love of eclectic facial hair in common.
Lincoln’s beard is well known in our nation, level only with his top hat as a symbol of the United States’ 16th president. Many bearded men today will lament being called “Abe” simply because they sport a beard sans mustache. Lincoln had a formidable neck beard, but the style of shaving above the mouth and the upper cheeks was new to anyone but the Amish. It was a bold step to grow his beard – the request of a young girl in New York – as no president had ever had one before him.
It’s hard to find information about Lee’s whiskers. I was not able to find one picture of Lee clean shaven, and was only able to find one image of him without his trademark full white beard. In his youth, he sported a mustache, and it seems that by the time of his appointment to general-in-chief of the Confederate Army, he had developed a full beard – four years after being offered command of the Union Army by Lincoln. Could it be that he developed a beard-complex upon meeting the charismatic Illinoisan? We may never know.
Lincoln and Lee weren’t the only well-known whiskered wiseguys in the Civil War. On the Confederate side, Gen. Beauregard seemed distinguished yet wholesome with his Van Dyke – a goatee and mustache. Gen. Erwell must have inspired terror in the hearts of his enemies when they saw his combination of a Franz Joseph sideburn extension and long goatee. The man is a sight to behold.
On the Union’s side, perhaps the most interesting beard was Gen. Du Pont’s style, which would be termed a “full beard” if not for the shaving of his chin and soul patch – leaving his mustache, sideburns and neckbeard intact. It looked like his beard had a hole in it. And who could forget General Ambrose Burnside of the Union Army, whose distinctive facial hair was so influential that to enthusiasts forever after, “sideburns” would be his namesake. This may be a humor column, but I’m not joking on this one. Look it up. You’ll be glad you did.
Bangor Daily News