The South suffered greatly yet conducted itself honorably in an extremely difficult situation. We seek to honor the bravery and character of the Southern soldier and their military units. Those men seem larger than life to us in what they endured over a period of four years of being exposed to the most horrendous warfare and an overwhelming armed force.
Patriotism, constitutional liberty, freedom, way of life, survival as a nation, independence and self-government with determination to fight rather than be conquered and subjugated, motivated them with a willingness to die for the cause of the Southern Confederacy. These concepts and their belief in the "Cause" kept them going as military analyst studying the will of the armies to fight confirm that this Southern conviction was a most powerful combat motivation that gave Southern soldiers remarkable staying power in the face of adversity. The war eventually took the lives of 260,000 Confederate war casualties. It was not standard policy to award medals in the CSA Army. The rationale was that loyal Confederate servicemen were all heroes and it would do to single anyone out, as it was considered exceptionally significant just to be mentioned in war dispatches. To forget the Confederate soldier’s memory would be a tragedy the Maury Grays will not allow to happen. Therefore, today's veterans of the Maury Grays, Company H, 1st Tennessee Infantry, deeply feel as follows...
We are very dedicated to the values of the old Confederacy as true Southern gentlemen must always be, standing up for southron pride and honor, remaining proud of who we are and who our ancestors were and what they stood for. We reenact and live it once again today as the Maury Grays, recreating the experience of the Confederate soldier to gain personal knowledge of how those heroes contended with weather, food, drill, fatigue, camp life, and battle conditions. This gives one a connection and vicarious bonding with them one can get in no other way. We are also preserving our prideful Confederate heritage now under attack, as Confederates are wrongfully often portrayed as racial hate mongers whose history should be dismissed or erroneously "rewritten" rather than taken most seriously. Dedicated members of the Maury Grays are privileged, proud and honored to stand up and be visible with flags flying at parades, cemetery ceremonies, living history events, and on the battlefields. This is much more than just a "hobby" to us. To insure that our Confederate history remains accurately alive and not maligned, Company H provides an opportunity to be a part of a prestigious organization dedicated to preserving honorable Confederate values of our ancestors and the sacred memory of those brave men who can no longer speak for themselves.
Today's Maury Grays is a family oriented adult reenacting organization, which also allows younger men to join. Candidacy and recruiting for membership desires only the best of like minded and God-fearing men of good character, within a scenario, which is obviously not for everyone. It is extremely important that volunteer member individual motivation and interest in reenacting compliment established veteran consensus as Company H, First Regiment Tennessee Infantry relives the highly respected Confederate military organization tradition consisting of a truly three dimensional unit accurately portraying historical correctness in:
1. Military Impression(chain of command, discipline, company level impression, etc.)
2. Physical Impression (uniforms, equipment and personal impression, acts and deeds, etc.)
3. Mind Frame (first person impression, knowledge, character, etc.)