Confederate soldiers cheered for their generals personally. The Army of Northern Virginia in particular had a relationship with Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee that was unusually intense — when either commander rode past a brigade on the march, the men would throw their hats in the air and cheer until they could no longer see him. Jackson's appearances drew an even louder response than Lee's; the brigade adjutants knew to expect it and tried to keep their formations in line through it. Federal observers across the lines could often tell from the noise of Confederate cheers exactly when Lee or Jackson was riding past. The figure in this set captures the moment a Confederate soldier did what came naturally in his army.

This W. Britain figure depicts a Confederate infantryman in the moment of a cheer — slouch hat raised high in his left hand, rifle musket held in his right at port arms, mid-stride in motion. He wears the late-war Confederate kit: gray shell jacket, butternut trousers (with the visible mending typical of Confederate uniforms by 1864), the bedroll across his chest, and the cartridge box on his belt. The cheering pose works as a foreground figure for any marching column, dress parade, or commander-passing-by diorama. Pair this figure with General Robert E. Lee as the commander whose appearance draws the cheer; with Lt. Gen. Stonewall Jackson Mounted on Little Sorrel, who drew the loudest cheers of any Confederate commander; or with Forward March Confederate Infantry for a column with the cheering figure at its head.

Scale: 1/30 (60mm). Matte-painted metal. W. Britain model 31377. From the American Civil War range. Single foot figure, supplied painted and ready for display.