Professional information
Alexandre Caillot is a PhD candidate in history, 
advised by Dr. Gregory Urwin, and is in his sixth year. Alexandre’s interests lie primarily in the field of nineteenth-century American military history, as well as the social and cultural history of the period. His dissertation research explores the experiences and contributions of Civil War soldiers, specifically Union combatants who entered the Army of the Potomac in time to serve during the Overland Campaign. He plans to assess the motivations, behavior, and combat performance of men who filled the ranks left empty by veterans with expiring three-year terms. To accomplish this, he is using a sample of regiments and independent companies in the IX Corps. Alexandre intends to combine social and more “traditional” military history by assessing the socioeconomic profile of these men as well as their political beliefs and the degree to which they adapted to military life. He will also examine their performance under fire, thereby determining whether the common historical emphasis on such men as bounty jumpers and lackluster soldiers requires further scrutiny.
Education
PhD student in History, Temple University, 2015-
Fields: U.S. military, cultural, and social history; European military, political, and social history
Dissertation: “The Forgotten Boys of the Ninth Corps: Union Conscripts, Enlistees, and Heavy Artillerymen from the Wilderness to Appomattox”
Committee Members: Dr. Gregory J.W. Urwin (adviser), Dr. Jay Lockenour, Dr. Lorien Foote
Passed Comprehensive Exams with Distinction
Sergeant Major William F. Berger Prize Endowed Fellowship for War and Society
Member, Golden Key International Honour Society
B.A. Colby College, 2013
Cum Laude, Double Major in History and Classics
Honors in History
Distinction in Major for History and Classics
Extraordinary Service to the History Department
Co-winner of John B. Foster Memorial Prize in Classics
Teaching interests
- Civil War
- War and society
- 18th- and 19th-century America
- Historical memory