John Esten Cooke was a Confederate soldier who came to know several famous Confederate generals during the Civil War. In addition to working for the famous cavalry officer J.E.B. Stuart, which had him participate in some of the Army of Northern Virginia's greatest campaigns, Cooke came to know Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson as well. After the war, Cooke wrote Wearing of the Gray, using a very Romantic writing style that celebrated both the war and the Lost Cause. It was also an example of reminiscences by Civil War veterans that helped bring about reconciliation between the North and South.