Arthur Fremantle - in Popular Media

In Popular Media

Part of the reason for the enduring fame of Fremantle compared to his fellow observers may be his role in Civil War literature and film, thanks to the success of Michael Shaara's historical novel, The Killer Angels. The novel, published in 1974, deals with the events of the Battle of Gettysburg and the effects of the engagement on some of the main protagonists, including Generals Longstreet and Lee, as well as Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and General John Buford. Shaara's primary source material for researching the novel included the diaries, letters and correspondence of figures who were either involved in or present at the Battle.

Although part of a cadre of foreign observers, Fremantle is easily the most prominent neutral character in the novel. Unlike Lawley, Scheibert and Ross, Fremantle frequently interacts with the main characters. He even receives a chapter to himself, uniquely for a secondary character. He is portrayed as a genial and gregarious person, although he has a tendency to daydream and jump to unlikely conclusions. He is also pressed by several Confederate officers on the matter of British recognition of the Confederacy, lamenting that it is unlikely to happen while slavery persists.

In the 1993 film adaptation of Shaara's novel, retitled Gettysburg, Lieutenant Colonel Fremantle is portrayed by James Lancaster. His character changes little from the book, once again engaging in important discussions with General Longstreet and his officers on the Confederacy's relations with the United Kingdom.

The film version, however, took considerable liberties with Fremantle's appearance. Although physically Lancaster did indeed resemble the observer, he is shown wearing the red dress tunic of the Coldstream Guards, when in reality it is extremely unlikely that Fremantle would have taken his dress uniform with him, being an unofficial observer and unwilling to risk sparking a diplomatic incident in the event of capture by Union forces. In his diary, Fremantle declines an invitation to a formal dance on account of having no suitable formal wear, suggesting that his only available attire was the shooting suit in which he travelled, having sold his luggage early in his travels. The film also shows Fremantle wandering around the Confederate Headquarters drinking tea from a china cup, presumably to emphasize his Englishness.

Since 1993, Fremantle has been portrayed in historical re-enactments in the United States by Roger Hughes, who also led the efforts to have Fremantle's grave in Brighton restored in 2001. Hughes maintains a website providing considerable information on Fremantle, his family, his travels and Civil War re-enactments.

Fremantle was the inspiration for his descendant, Tom Fremantle, to roughly retrace his steps by walking from Texas to New York City with a pack mule in 2001-2002. The trip is documented in the book The Moonshine Mule.