title: How do I reword the very first git commit message?
body: <h2>I have a working tree containing 3 commmits:</h2>
  
  <p>➜  ~myproject git:(master) <code>git log</code></p>
  
  <pre><code>commit a99cce8240495de29254b5df8745e41815db5a75
  Author: My Name &lt;my@mail.com&gt;
  Date:   Thu Aug 16 00:59:05 2012 +0200
  
      .gitignore edits
  
  commit 5bccda674c7ca51e849741290530a0d48efd69e8
  Author: My Name &lt;my@mail.com&gt;
  Date:   Mon Aug 13 01:36:39 2012 +0200
  
      Create .gitignore file
  
  commit 6707a66191c84ec6fbf148f8f1c3e8ac83453ae3
  Author: My Name &lt;my@mail.com&gt;
  Date:   Mon Aug 13 01:13:05 2012 +0200
  
      Initial commit (with a misleading message)
  </code></pre>
  
  <h2>Now I wish to <a href="http://git-scm.com/docs/git-rebase" rel="noreferrer"><code>reword</code></a> the commit message of my <em>first commit</em> (6707a66)</h2>
  
  <p>➜  ~myproject git:(master) <code>git rebase -i 6707</code></p>
  
  <p>(…entering vim)</p>
  
  <pre><code>pick 5bccda6 Create .gitignore file
  pick a99cce8 .gitignore edits
  
  # Rebase 6707a66..a99cce8 onto 6707a66
  #
  # Commands:
  #  p, pick = use commit
  #  r, reword = use commit, but edit the commit message
  #  e, edit = use commit, but stop for amending
  #  s, squash = use commit, but meld into previous commit
  #  f, fixup = like "squash", but discard this commit's log message
  #  x, exec = run command (the rest of the line) using shell
  #
  # These lines can be re-ordered; they are executed from top to bottom.
  #
  # If you remove a line here THAT COMMIT WILL BE LOST.
  # However, if you remove everything, the rebase will be aborted.
  #
  # Note that empty commits are commented out
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>In this case, I wish to correct (<code>reword</code> in git parlance) the commit message in question:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p>Initial commit (with a misleading message)</p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>…to something appropriate.</p>
  
  <p>Unsurprisingly, my attempt above didn't succeed since the first commit obviously doesn't have any <em>parent</em> commit. (And when you <code>rebase</code>, you need to reference the next oldest commit <em>prior</em> to the one you wish to <code>reword</code>, right?)</p>
  
  <p>The gist of my question, thus, can you achieve this by any other means of doing it?</p>