Includes 8 maps and numerous other illustrations The Mississippi River had figured prominently in the North’s strategic planning from the outset of the war. In May 1861, then-General in Chief of the U.S. Army Winfield Scott had drafted the so-called Anaconda Plan. Scott had proposed that the Federal armed forces squeeze the life out of the Confederacy by blockading the Southern coastline and launching an amphibious thrust down the Mississippi. He had argued that his plan would end the war with minimal bloodshed, conveniently ignoring the fact that it would take years for the North to build a sufficient navy. President Abraham Lincoln thought the Anaconda Plan had merit, but he knew that the Army would have to play a far more active role than Scott had envisioned—especially in Kentucky and Missouri—where Unionist and secessionist forces were already maneuvering for power. Lincoln was determined not only to keep the two crucial border states in the Union, but to rescue eastern Tennessee. One senator, Andrew Johnson, and one congressman, Horace Maynard, from that region remained in Washington to represent their Unionist supporters. On 4 August, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan, the Army of the Potomac’s new commander, presented his own strategic plan for the West that accorded with Lincoln’s wishes yet proved more elaborate. He recommended a grand campaign involving two western armies—one based in Kentucky and the other in Missouri. The first army would divide into two columns in order to capture eastern Tennessee and Nashville. They would reunite at Chattanooga and proceed to Atlanta and then Montgomery, Alabama. After gaining control of Missouri, the second army would launch an amphibious expedition down the Mississippi River and seize New Orleans. All that remained was for the president to find generals willing and able to put these ambitious plans into action.

"Examines the campaigns and battles that occurred during 1862 in the vast region between the Appalachian Mountains in the east and the Mississippi River in the west, and from the Ohio River in the north to the Gulf of Mexico in the south" --publisher.

A Civil War First! Never has anything comparable to this massive volume been published on the Western Theatre in America's War Between the States. Bush takes the reader through every major battle in the West complete with an order of battle listing all units involved for each confrontation. Richly illustrated with nearly 700 photographs maps, charts and drawings to embellish each detailed account. You'll see extraordinary features of some of the most outstanding artifact collections in the world, all of Western Theatre battles and men who fought them.

Includes over 30 maps and Illustrations The Staff Ride Handbook for the Vicksburg Campaign, December 1862-July 1863, provides a systematic approach to the analysis of this key Civil War campaign. Part I describes the organization of the Union and Confederate Armies, detailing their weapons, tactics, and logistical, engineer, communications, and medical support. It also includes a description of the U.S. Navy elements that featured so prominently in the campaign. Part II consists of a campaign overview that establishes the context for the individual actions to be studied in the field. Part III consists of a suggested itinerary of sites to visit in order to obtain a concrete view of the campaign in its several phases. For each site, or “stand,” there is a set of travel directions, a discussion of the action that occurred there, and vignettes by participants in the campaign that further explain the action and which also allow the student to sense the human “face of battle.” Part IV provides practical information on conducting a Staff Ride in the Vicksburg area, including sources of assistance and logistical considerations. Appendix A outlines the order of battle for the significant actions in the campaign. Appendix B provides biographical sketches of key participants. Appendix C provides an overview of Medal of Honor conferral in the campaign. An annotated bibliography suggests sources for preliminary study.

@font-face { font-family: "Times New Roman";}p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; line-height: 200%; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Times; }table.MsoNormalTable { font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } The American Civil War was won and lost on its western battlefields, but accounts of triumphant Union generals such as Grant and Sherman leave half of the story untold. In the third volume of Confederate Generals in the Western Theater, editors Lawrence Hewitt and Arthur Bergeron bring together ten more never-before-published essays filled with new, penetrating insights into the key question of why the Rebel high command in the West could not match the performance of Robert E. Lee in the East. Showcasing the work of such gifted historians as Wiley Sword, Timothy B. Smith, Rory T. Cornish, and M. Jane Johansson, this book is a compelling addition to an ongoing, collective portrait of generals who occasionally displayed brilliance but were more often handicapped by both geography and their own shortcomings. While the vast, varied terrain of the Western Theater slowed communications and troop transfers and led to the creation of too many military departments that hampered cooperation among commands, even more damaging were the personal qualities of many of the generals. All too frequently, incompetence, egotism, and insubordination were the rule rather than the exception. Some of these men were undone by alcoholism and womanizing, others by politics and nepotism. A few outlived their usefulness; others were killed before they could demonstrate their potential. Together, they destroyed what chance the Confederacy had of winning its independence. Whether adding fresh fuel to the debate over the respective roles of Albert Sidney Johnston and P. G. T. Beauregard at Shiloh or bringing to light such lesser known figures as Joseph Finegan and Hiram Bronson Granbury, this volume, like the ones preceding it, is an exemplary contribution to Civil War scholarship. Lawrence Lee Hewitt is professor of history emeritus at Southeastern Louisiana University. A recipient of SLU’s President’s Award for Excellence in Research and the Charles L. Dufour Award for “outstanding achievements in preserving the heritage of the American Civil War,” he is a former managing editor of North & South. His publications include Port Hudson: Confederate Bastion on the Mississippi. The late Arthur W. Bergeron Jr. was a reference historian with the United States Army Military History Institute and a past president of the Louisiana Historical Association. Among his earlier books were Confederate Mobile and A Thrilling Narrative: The Memoir of a Southern Unionist.

Illustrated with 27 maps and plans of the campaign and engagements at Shiloh. The Staff Ride Handbook for the Battle of Shiloh, 6-7 April 1862 provides a systematic approach to the analysis of this early battle in the western theater of the American Civil War. Part I describes the organization of both armies, detailing their weapons, tactics, logistics, engineering, communications, and medical support. Part II consists of a campaign overview that allows students to understand how the armies met on the battlefield. Part III is a suggested route for conducting a staff ride at Shiloh. For each stop, or “stand,” there is a set of travel directions, a description of the action that occurred there, vignettes by battle participants, a list of discussion or teaching points that a staff ride leader can explore at the stand, and a map of the battle actions. Part IV provides information on conducting the integration phase of a staff ride. Suggested areas of discussion for use during the integration phase are included. Part V provides information on conducting a staff ride at Shiloh, including sources of assistance and logistics considerations. Appendix A provides the order of battle, including numbers engaged and casualties. Appendix B provides key participants’ biographical information. Appendix C is a list of Medal of Honor recipients for actions at Shiloh. An annotated bibliography gives sources for preliminary study.

With striking visuals from the Library of Congress' unparalleled archive, The Library of Congress Illustrated Timeline of the Civil War is an authoritative and engaging narrative of the domestic conflict that determined the course of American history. A detailed chronological timeline of the war captures the harrowing intensity of 19th-century warfare in firsthand accounts from soldiers, nurses, and front-line journalists. Readers will be enthralled by speech drafts in Lincoln's own hand, quotes from the likes of Frederick Douglass and Robert E. Lee, and portraits of key soldiers and politicians who are not covered in standard textbooks. The Illustrated Timeline's exciting new source material and lucid organization will give Civil War enthusiasts a fresh look at this defining period in our nation's history.

Confederate Generals in the Western Theater ultimately comprise several volumes that promise a host of provocative new insights into not only the South's ill-fated campaigns in the West but also the eventual outcome of the larger conflict. --Book Jacket.

Illustrated with 9 figures and 11 maps of the campaign and engagements at Perryville. The battle of Perryville symbolized the high-water mark of the Confederacy in the western theater of operations. In Aug. 1862 General Braxton Bragg and Major General (MG) Edmund Kirby Smith led separate armies into Kentucky to wrest the state from the Union and install a Confederate governor. They initially met success and captured the state capital, simultaneously shifting the war in the west from northern Mississippi and Alabama to Kentucky. In response the North raised additional forces to protect Cincinnati and Louisville while MG Don Carlos Buell halted his offensive against Chattanooga and marched his Army of the Ohio back to Kentucky. On 8 Oct. 1862 Buell’s army clashed with Bragg’s at Perryville. The Confederates achieved a tactical success in a hard-fought engagement that generated more than 7,000 casualties. Of the regiments engaged, 10 suffered losses between 40 and 60 percent. However, outnumbered by three to one, Bragg’s army could not sustain its victory and withdrew. Within days of the battle, all of the invading Southern forces retired from the state. Kentucky remained firmly in the Union and secure from Confederate invasion for the war’s duration. Despite its importance to the course of the war in the west, Perryville does not benefit from the high visibility accorded the better-known Civil War sites such as Manassas, Gettysburg, Antietam, and Chickamauga. Although more than 70,000 Union and Confederate soldiers deployed in and around Perryville, understanding of the battle and its significance to the overall course of the war remains poor. For staff ride purposes this unfamiliarity can be a benefit. It forces the participants to study and think about the situation facing their Civil War counterparts without the preconceived notions that surround the more popular sites.

Includes Civil War Map and Illustrations Pack – 224 battle plans, campaign maps and detailed analyses of actions spanning the entire period of hostilities. In this work, Dr. Howard Hensel has analyzed the national objectives, grand and national military strategies, and theater operations of the United States government and the Union army during the four year conflict. In addition to contributing to a better understanding of these aspects of Federal war policy, Dr. Hensel has drawn generalizable conclusions from the actions of the Washington politico-military leadership. Of particular interest is the typology of offensively oriented, generic military strategies constructed from the experience of the Federal high command and its armies during this traumatic war.