1 comments about McClellan, Sherman, and Grant.

1. This short book is really three separate essays about three of the North's most controversial generals. They seem to be arranged in the author's estimation of them, with McClellan being the poorest general and Grant the best. The essays are insightful, and Williams argues some interesting points that differ from what most historians believe, especially in the case of Sherman and McClellan. Throughout it all, he seems to remain, for the most part, fair, neither condemning nor fully praising any of the three. I don't personally agree with his argument that the primary objective in war should be destroying the enemy's army, and thus would rank Sherman higher than Grant, but I do think he makes an interesting point. If this book was documented (that is, if Williams showed where he got his information), it would be a lot better, and a lot more scholarly, but as it stands it is nevertheless an interesting argument on three of the North's most important generals.

4 comments about Robert E. Lee: Icon for a Nation.

1. At the end of the American Civil War Robert E. Lee had only five years to live. The heart problems that caused him to spend the battle of the North Anna River in an ambulance killed him. ==In the years following his reputation as a battlefield leader was heavily promoted by writers lamenting the lost cause of Southern independence. These included not only Southerners but Northernors as well.
   
   In this book Brian Holden Reid, Professor of American History at King's College London, writes from the vantage point of a disinterested outsider to argue that Lee was one of the great commanders of all time. He does not claim that Lee didn't have faults. Everyone does, but that the overall generalship of General Lee ranks him among the best.
   
   The American Civil War took place at a transition point in military affairs. The war before (Mexico, 1843) and the war that followed (World War I). The author contends that Lee was among the first of the modern generals. If the armies had listened to him during World War I, it probably wouldn't have turned into the mess that it was.



2. It is easy to overlook the many contributions that non-Americans have made to the study of the American Civil War. Brian Holden Reid's outstanding study "Robert E. Lee: Icon for a Nation" brings an informed, fresh and balanced perspective to bear upon the Confederacy's greatest general. Reid is Professor of American History and Military Institutions and Head of the Department of War Studies at Kings College, London. He has taught military strategy and tactics and written extensively about America's Civil War.
   
   Any new study of Lee must work on two levels. First, of course, it must examine Lee himself, his life, his career, and his generalship. Second, any study must come to terms with the extensive writing and radically shifting perspectives about Lee over the years. Following the Civil War, Lee quickly became an icon to Southern partisans in the "Lost Cause" tradition. His character and success, for a time, against long military odds soon elevated Lee into a figure respected and revered by many Americans, north and south. Then, in mid-20th Century a reaction set in against Lee, questioning some of the mythology that had grown around him and challenging his agressive conduct of the War, his focus on the Eastern theater, his alleged lack of broad strategic vision, and the high casualty rate to which he subjected the Army of Northern Virginia, among other things. The reasons underlying the reassessment were complex. They included correcting an overly iconic and uncritical account, the changing perspective with which Americans viewed the Civil War, and a general and, I think, unhappy tendency to debunk and to criticise important historical figures.
   
   In clear, elegant prose, Reid examines Lee and Lee historiography. Although Reid avoids hero worship, he clearly admires greatly Robert E. Lee as a person and as a general. He finds that much, but not all, of the traditional picture of Lee has merit: he was an imaginative, agressive, savvy, and gifted commander who, importantly, inspired the love and the trust of his men. He fought and won many battles against long odds and prolonged the life of the Confederacy, giving it its best chance to achieve independence. Reid is far from uncritical as he points to flaws in, among other things, the command structure of Lee's army, the commander's frequent over-confidence, his tendency to overdelegate to subordinates, his conduct of the Battle of Gettysburg, and the failure to make the most of his opportunites in battles such as Seven Days, Second Manassas, Fredricksburg, and Chancellorsville. For all these faults, Lee emerges in this study as a remarkable, charismatic commander whom Reid believes is properly regarded as one of the greatest in history.
   
   The book opens with a chapter on Lee the icon with a summary of how historians of the "Lost Cause" school have viewed him, under the influence of the writings of Confederate General Jubal Early. The book then discusses Lee's pre-Civil War career, focusing on his service in Mexico, but gathers force in its consideration of Lee's three-year career as the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. Lee's assumption of command in June, 1862, and the battles for which he is famous -- Seven Days, Second Manassas, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness Campaign, Petersburg, and Appatomatox, are discussed clearly and with sufficient detail. Reid keeps his and the reader's focus on the main themes of his study: showing Lee's greatness as a leader but his shortcomings as well.
   
   In common with most books about Lee, his military exploits are discussed in detail but we see little of his inmost thoughts and feelings. Lee was a highly reserved individual. I would have also liked more emphasis on Lee's pre-Civil War career and, particularly, a fuller discussion of Lee's life and career as President of Washington University following the Civil War. The book includes some basic maps of the key theatres of Lee's operations -- placed at the beginning of the book to avoid cluttering the text -- a good, basic bibliography, and no footnotes.
   
   Reid has written an excellent study of a great commander which argues convincingly that Lee deserves most of the esteem that he has traditionally received. This book will appeal to serious students of the Civil War.
   
   Robin Friedman



3. the author is a good writer, entertaining with an obvious wealth of knowledge of the subject. I couldn't imagine how the author could get a picture of Lee into that small book when it took Freeman four volumes, but it was well worth the purchase, I would highly recommend it.



4. General Lee was a trator to this country and his training, and he would have replaced the Black-American slaves with the Irish serfs of Europe, according to Elizabeth B. Pryor, in her study of Lee, in Reading The Man. Please only recommend historal facts to me, and not some idealized opinion. Lee was a West Point trained soldier, and he selected personal comfort and convience over duty. Am I to believe that Ms. Pryor is incorrect?

No comments about Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Democracy: 1833-1845 (Andrew Jackson & the Course of American Democracy 1833-1845).

5 comments about In the Hands of Providence: Joshua L. Chamberlain and the American Civil War.

1. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was the epitome of the American citizen-soldier. Since the birth of the republic, American soldiers have left home and hearth to serve the nation and many of them have come home physically shattered and haunted by what they have seen while still others have not come home at all. Thrown into the breech, some of the citizen solders found they did not have the fortitude for what was asked of them while many others have excelled, performing better than graduates of West Point or Annapolis, America's most prestigious military academies. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was a citizen soldier who became a great hero of the Civil War, a man who met challenge after challenge and became a great leader of men and afterward, the course of his life was forever altered. An academically inclined young man, Chamberlain left Bowdin College and his studies and teaching in theology to accept a lieutenant colonel's commission in the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The modest young professor took part in most of the important battles of the North's Army of the Potomac. He was a participant in the Battle of Antietam, still the bloodiest single day in American history. Today, we can walk the battlefield off Sharpsburg Pike, in rural Maryland and see "Burnside's Bridge and the cornfields where so many men fell and get some small measure of what men like Chamberlain went through. We can also visit the battlefield at Fredericksburg and see the heights that he and his 20th Maine and the Union Army tried to take in bloody frontal assaults into the teeth of Confederate guns and under the pounding of their artillery on the hills. Today Chamberlain's comrades - as well as the fallen Confederate troops - are buried on the commanding heights they failed to take, one of the Civil War's bitter ironies. Colonel Chamberlain then immortalized himself at Gettysburg's Little Round Top where he anchored the Union left, repelling assault after assault and winning the day by leading a charge down the slope that broke the Rebel troops. He was given a general's star by General Grant at Petersburg and was honored to receive the Confederate surrender at Appomattox. His heroism and leadership qualities helped him win the Governorship of Maine no less than four times, after which he retired to the Presidency of Bowdin College, his alma mater. Alice Trulock who wrote this book, was not a professional writer and after her retirement from civic affairs, this book took her ten years of careful research, writing and rewriting to complete. She based her work on a great deal of new research and handles the account of infantry combat beautifully. Unfortunately, Trulock died before the book was released and so she wasn't able to accept the accolades that were due to her for such a well-written and moving biography of an emblematic Civil War figure.



2. The Duke of Wellington supposedly stated that it is impossible for a Christian to serve in the military. Too bad he wasn't around during the American Civil War! Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson from the South and Joshua Chamberlain and Otis Howard from the North are notable exceptions to Wellington's thesis.
   
   Trulock has written what is the best account of the hero of Little Round Top and who personally oversaw the surrender of Confederate troops at Appamattox.
   
   Among the important events in Chamberlain's life covered include:
   
   1. Birth and Christian upbringing in rural Maine.
   2. His days as a student and adminstrator at Bowdoin College.
   3. His early Civil War service including the formation of the famous 20th Maine Regiment.
   4. Fascinating accounts of his involvement in major Civil War battles: Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, Petersburg, and other engagements.
   5. The horrible wound suffered at Petersburg that eventually killed him some 50 years later.
   6. His loving yet strained marriage to Frances Caroline Adams.
   7. Postwar public service as President of Bowdoin College and Governor of Maine.
   
   Reading the book was a joy - the narrative flowed smoothly while covering several details of a fascinating character. The author managed to keep the story from becoming too bogged down in dry detail without insulting the reader's intelligence. Oh, how I wish more biographies were written like this!
   
   The book also contains excellent battle maps and numerous photographs of the main characters: Chamberlain, his wife, parents, sister and brothers, many Civil War officers, and other important people in Joshua Chamberlain's life.
   
   All in all, an excellent and highly recommended read. Read and enjoy!



3. I found Alice Trulock's biography on Joshua L. Chamberlain to be quite readable, well researched and well grounded. Considering the length of the book, Trulock's book read quite well for most readers of any level. Well, it may not be good as the one written by John Pullen but it definitely is superior to the one written by Edward Longacre. I put that in just for comparison purpose.
   
   I think this biography may served as a good introduction to Chamberlain who's name have definitely reached near mythological level nowadays among Civil War readers thanks to Jeff Daniels and his role in that movie "Gettysburg". Of course, most readers would probably be disappointed that Jeff Daniel's portaryal of Chamberlain will not jive with Joshua Chamberlain of Trulock's book.
   
   The biography covers all aspects of Chamberlain's life. The book does a good job covering Chamberlain's military career which proves to be the most important period of his life from which Chamberlain's life will be centered around until his death. I do wish to make a point here. He died at the age of 86, a very ripe old age and I doubt if his wounds he got from Petersburg really hasten his death, it may have cause him a lot of pain but even in modern days, most people don't live that long!
   
   Overall, an very good biography on one of Union's more natural soldiers. A non-professional who performed better then most professional soldiers.



4. Chamerlain's heroism is similar to Teddy Roosevelt, Alvin York, and Audie Murphy who came behind him, but have been better publicized.
   
   The difference is that his act of confidence, courage and decisiveness may have been the one that changed the outcome of the Civil War, the 1864 election and the future of America.
   
   In The Hands of Providence is the story of Chamberlain's exemplary character before, during and after that momentum changing moment. All Americans should read and learn this story.
   
   - Richard V. Battle - Author of The Four Letter Word That Builds Character



5. 
   In the Hands of Providence is a very well researched look of the life of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Alice Turlock presents a definitive biography of this modest professor from Bowden College, who met challenge after challenge to become one of the greatest leaders in Civil War history. Chamberlain had extraordinary observational and superb writing skills. His persistence at recording the historic events, which included his emotional reactions, gave Trulock's wonderful historic accounts for her book.
   The book starts by giving us an in depth look at his obscure Christian upbringing in rural Maine, and follows his processes of becoming a great young man. He was an exceptional college student, receiving the praise of his instructors. He was also highly regarded by his neighbors and towns' folk alike. Many considered him to have the highest moral and ethical standard. He was so trusted and respected as a young man in his home town that an older business man of Maine, who was an acquaintance of Chamberlain's, entrusted him with the dealings of his estate.
   
   While finishing his studies at Bowden, Chamberlain married his sweetheart Frances Caroline Adams. They had a very close and loving relationship. But during the war, the constant distance between them put a great deal of strain on their relationship. After graduation, he accepted a position as a professor at Bowden, and held that position for several years. Chamberlain maintained a very close relationship with his family, and he was especially close to his father in law George Adams.
   
   When the war broke out in 1861, Chamberlain ask for a leave of absence from Bowden to enlist, but was turned down. Not to be left out of the war, he again applied for a sabbatical to study in Europe, and this time it was granted. He had no intentions on going to Europe, and instead immediately enlisted in the army as a lieutenant colonel, and never looked back. He played a huge role in the recruitment of the men for a regiment, which would later come to be known as the 20th Maine.
   
   With no military experience, Chamberlain showed great promise in his leadership shills and military expertise. He became friends with his unit's commander, Colonial Ames, who became his tutor. According to Trulock, Chamberlain held a great deal of respect and admiration for Ames, and he gave Ames credit for his military success.
   
   Trulock's description of Chamberlain's military life is extraordinary, and she supplies us with great details about the battles in which he was involved. At the battle of Antietam, Chamberlain was not directly involved in the fighting but was brought up in reserve the next day. Trulock gives a very vivid description of horror that Chamberlain witnessed upon arriving at the battlefield that day where 22,000 lay dead or wounded on the field. It was the bloodiest, one day battle in the Civil War.
   
   Next, she transports us to the Fredericksburg, and the final assault by the North on Marye's Heights - the charge that involved the 20th of Maine. All the other divisions that day were either driven back, laid dead or wounded on the field. She describes tremendous courage that Chamberlain and his men showed as they made their charge on the now famous wall at Marye's Heights, the wall that was heavily guarded by Confederates. The division suffered great loses that late afternoon. They remained among the dead or wounded for 2 days and nights before the order was given to retreat.
   
   The episode in history that Chamberlain is most remember for is the courage and heroism he displayed at the battle of Gettysburg. He was ordered to the top of a hill known as The Little Round Top where he was placed at the far left flank. There, Chamberlain was instructed to hold that position at all cost. The 20th Maine repelled assault after assault by the Confederates that day. When ammunition ran out, Chamberlain ordered a bayonet charge, an event that many historians say was the turning point of the Civil War.
   
   Trulock also gives a very detailed account of the battle of Petersburg, where Chamberlain was horribly wounded. After hearing of his heroic actions during the battle, General Grant immediately promoted Chamberlain on the battlefield to Brigadier General. This was the only battlefield promotion ever issued by Grant. Somehow, Chamberlain survived his wound, due to the skilled surgery that was preformed on him that night and next day. Chamberlain's two close friends, Dr. Shaw and Dr. Townsend worked for hours repairing the damage inflicted by the mini ball. The wound he received that day would trouble him all of his life and required numerous surgery's to repair the damage.
   
   His persistent heroism and outstanding leadership were the deciding factor when Grant chose Chamberlain to receive the Confederate surrender at Appomattox. He showed great respect for his fellow countrymen that day when he gave the order to his men to give a solders salute to the surrendering confederate men. His honorary actions that day were later critized by many people.
   
   This book contains a lot of historic photos of Chamberlain's family, friends, fellow soldiers and numerous battle maps. The book also gives a great account of Chamberlain's life as Governor of Maine and President of Bowden College, but these accounts do not compare to the bravery and patriotic devotion that Chamberlain displayed during the Civil War. His actions made him a hero to his men, and the country he served.
   
   Trulock has given us a great biography, not only one of the Civil War's greatest commanders, but one of the United States most distinguished citizens. The book flows very smoothly while covering details of battles that would interest even the most die hard Civil War enthusiast.
   
   Finally, a book that does justice to an astonishing person. I highly recommend this book.

3 comments about The Secret Eye: The Journal of Ella Gertrude Clanton Thomas, 1848-1889 (Gender & American Culture).

1. A Secret Eye was a huge disappointment. The characters were not as developed and colorful as one might expect. The diary/journal form became ho-hum after the first few entries. The dragging subjects and subject matter made the 470 pages difficult to wade through. Augusta has always been my home and I did enjoy some of the local history. I am certain a more interesting story could have been told about my hometown.



2. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! How often does one get to read someone else's diary? (Set during the Civil War, no less.) The author was a well educated, intelligent woman for her time and she is an excellent writer. So many aspects of this diary are completely fascinating. Her pampered southern lifestyle, her views on slavery (she calls herself a liberal re: slavery and yet, she is such a racist.), her feelings on male superiority and her longing to do more with her talents. The entries during the war and after are the most interesting... but DON'T read the introductory notes written by the editor...unless you want to spoil the ending! I wanted the diary to unfold one day at a time without knowing what was coming just as it did for Gertrude. After reading the diary I went back and read the editorial notes which add insight into the author's life. This is a story of a very strong woman enduring unbelievable hardships. If you enjoy history at all you will love reading this diary!



3. I totally diagree w/ the review above because apparently the reader did not understand that this diary is not a novel.
   
   It is true however that the diary does not reveal too much of Ella herself. This is not surprising to me since she states that she is not going to open up to her diary and tell her innomost feelings. Unfortunately!
   However, after she gets married, has children and is much more matured she does reveal a great deal about her life, feelings etc.
   One can only thank that someone took the trouble to record personal information during the antebellum time and afterwards for the readers of the 21st century to read. Thank you.

No comments about Faces of the Confederacy: An Album of Southern Soldiers and Their Stories.

5 comments about American Scoundrel: The Life of the Notorious Civil War General Dan Sickles.

1. Dan Sickles, the notorious scoundrel of this book's title, appears to have gotten away with so many of his sins because he was colorful, resourceful, and charming. Unfortunately for the reader, the same cannot be said of Thomas Keneally's writing. Keneally tells us what a colorful character Sickles was, but never really shows us or makes us feel it. One is left with the thought that Sickles must have been a fascinating and complex man, and the hope that someone will someday write a decent biography of him that will truly capture those qualities.
   
   Despite the fact that Sickles is best known as a Civil War general, this is not a book for Civil War buffs. Keneally's writing on the war is superficial at best, and sometimes nakedly erroneous. (He states more than once that Gen. Stonewall Jackson was shot dead at the Battle of Chancellosville, when of course, even a casual student of the war knows that the general only received a wound in the battle and lingered on for some time, dying of pneumonia while recovering from his wound.)
   
   The intended audience of this book, which is reflected in the writing style as well as content, instead appears to be those who loved following the O.J. Simpson trial in the tabloids. The bulk of the book is devoted to Dan's amorous affairs, his young wife's affair, and his murder of his wife's lover and subsequent trail and acquittal. He writes extensively and floridly on these subjects, without managing much real illumination. I must admit that I was only able to make it through the endless trial material by resorting to skimming the text. However, if you are captivated by tabloids coverage of celebrity trials, this book may suit your tastes.
   
   There were germs of interesting facts in this book. Sickles led a fascinating life, from his notorious service in the diplomatic corps, his machinations as a Tammany politician, his work to help create New York City's Central Park, and his controversial service as a Union general. For its outline of the fascinating facts of Dan Sickles' life, I give this book two stars, but because of its sadly disappointing execution, I cannot give it any more, and cannot recommend it.
   
   Theo Logos



2. Read this biography and decide which still-in-the-news contemporary politician Dan Sickles most reminds you of (hint: like Dan, now a New Yorker). The personal traits they share are amazing.
   
   Here is why you should be fascinated by a biography of Dan Sickles. He was a hard core practitioner of Tammany Hall politics and mastered that machine in the 1850's. He deserves at least some credit for forming New York's Central Park through is expert lobbying and deal making. He was a Congressman and a prime example of the type of northern Democrat who was willing to support the South on slavery for the sake of keeping them in the Democrat Party. He was a notorious woman-izer who traveled with a prostitute to England on a diplomatic mission and presented her to the Queen as his wife. He was a great friend and supporter of President Buchanan. He shot and killed the son of Francis Scott Key (yes, that Francis Scott Key), in front of the White House when he learned that Key's son had been carrying on a torrid affair with his wife. His legal team included Edwin Stanton (later Lincoln's able Sec. of War) and used the first ever argument of temporary insanity to win Sickles an acquittal in the slaying. With secession, Sickles became a relentless advocate for a hard war and supporter of Lincoln. He helped raise a brigade and became a general. At Gettysburg, Sickles defied orders and moved his entire corps out in front of the Union line giving history the Peach Orchard, the Wheatfield and an almost disastrous outcome on Day 2 of the battle. In that battle, Sickles had his leg shot off by a cannonball. He saved the leg, it was sent to the medical military museum in Washington (where you can still visit it today) and used to visit it regularly. He participated in séances with Mary Lincoln. After the war he was a military governor (apparently quite good and fair) of South Carolina and North Carolina. A sometime-diplomat, he married a Spanish woman after carrying on an affair with the deposed queen of Spain. He became great friends with Longstreet as they banded together to defend their miscues at Gettysburg. Head of the New York Monuments Commission, he helped spur the building of grand monuments at Gettysburg Battlefield and arguably helped convince the US Government that it ought to take over and preserve the battlefield as a park. Reelected to Congress for a single term several decades after the Civil War, he found times had changed politically. Still Tammany till the end, he was arrested in his nineties because the accounts of the New York Monuments Commission were some $27,000 short, money which he apparently pocketed.
   
   You can't make this stuff up. Its all true and should be the foundation for a great book (and a couple of great movies). Unfortunately, the killing of Barton Key and his acquittal on temporary insanity overwhelms the book. Or, more correctly, the plight of his wife Teresa overwhelms the book. Every chapter returns to his wife and Sickles' complete boorishness toward her before he found out she was cheating and complete unwillingness to let his still wife share his life at all after the murder. It is a great episode in Sickles life and it stained him for a brief time until the Civil War and Sickles incredibly strong and charming personality removed that stain from his life's adventures.
   
   But the reader is treated to repetitive and numbing descriptions of his suffering wife Teresa's domestic situation and habits throughout the book. She plainly receded in Sickles' life after the Civil War but doesn't recede in this book's telling of those chapters. Instead, she intrudes again and again to repeatedly make the author's point that she was cruelly ignored and wanted back into her husband's world. So much so that this book perhaps should have been titled "The Story of Dan and Teresa Sickles" (or maybe "The Story of Teresa and Dan Sickles"). The author's unwillingness to let go of her long after she has ceased to be a factor in Sickle's life really interferes with this book.
   
   There were also a few historical mistakes, like placing Senator Ira Harris in Lincoln's box at the assassination (it was his daughter, Clara, who was the fiancé of Major Rathbone) and having South Carolina secede in January of 1861 instead of December of 1860. These would probably only be picked up by Civil War buffs (arguably the audience which would read this because of Sickle's infamous Gettysburg excursion) but call into question the author's command of the facts.
   
   Dan Sickles is a very interesting subject for a biography. Disappointingly, the author blows what could have been a fascinating and rollicking bio with a long treatise basically dedicated to rehabilitating Sickles' wife Teresa, a woman who undoubtedly suffered because of the double standards of the time and who unfairly had her life severely constrained because of the actions and attitude of her husband Dan Sickles. But come on, we get the point. For example, I did not know Sickles had been military governor of South Carolina (with North Carolina later added to his administration) after the war. He appears to have been quite fair and just and to have protected the new freedmen from harassment. The book doesn't plumb this enough. We get some of the information but are treated to poor Teresa's lack of an invitation to join Dan Sickles in Charleston where she could reign as the General's wife over Carolinian society. The author really let his evident sympathy for Teresa overwhelm the all too fascinating portrait of a man rightly called "American Scoundrel."
   
   Interesting in parts, but broken-up with digressions on Teresa. A deserved three stars.



3. You might not have heard of Daniel Sickles, but his accomplishments were impressive. A Union general in the Civil War who served at Gettysburg (a Medal of Honor winner who lost his leg there), an intimate of Abe and Mary Lincoln, a congressman, and an ambassador, Sickles was just the sort of hero you ought to know about. Except that he was a scoundrel, too. _In American Scoundrel: The Life of the Notorious Civil War General Dan Sickles_ (Nan A. Talese / Anchor Books), Thomas Keneally has given a full and amusing biography of this American, non-fiction Flashman. His many transgressions were public knowledge, and yet he dressed and spoke well so that he rose to heights of power without any precipitous fall except the natural one provided by old age and death. It is a story often hilarious and sometimes horrifying, and Keneally (who will always be known for _Schindler's List_) has depicted Sickles and the mood and manners of his age in an unforgettable portrait.
   
   Born in 1819, Sickles took to the law, and as a rascal, joined the other rascals of the Tammany political machine. He learned to cut financial corners, and would never be good at balancing the books, especially governmental ones. He eventually was appointed as a secretary to the American Legation in London, and took a favorite prostitute to his post instead of taking his wife; he even arranged for her to be introduced to Queen Victoria. When he was elected to Congress, he and his wife Teresa were a successful power couple, but he neglected her. Filling the void in Teresa's life came Philip Barton Key, who saw Teresa at parties, and in secret trysts in not-so-public places and at a house Key had rented for the purpose. Sickles eventually found Key on Lafayette Square and shot him. His trial was a sensation. The prosecution was poorly performed, and Sickles's hyper-competent lawyers led the jury to find him not guilty due to temporary insanity. It was the first time in American jurisprudence that such a plea resulted in acquittal. What rescued him from infamy was the Civil War. At Gettysburg Sickles made his greatest contribution. He precipitously led his men into battle, creating a controversy at the time that has continued to the present day; there are those who say his unilateral advance almost lost the battle, while others say it saved the Union. Early in the fight, however, his right leg was shattered by a cannonball. He coolly kept his cigar in his mouth (Keneally says it was "a moment of which the right sort of general could make a myth of his easy gallantry") and was carried to a field hospital where his leg was amputated.
   
   He stayed busy. He became an ambassador to Spain and began an affair with the deposed Queen Isabella II. Theresa had died of tuberculosis, and Sickles married a young lady from Isabella's court, but returned to America without her or the two children he had fathered. He had worked earnestly to develop Central Park in New York before he went to Washington, and he contrived to bring it animals for its zoo. He made his fortune on behalf of railroad stockholders by bringing down the notorious Jay Gould who had robbed them of millions. He did everything he could to ensure that his military reputation was brightly presented to posterity, and he got himself appointed as head of his state's Monuments Commission which had the task of erecting on the Gettysburg fields monuments to his own regiment and others from New York. No one should have been surprised when thousands of dollars for the commission went missing, and no one should have been surprised that there was a surge of donations from well-wishers that kept the elder Sickles from winding up in jail. When he died in 1914, he got a full hero's funeral and interment at Arlington National Cemetery. It was just as he would have wished, and this is a tale of a life lived just the way he wished, brash, impetuous, resolute, and irresponsible. There is no hero to match him.



4. If you are interested in the American Civil War, this is not the book for you. Keneally fails to understand the core audience for this book, Civil War aficionados, and is erroneous in his basic facts surrounding important events. The focus is the scandal surrounding Sickles and his young bride and not the historical events of the day.



5. AMERICAN SCOUNDREL is interesting in that it is flawed on so very many different levels.
   
   It fails as psychohistory -- Dan Sickles, a notorious womanizer, shoots down his wife's lover in front of the White House, and is judged NOT GUILTY. This simply begs for psychological introspection, but all we get is "standards were different then."
   
   It fails as the story of Dan Sickles. We never learn how he got the way he was, we never climb the money tree enough to see how he supporter his lavish lifestyle, or even the entire story of his life. We get long chapters on his wife's affair, her lover's murder, Dan's trial, and the second day at Gettysburg, but very little of anything else. The final 60 years of Dan's life are covered in less than 30 pages. The old saying goes, "There are no second acts in American lives," but this is ridiculous.
   
   And when there are horrible historical mistakes in what we already know, the rest of the historical research becomes very suspect. Stonewall Jackson did not die on the battlefield at Chancellorsville; Andrew Johnson was actually impeached.

3 comments about I Fought With Custer: The Story of Sergeant Windolph, Last Survivor of the Battle of the Little Big Horn.

1. This book is compiled from the found writings of a sergeant of the Seventh Cavalry who survived the Battle of the Little Big Horn. The first hand accounts of men like Sergeant Windolph and Theodore Goldin are very valuable and interesting reading. They were not men defending their performance as were the officers like Benteen, Reno, and Godfrey. They had their biases but didn't have to grind axes. This account is worthwhile reading for students of the Seventh Cavalry and the Little Big Horn campaign.



2. As a Custer buff, this book has been on my shelf for a long time. A great book to read, one that fleshes out a lot of the daily life in the Seventh as well as the battle along Greasy Grass. Right up there with "Son of Morning Star" and Walter Camp's book on the subject. Check 'em out, you won't be disappointed.



3. It is difficult to really rate a work like this. This is the story of Charles Windolph, the last survivor of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, in his own, simple words. Windolph told his story to a father and son historian team in the 1930s and 40s. Windolph's distinction as last survivor is a bit misleading--he was the last man who was present at the battle to die, but his title as last survivor does not mean he was with Custer's column of troops. He wasn't. In fact, he was under Benteen, and was one of many who survived the battle because they weren't as heavily engaged in it as Custer.
   Windolph presents an interesting perspective on the battle, and seems relatively objective. He does tend to romanticize a little, but for the most part he refrains from throwing blame on Custer, Reno, Benteen, or anyone else (though he does state up front that he is partial to Benteen). His story is not all that unique when compared to other primary accounts of the battle, but it is nevertheless valuable as the testimony of a survivor of that horrible tragedy.
   Included with Windolph's narrative are a number of primary documents, cobbled together in chapters and laced throughout with author's commentary. This is all right, but it would have been better to present these documents in their entirety, with only enough commentary (perhaps in the form of footnotes) to give the reader an idea of the background surrounding the documents. Still, the Hunts have done a relatively good job of remaining objective as well, something that is rare in a Custer historian. This is perhaps not the best account of the Battle of the Little Bighorn, but it is nevertheless an important one.

5 comments about George Thomas: Virginian for the Union (Campaigns and Commanders).

1. General George H. Thomas was a Southern born Union officer who commanded the outstanding Army of the Cumberland and he was one of the great generals of the American Civil War. In military circles he will forever be known as "The Rock of Chickamauga". However today, for a number of reasons, he is relatively unknown to the American public.
   
   Any author writing a biography of George Thomas is faced with a major hurdle in that most of Thomas' private papers were burned at his request when he died, and the fact that he died suddenly of a stoke soon after the Civil War which left no chance for a memoir. The author addressed these problems by relentlessly researching every collection of Thomas Papers available and reviewing as many private letters that he could. Other authors may have done this also, and used them to influence their writing, but Mr. Christopher Einolf has done more. He quotes from the Thomas letters giving the reader a glimpse of the real Thomas.
   
   The author uses an understated writing style that I think would have been appreciated by Thomas himself. He lets the facts speak for themselves in many cases and lets his readers draw their own conclusions. However he is not shy about sharing any new understanding of Thomas that he has reached. His description of how Thomas' attitude about blacks changed, from one of a conventional Virginia land owner to a real Civil Rights advocate and that this change came not so much as an evolutionary process but more of a `frame-break' moment after the Battle of Nashville when he saw for himself how well his black troops fought, gives us a new major insight into the man. This view came as a revelation for me as I never agreed with some early Thomas biographers who assumed Thomas had some innate goodness in him that would not allow him to treat blacks unequally. With his aristocratic Virginia upbringing, it did not make any sense. To me Mr. Einolf's analysis rings true.
   
   The author's battle descriptions and analyses are very good with the notable exception of the Battle of Chattanooga. He basically subscribes to the standard `miracle theory' or to luck, as he has the soldiers saying, for the great success at Missionary Ridge. He states that `military historians' say the artillery was badly placed, and that the Union soldiers could scurry up the ravines unseen by enemy soldiers. This may be true, but the author misses the point that the prime factor in winning the battle was the effort of General Joseph Hooker and the fact that Thomas delayed his attack as long as he could to allow Hooker time to flank the ridge from Lookout Mountain. Confederate veterans on high ground and in good defensive positions would ordinarily not have been worried about any Federal charge, but with the added knowledge that a Union Corps was marching across their line of retreat, they decided it was time to skedaddle. That aside, the author's description of Stones River, Chickamauga, Nashville and the other battles is very good and his conclusions are astute.
   
   Mr. Einolf's chapters on Thomas' post war actions and decisions during the occupation and the early reconstruction periods are given the detail they deserve. The author shows how Thomas had a unique perspective on the situation due to his being a Southern gentleman, a Unionist and knowing first hand the qualities of the black men who fought for their freedom. These two chapters really differentiate this book from other Thomas biographies.
   
   In his concluding chapter entitled "Thomas in Historical Memory" Mr. Einolf goes into the reasons for loss of Thomas' place in history. This makes for very interesting reading especially in what he has to say about the Southern Historical Society. While I personally think he is too mild with regard to Generals U. S. Grant and William T. Sherman in their treatment of General Thomas during the war and later in their memoirs which contributed to the loss of George Thomas in history, Mr. Einolf's opinion on this matter has merit.
   
   Overall this biography is excellent and a very creditable addition to the literature on the American Civil War.



2. Volume 13 of the "Campaigns and Commanders" series, George Thomas: Virginian for the Union is the in-depth biography of one of the Union's most prominent and successful generals, who was at one time considered for overall command of the Union Army. Remembered today as the "Rock of Chickamauga", George H. Thomas was a slaveholding Southerner who chose to fight for the North, and his experience with the heroism of black soldiers on the battlefield forever changed his view of African-Americans, transforming him into a defender of civil rights. While George Thomas: Virginian for the Union makes a solid case for Thomas' integrity and competence, neither are Thomas' flaws and ill decisions neglected. Notes, a bibliography, and an index enhance this evenhanded appraisal of a truly remarkable commander.



3. Anyone who is mildly interested in history should read this biography. Mr. Einolf has thoroughly researched George Thomas and while providing an extensive account of his life, he has managed to create a work that is entertaining. Civil War buffs should enjoy this work as it shares an interesting and valid view of loyalties to fellow man and country.



4. In reading about the Civil War, I was intrigued by the story of Union General George Henry Thomas. How fortunate that Christopher J. Einolf recently published George Thomas: Virginian for the Union. This book does much to introduce 21st Century readers to this once famous general who has pretty much dropped off the radar screen.
   
   The background of George Thomas is very similar to Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Coming from a prominent Virginia family, Thomas went to West Point, served in the Mexican and Indian Wars, and then taught at West Point. But unlike Lee, when the Civil War began, Thomas placed his oath to the Constitution above his loyalty to his family and his state and sided with the Union. He never saw his homestead or his sisters again.
   
   While both armies had more than a few eccentric characters in key leadership positions (think Grant, Sherman, Stonewall Jackson, McClellan, J.E.B. Stuart, etc.), Thomas proved to be one of the most steady, consistent but understated generals during the Civil War. His friend and West Point roommate, William Tecumseh Sherman said of Thomas that "He was never brilliant, but always cool, reliable, and steady--maybe a little slow." After the war, Sherman praised Thomas as "the second-best general of the war, after Grant, and argued that Thomas was a better general even than Robert E. Lee."
   His greatest successes were at the Battle of Chickamauga and the Battle of Nashville. His actions at Chickamauga helped to save the Union army from total annihilation and earned him the nickname, The Rock of Chickamauga. He finished the Civil War as the sixth highest ranking general in the Union army behind Grant, Sherman, Halleck, Mead and Sheridan.
   
   While I found George Thomas: Virginian for the Union to be engrossing, it's very long on military information and short on personal facts. The reasons for this are the same reasons that Thomas is not very well known today. First, he had all his personal papers burned upon his death and he rarely spoke to his colleagues about his personal life. He never published his memoirs, unlike many of the key players from the war. He also was the first general to die after the war at the young age of 53 (in 1870). Three friends wrote biographies of Thomas after his death and respected his wish for privacy. This book doesn't even contain a photograph of his wife, Frances. Frances was also a very private person, and they had no children. While I would have preferred more personal information, I can't hold it against Einolf is very little is available to researchers.
   But despite this shortcoming, George Thomas is still an excellent book and one that I would strongly recommend to others.



5. We hear from all of the writers who wish the South won in the Civil War and lionize those who sided with their states against the Constitution, but finally we hear about a solid, capable, Virginian who stayed with the United States. General Thomas was greatly chastised by his friends and family because of his choice to remain in the service of the United States, very much like Admiral David G. Farragut, USN. His excellent service was underrated by General Grant but does in no way diminish his service to this country. His high point had to be in the victory at Chickamauga. Politics were as bad then as they are now in the senior ranks of the armed forces and once labelled as "overly-cautious" by General Grant, he was side-lined. Of note in the book was a comment made by General Thomas as the middle south's Occupation Commander as he worked to protect and bring citizenship to the Freedmen. He stated that he was bewildered as to why "southeners tended to violence rather than obey the law", and was sickened as he witnessed the rise of Jim Crow.
   
   A very interesting book that shows the life of and the difficult career of General Thomas, a Virginian, who was a keystone to the success of the Union in the western campaigns.

2 comments about William Randolph Hearst: The Later Years, 1911-1951.

1. WILLIAM RANDOLPH HEARST: THE LATER YEARS, 1911-1951 presents the second volume in a biography series which follows Hearst's life, and is a pick for college-level holdings which already have the first volume, as well as for college-level collections strong in media or journalism history. It surveys how Hearst built an empire of newspapers in nineteen of the largest cities in the U.S., and how his final forty years strengthened his hold. Previously unavailable letters and manuscripts, along with Hearst's own powerful political editorials, make for a powerful testimony not just to Hearst's life, but to the evolution of the newspaper as a whole, and its political impact on American lives.



2. He was bigger than life and one innovative person ...maybe the first gorilla marketer whether you agreed with him or not. Great read.