This campaign was risky because it was a complete reversal of the Union strategy. Unless the citizens were forced to suffer, the war would continue indefinitely. Catton is blunt about the shortcomings of political leaders and generals alike, yet cautious to abuse 100 years of hindsight (The Civil War was originally published in 1960). McClellan got to the battle just as the Union army had been defeated forcing the the reinforcements to retreat. Grant made a document that stopped the Union from hanging high ranking officials in the Confederate army. Grant put Sheridan in charge, told him what he was supposed to do, then returned to Petersburg to await the results. The coming Pres. Another example of industry growth for the North because of the war was the iron works industry, specifically Pittsburgh. There were power struggles sometimes, but the power of Lincolns Cabinet strengthened the administration. Great writing. The English Civil Wars were perhaps the most calamitous series of conflicts in the country's recorded history. Slavery was a huge issue because it was the financial backbone of the Southern states and specific Northerners were preaching hell and damnation for slave-owners. What was McClellans Plan to take Richmond? William Sherman revised Union military strategy by marching his army from Atlanta to Savannah to capture territory. Lincolns Emancipation Proclamation was also effective. Chapter 19: I was not thrilled with the fiction-like style of this book. Usually guys like to read about the Civil War. As soon as the Confederacy surrendered, they were once again Americans. They were only commerce destroyer ships. 9 He could have walked in Lincolns office and shot him. The longest war in American history. One reason is that with the abolishment of the institution of slavery, the South was forced to play catch-up industrially with the rest of the country. What was the geographical signficance of these battles? The Confederates had won the battle and Lee was gaining respect as a top tier general. Major Robert Anderson and General Beauregard were the commanders in the Battle of Fort Sumter. Bragg joined with other mens armies and they all headed north to attack leaving the Federal army fighting a defensive was that they could not control. The decisions made by these two wise generals contributed to a faster peace between the North and South. So, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that this good, solid overview of the conflict does not go much into the details of the numerous battles - even Gettysburg. 12 Rosecrans did what he was suppose to do. "The Civil War" is a good surface exploration of a topic that has inspired countless volumes of books, and will continue to do so for many years to come. But on the night of April 14 Booth strode up to Lincolns box at the Fords Theatre and popped one in his head, then jumped onto the stage and fled for Southland. Fought at the same time in early July, 1863, the Battle of Gettysburg and Battle of Vicksburg broke the back of the Confederacy. After losing Atlanta, Hood relized that Sherman had to be forced from the South. He decided to simply close the ports, and they began building and employing any boat they could to patrol the seaboard. The Merrimac was out of commission in the Norfolk navy yard at the beginning of the war. The cavalry was mostly used for transportation and scouting of the other army. Wanting to get a nice, easy, and quick summary of The Civil War without getting bogged down in the minutiae details, I chose to read Catton's book. Beauregard and Johnston combined their armies because of the conflict they were in. John Wilkes, aboard the U.S.S San Jacinto, heard about their journey, and he took them from the Trent. He was well liked and his record of performance was good. For the Union, Fremont began building gunboats and he placed U.S. Grant in charge at Cairo. Pres. In April of 1861, loyal Confederates seized the Norfolk Navy Yard along with several guns and the Merrimac. They both refused. Romeo and Juliet tells the story of an age-old vendetta between two powerful families erupts into bloodshed. During Shermans drive from Chattanooga to Atlanta, how did Davis replacement of General Joe Johnston with John Bell Hood as commander of the Confederate Army of Tennessee play into Grant and Shermans strategy for the last year of the war? River and the fighting was on the east side. Sherman, negotiating with Johnston, accidentally allowed the Confederates much more than they were originally suppose to have. 2. The South valued Fort Sumter, because of its location near a very important harbor. I think that this type of organization was extremely necessary by this point, and McClellan was able to enforce it. 4. The Trust also promotes educational programs and heritage tourism initiatives to inform the public of the war's history and the fundamental conflicts that sparked it. Everybody was trying to get rich on the back of this unlucky army and the policies of the political powers of the day. The soldiers lacked extra clothes and boots and their animals were also lacking materials to keep them upright. Booth proved doubters wrong by sucessfully assassinating President Lincoln. William Sherman was sent to atlanta in search of Joe Johnson. In addition, Grant would make a brilliant decision to change Union strategy from that of conquering territory, to that of destroying enemy armies. I heard about it in reviews for other books and that piqued my interest. But, in 1863, the Southern cause was looking hopeful. Most of these men were from rural areas and were used to handling horses on a regular basis. The Merrimac destroyed the Congress and Cumberland and drove the Minnesota aground; but, when the Federals occupied Norfolk, she was left without a home port. Chapter 5: Visit the American Coin Treasures Storefront on Amazon for a variety of home decor items, gifts and collectibles. In spite of all that McDowell did, he was forced to move because his troops did not see the need for discipline and the war cry Forward to Richmond! was too compelling. Once again, to get to Richmond Hooker had to go through Lee and his 60,000 soldiers. In the summer of 1863, Rosecrans and Bragg engaged in battle near Chattanooga. This navy yard was in a pro-Confederate community and was quickly seized by the Confederates. Ch. 13 The North kept telling themsleves they couldnt beat the South. Cannons couldnt do much damage to the iron exterior. Chapter 7 was all about alliance and foreign aid. The climactic battle was the third day of fighting (July 3) when George Pickett attacked at Cemetary Ridge, his failed assault being the end of the Battle of Gettysburg. Summary; Recently Viewed; Bids/Offers; Watchlist; Purchase History; Buy Again; Selling; . Where did McDowell launch the first major Union attack? The title of this book is Civil War and it was written by Bruce Catton. Chapter 9 discusses the Battle at Chancellorsville between Lee and Hooker. The fifth column had little outcome on the war. If Sherman had stayed with his original objective to destroy armies, he would have gone off on a wild goose chase. Pres. Ch 1 Details; Description; Reviews; Reflections On The Civil War, by Bruce Catton, edited by John Leekley As someone who grew up greatly appreciating Bruce Catton's historiography on the Civil War, I consider it a shame that he died before I had the chance to get to know him at all personally and write him fan mail as a child I enjoyed reading this book. He speaks about the events which lead up to the war, and his analyses of them. Catton puts a very large emphasis on the role slavery played leading up to the Civil War. The Democratic party was opposed to the way of thinking in the Union party they wanted a softer war or no war at all. Finally, because they lost the war causing more bitter feelings. I love this because it allows us to see the human insecurities in Grant. Keep up the great work! Appointing this competent leader was the best decision the Union made in the was. --Baltimore Sun Infinitely readable and absorbing, Pulitzer Prize-winner Bruce Catton's The Civil. Grant wrote and signed a document that forbid the Union from hanging high ranking officials from the Confederacy. The army of the Cumberland was mostly in Tennessee and was led by William S. Rosecrans. Slavery activists and Abolitionist literally and physically fought over Kansas. 17 The Union lost about 13,000 men while the Confederates lost only about 10,000. What action did he take? Sherman was in Savannah at the time, and Hoods plan did work. How did Bragg use topographic features to trap the Union army? Never was a great army so poorly served by its officers. I found it interesting that the first fighting in the Civil War, after that of Fort Sumter, was that of men in uniform against civilians. Bragg made a mistake by dividing his army causing his force to be outnumbered against some of the greatest generals. Chapter 17 addresses the last months of war in Virginia with a focus on the Lees last gasp effort to defend Richmond in the Battle of Petersburg. Excellent summary of the war and the issues surrounding it. In those respects it does a very excellent job in painting a full picture of things as they were. Together this is a great set for the history buff! Hooker had split his army into three parts in an attempt to distract and trap Lee. Sheridan beat Early and forced him to retreat. But Lincolns cabinet was very loyal to him, helped him a lot in spite of several of them having run against him for the Republican nomination, and was the more capable cabinet. Was it an advantage or disadvantage? A very detailed book about the political motivations for the Civil war and the military maneuvering of it as well. I believe that part of the reason they were so different is because the south did not need to be industrial because of the existence of slavery. (I will read Shelby Foote's trilogy for the full account.) Chapter 7 discusses the Emancipation Proclamation and how Lincoln didnt want to issue it until the North had one the battle of Antietam. 1. 4 General McClellan replaced McDowell. And the book ends with General Ulysses Grant riding off to meet General Robert E. Lee for the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. The book begins with a harebrained scheme advanced by, among others, General Judson Kilpatrick (often called Kill Cavalry for his willingness to engage in dangerous actions), to have cavalry raid Richmond. Davis cabinet was little help to him. 3. Bruce Catton is telling an epic story, a great event, requiring the most extreme effort and sacrifice, much like the story of the 300 Spartans and the Alamo. The author does a very good job telling this armies story. What keeps coming back to me is that Stephen Douglas was too smart for his and the countries on good. Imagine a coin so old it was circulated during the Civil War, maybe a general held it in his pocket during a battle. The writing is superb making the book a pleasure to read. Before this point in the war, the majority of Union soldiers did not care about the abolition of slavery. On the outset of the war the American army had 500,000 small guns. On the battlefield they were very disorganized and often times actually shot their own men. Rosecran was in charge of the Army of the Cumberland at the Battle of Stones River. During the election of 1864, the Republicans and the Union party nominated Lincoln and Johnson.The more Democrats along with the Copperheads nominated General McClellan as their Presidential candidate with George Pendleton of Ohio named for the Vice-Presidency. He thought this would force Sherman to follow him and he knew he had a much better chance of victory in the forests of Georgia. I enjoy reading more about the lifestyle of people during the Civil War than the actual fighting of the war. Sherman was given the duty of the entire Western theatre. What were the consequences? Chapter Seventeen: Rather they had farmers and other rural folk fight for what they believe a God given right. The Emancipation Proclamation was a way that Lincoln could free the slaves. It's a well written book and if your a Civil War nut like myself it should be in your library. Now the country had to discover how to heal those wounds and become the United States once again. Grant turned east toward Fort Donnelson on the Cumberland, and sent Foote around on the water. 5 The north did not get any direct reward that was really worth what they had fought for, in my opinion. Hooker planned to use his calvary to cut off Lees communication with Richmond. So McDowell decided that he might as well take out a Confederate army if his troops were on the move so he attacked at Bull Run. 11 Horn devotes much attention to a detailed summary of the two-day struggle, employing the points . The battles of Gettysburg and Vicksburg were both extremely significant. So the Confederate army won the battle mostly out of luck after the reinforcement of Johnston made it a fairly even match. Chapter seven mentions the rise of tension involved in the freeing of slaves, as well as foreign activity in the civil war. How did it ensure the end to slavery? 15 Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. The South had more soldiers but they were on the west side of the Miss. In chapter 16 Hood realizes Sherman must be forced out of the South. If you have any questions regarding this activity, please feel free to e-mail me at your convenience. Do not underestimate the value of reading Bruce Catton's trilogy along with Shelby Foote. By preventing the opportunity for skilled laborers, slavery ultimately halted the rise of industrialism that was occurring in the North. For your convenience, I will complete my initial entries for each chapter by December 22. But in 1793, Eli Whitney, a northerner, invented the cotton gin which turned slavery around and the country started to profit from it again. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Bruce Catton AMERICA GOES TO WAR 2nd Edition at the best online prices at eBay! The test will focus on specific objectives discussed on the blog. On the first day Jackson was pushed back and Pope thought he had won, but on the second day Lee rejoined Jackson just in time and together they forced a Union retreat. Chapter 11: Many have looked at this as justification for conscription. The initial naval objective of the United States during the Civil War was a naval blockade of the South. Chapter 9: The fifth column did not have a very big outcome on the war. England had done the same thing in the War of 1812. I agree that Stephen Douglas was an exceptional politician. For what reason did Grant place Philip Sherridan in command of the Union Army of the Shenandoah? One of McClellans strengths was that he made his men feel like real soldiers and in turn they put their complete trust in him. How did Grant respond? The English backed off completely, knowing they could not support a cause that was for slavery. Thought Beauregards strategy failed it gave him the advantage of fighting on the defensive. The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 probably made people in the North look into slavery more and see how bad it was. 2. What was Lees objective following his victory at Second Bull Run? ISBN 13. PGT Beauregard and Albert Sydney Johnston combined their forces at Corinth because the South could not afford to lose more land in the western area. Add to Wish List Link to this Book Add to Bookbag Sell this Book Buy it at Amazon Compare Prices. Describe the conflict between proslavery and abolitionist factions in Kansas in the 1850s. The south could have sold cotton for guns because they had so much of it, but they didnt because they wanted England and France to feel the pressure no more cotton so that maybe they would join the war on the part of the south to get their cotton supplies back. England almost came into the war on the side of the South after an incident between a Northern ship and a British sailing vessel in 1861. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. In addition, Grant would promote William Tecumseh Sherman as Union Commander in the West where he will engage in the same type of all-out war in Georgia. You can really see the OCD in Grant as the war progressed and the pressure mounted. Bragg engaged Rosecrans at Chickmauga Creek and won a great victory. This was a Mothers Day gift a quick and awesomely fun read! The south was the first to take action, but when they threatened to succeed, the north did not take them seriously on account of the fact that they were both part of a new nation formed by unity and that they were as one nation. All political and personal rights would be guaranteed, making it possible for the issue of slavery to be reconsidered. His camps were laid out in formal military pattern; food, munitions, and equipment were evenly distributed; he even inspected new divisions himself. I have three reasons for why I think the South was effected more than the Union. Many times there was friendly fire among the Confederates and Union armes. Border states were a key in the war. How was Lees assessment of the two commanding generals of these Union armies and his timing a key to victory? The Union Army also controlled the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers at this point. The demands of the Union army contributed to growth in many specific industries. They had to do away with slavery which was pretty much what kept the south running well. They couldnt beat them without Grant. One of Lincolns strategies in dealing with the border states was a delicate one. Lee was later stopped at the Battle of Antietam from taking PA, when some of his orders were lost and taken byt the Union. He hoped that proving this to the South would crush their spirit and and show that the Confederacy was too weak to survive any longer. The book that I chose to write about for my book report is Mr. Lincoln's Army by Bruce Catton. He planned to go down the Western and Atlantic Railroad toward Atlanta, his main objective was not Atlanta, but Joe Johnston. In 1861 Captain Charles Wilkes, commander of the U.S.S. The Union retreated, having lost 17,000 men. What were the consequences? Product Information. You aluded to this in your answer. mr.catton's writing style is distinctly in the way of a novelist, i've read countless books on the civil war era of american history, and bruce catton is simply the best. And the Homestead Act gave away vast quantities of land to the farmers that wanted it for the purpose of farming it. In an attempt to save the Confederacy, southern leaders proposed to France and Great Britain the abolition of slavery in exchange for recognition as a nation. 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