PHOTO SAMPLER
COLUMBIA SC FOLLOWING 1863 INFERNO
DESTRUCTION OF ATLANTA RAIL TRACKS BY SHERMAN'S TROOPS
UNION TROOPS OF MICHIGAN INFANTRY LIVING IN
"SHEBANGS"
First Edition. 1995.
Joseph
Glatthaar's
THE MARCH TO THE SEA AND BEYOND:
SHERMAN'S TROOPS IN THE SAVANNAH AND CAROLINAS CAMPAIGNS
Baton
Rouge. Louisiana State University Press. Softcover. 6" x
9". 318 pages. Appendicies. Index. Illustrated with b/w
photographs, illustrations and maps. This book is an examination
of Sherman's army in order to demonstrate how that army was
different from all other Civil War armies. The primary
distinction revolves around the fact that Sherman's army was
dominated by seasoned veterans. The author tells us that it was
his "intention in writing this book to examine the campaigns
from the level of the common soldier, both enlisted men and
officers, to illuminate that veteran character." To achieve
this analysis, Glatthaar explores the relationships of Sherman's
soldiers and their attitudes and viewpoints toward the people and
institutions they were at war with. The major theme of this book
is to show how the success of Sherman's Savannah and Carolina
campaigns were successful, in large part, as a result of the
makeup of his army. Thus we see how the army, consisting of the
XIV, XV, XVII and XX Corps conducted their movements through the
South. The support of the soldiers in this army towards the war
effort was almost universal. Glatthaar demonstrates this fact by
analyzing the returns of the 1864 presidential election and
discovering that 86% of the men voted for Abraham Lincoln. Their
support did not stop just at the ballot box. The author has
thoroughly researched their letters and diaries to see how the
soldiers influenced their friends and families back home to
support the war effort. The book constantly reveals ways how the
veterans of this army impacted on its successes. More than 50% of
the company level troops re-enlisted, and the vast majority of
the officer corps had joined the army in 1861-1862. Thus, the
veterans knew what was needed in order to be successful, and they
imparted this knowledge upon the new recruits. This had a
positive effect upon the ability of the army to invade Georgia,
South Carolina and North Carolina and successfully prosecute the
war against he South. THE MARCH TO THE SEA AND BEYOND is the
winner of the prestigious Bell Irvin Wiley Award, Fletcher Pratt
Award, and the Jefferson Davis Award.
CONDITION:
Very Good Cover and Unmarked Interior.
Scarce. $55.00.
