CAVALRY
In which we look at another one of the three Civil War combat arms: the cavalry.
Our book recommendation for this episode is a back issue of North & South magazine. Volume 2 #2 of North & South magazine was a Cavalry Special.
Listen to Episode #48: Cavalry
INFANTRY (Part the Third)
In which we conclude our discussion of Civil War infantry.
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| During the sesquicentennial reeanactments at Gettysburg this past summer, William H. Hincks portrays his great-great-grandfather, Medal of Honor recepient William Bliss Hincks, taking a Confederate flag from a color bearer (portrayed by Skip Koontz, of Sharpsburg, Maryland) during Pickett’s Charge. |
Our book recommendation for this episode is Company Aytch, or a Side Show of the Big Show by Sam Watkins, a new edition annotated & edited by Philip Leigh.
~ “To the memory of my dead comrades of the Maury Grays and the First Tennessee Regiment, who died in defense of Southern homes and liberties: also to my living comrades, nearly all of whom shed their blood in defense of the same cause, this book is respectfully dedicated by the author.”
Listen to Episode 47: InfantryPartThird
INFANTRY (Part the Second)
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| Percussion cap seated on a Civil War-era rifle musket. |
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| Minie bullets (note hollow base) |
In which we discuss the principal shoulder arm used by Union & Confederate infantrymen during the Civil War: the rifle-musket.
Our book recommendation for this episode is The Rifle Musket in Civil War Combat: Reality and Myth by Earl J. Hess.
“Hess hits a bull’s-eye with this fresh, provocative look at the impact of the rifle musket on Civil War combat. His persuasive challenge to many old assumptions about the revolutionary role of the rifle requires a broad re-evaluation of what we have long thought happened on the battlefields of 1861-65.” ~ Daniel Sutherland, author of Seasons of War: The Ordeal of a Confederate Community, 1861-1865
Listen to Episode 46: InfantryPartSecond
INFANTRY (Part the First)
In which we use several episodes to talk about the three combat arms of Civil War armies- the infantry, cavalry, & artillery.
Our book recommendations for this episode are The Life of Johnny Reb: The Common Soldier of the Confederacy and The Life of Billy Yank: The Common Soldier of the Union by Bell Irvin Wiley.
Listen to Episode 45: InfantryPartFirst
RICH MOUNTAIN
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| George Brinton McClellan (1826-1885) |
In which we start off with a short bio of George McClellan, and then get to the continuation of the action in northwest Virginia with the Battle of Rich Mountain (July 11, 1863).
Our book recommendation for this episode is actually two magazine back issues:
* Volume 7 #7 (November 2004) of North & South magazine has an article by Albert Castel titled “West Virginia 1861: A Tale of a Goose, a Dog, and a Fox.”
* Volume 10 #6 (August 1993) of Blue & Gray magazine is mostly devoted to the fighting in western Virginia in 1861.
Listen to Episode 44: RichMountain
FAIRFAX COURT HOUSE / THE PHILIPPI RACES
In which we look at the clash between Union & Confederate forces at Fairfax Court House in northeast Virginia on June 1, 1861… and the Union surprise attack at Philippi in northwest Virginia on June 3.
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| James Edward Hanger (1843-1919) |
Our book recommendation this time is An American Iliad: The Story of the Civil War by Charles P. Roland.
“An extraordinary synthesis by one of the most respected historians in the field.” ~ James I. Robertson, Jr author of Stonewall Jackson: The Man, The Soldier, The Legend
Listen to Episode 43: FairfaxPhilippi
THE FATE OF ARLINGTON
In which we look at the fate that befell Arlington, the mansion and estate that was the home of Robert E Lee & his family before the Civil War.
Our book recommendation this time is The Last Battle of the Civil War: United States Versus Lee, 1861-1883 by Anthony J. Gaughan.
“Seventeen years after Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox, the Supreme Court was the scene of one final, dramatic confrontation between the Lee family and the United States government. In The Last Battle of the Civil War, Anthony J. Gaughan recounts the fascinating saga of United States v. Lee, known to history as the ‘Arlington Case.'”
Listen to Episode 42: FateArlington
THE PURSUIT OF VICTORY
In which we discuss the Confederate and Union war aims & strategy at the beginning of the Civil War. Plus, we look at the Union’s move in May, 1861 to seize Alexandria, Virginia- just across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.
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| Elmer Ephraim Ellsworth (1837-1861) |
Our book recommendation for this episode is The Grand Design: Strategy and the U.S. Civil War by Donald Stoker.
“Donald Stoker’s book offers a new way of looking at both the military and political history of the Civil War, and does so from a strategic vantage point far above that to which we have been accustomed. The Grand Design represents an important advance in our understanding of this momentous event.” ~ Steven E. Woodworth
Listen to Episode 41: PursuitOfVictory
ROBERT E. LEE
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| Robert Edward Lee (1807-1870) |
In which we use this episode to give a short biography of Robert E. Lee, up to April 1861 when he resigned his commission in the U.S. Army and accepted command of Virginia’s military forces.
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| This portrait of Robert E. Lee, by William E. West, was painted in 1838 when Lee was 31 years old. |
Our book recommendation this time is Reading the Man: A Portrait of Robert E. Lee Through His Private Letters by Elizabeth Brown Pryor.
“To most, Robert E. Lee is a beloved tragic figure of a bygone war- remembered by history as stoic and brave but without a true emotional life. Using dozens of previously unpublished letters as a departure point, Pryor sheds new light on every aspect of this complex and contradictory general, and questions our own understanding of loyalty and patriotism. This tantalizing glimpse of a legendary hero’s guarded soul will astonish and fascinate not only Civil War buffs, but anyone interested in this nation’s history.”
Listen to Episode 40: RobertELee