Lee's Last Retreat

Lee's Last Retreat
Author: William Marvel
Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Press
Total Pages: 332
Release: 2006-02-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780807857038

Few events in Civil War history have generated such deliberate mythmaking as the retreat that ended at Appomattox. As the popular imagination would have it, Robert E. Lee's tattered, starving, but devoted troops found themselves hopelessly surrounded thro

Retreat from Gettysburg

Retreat from Gettysburg
Author: Kent Masterson Brown, Esq.
Publisher: UNC Press Books
Total Pages: 553
Release: 2011-08-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 0807869422

In a groundbreaking, comprehensive history of the Army of Northern Virginia's retreat from Gettysburg in July 1863, Kent Masterson Brown draws on previously untapped sources to chronicle the massive effort of General Robert E. Lee and his command as they sought to move people, equipment, and scavenged supplies through hostile territory and plan the army's next moves. Brown reveals that even though the battle of Gettysburg was a defeat for the Army of Northern Virginia, Lee's successful retreat maintained the balance of power in the eastern theater and left his army with enough forage, stores, and fresh meat to ensure its continued existence as an effective force.

Lee's Miserables

Lee's Miserables
Author: J. Tracy Power
Publisher: UNC Press Books
Total Pages: 488
Release: 2015-01-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 1469620413

Never did so large a proportion of the American population leave home for an extended period and produce such a detailed record of its experiences in the form of correspondence, diaries, and other papers as during the Civil War. Based on research in more than 1,200 wartime letters and diaries by more than 400 Confederate officers and enlisted men, this book offers a compelling social history of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia during its final year, from May 1864 to April 1865. Organized in a chronological framework, the book uses the words of the soldiers themselves to provide a view of the army's experiences in camp, on the march, in combat, and under siege--from the battles in the Wilderness to the final retreat to Appomattox. It sheds new light on such questions as the state of morale in the army, the causes of desertion, ties between the army and the home front, the debate over arming black men in the Confederacy, and the causes of Confederate defeat. Remarkably rich and detailed, Lee's Miserables offers a fresh look at one of the most-studied Civil War armies.

Lee's Last Stand

Lee's Last Stand
Author: Derek Smith
Publisher: White Mane Publishing Company
Total Pages: 284
Release: 2002
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN:

Offers a compelling look at the last battle of the once mighty Army of Northern Virginia.

General Lee's Army

General Lee's Army
Author: Joseph Glatthaar
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 626
Release: 2009-03-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 1416596976

A history of the Confederate troops under Robert E. Lee presents portraits of soldiers from all walks of life, offers insight into how the Confederacy conducted key operations, and reveals how closely the South came to winning the war.

General Lee's Immortals

General Lee's Immortals
Author: Michael C. Hardy
Publisher: Grub Street Publishers
Total Pages: 516
Release: 2017-09-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 1611213630

“An absolute gem of a history” for the Confederacy’s Branch-Lane North Carolina Brigade: “His clear and engaging narrative keeps the reader entranced” (Thomas G. Clemens, editor of The Maryland Campaign of 1862). This storied brigade was first led by Lawrence Branch, and then by James Henry Lane, and served with Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia for its entire existence. These Tar Heels fought in nearly every major battle in the Eastern Theater, including the Seven Days’ Battles, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg (where Branch was killed), Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville (where its members mistakenly shot Stonewall Jackson), Gettysburg (including Pickett’s Charge), the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, North Anna, Cold Harbor, the Petersburg Campaign, and the final retreat to Appomattox. Originally part of A. P. Hill’s famous “Light Division,” the brigade earned high plaudits for its disciplined defensive efforts, hard-hitting attacks, and incredible marching abilities. Its heavy combat exposure, however, resulted in devastating losses. By war’s end, its roll call of casualties far exceeded its number of survivors. Michael Hardy’s General Lee’s Immortals is based upon years of study and grounded on an impressive foundation of sources, which allows the men to speak for themselves as they describe their time in camp, endless hardships, long marches, bloody battles, increasing hunger, and much more. In addition to a dozen original maps, General Lee’s Immortals also includes scores of rare photos—many of which were previously unpublished—all of which enhance this well-written and engrossing account. “Combining rigorous research and an innovative organization, General Lee’s Immortals demonstrates what an exceptional unit history can teach us about the Civil War.” —The Civil War Monitor

Lee and Grant at Appomattox

Lee and Grant at Appomattox
Author: MacKinlay Kantor
Publisher: Sterling Publishing Company
Total Pages: 148
Release: 2007
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781402751240

From a Pulitzer Prize winner comes the story of an unforgettable moment in American history: the historic meeting between General Robert E. Lee and General Ulysses S. Grant that ended the Civil War. MacKinlay Kantor captures all the emotions and the details of those few days: the aristocratic Lee’s feeling of resignation; Grant’s crippling headaches; and Lee’s request--which Grant generously allowed--to permit his soldiers to keep their horses so they could plant crops for food.

Petersburg to Appomattox

Petersburg to Appomattox
Author: Caroline E. Janney
Publisher: Military Campaigns of the Civi
Total Pages: 320
Release: 2018
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781469640761

The last days of fighting in the Civil War's eastern theater have been wrapped in mythology since the moment of Lee's surrender to Grant at Appomattox Court House. War veterans and generations of historians alike have focused on the seemingly inevitable defeat of the Confederacy after Lee's flight from Petersburg and recalled the generous surrender terms set forth by Grant, thought to facilitate peace and to establish the groundwork for sectional reconciliation. But this volume of essays by leading scholars of the Civil War era offers a fresh and nuanced view of the eastern war's closing chapter. Assessing events from the siege of Petersburg to the immediate aftermath of Lee's surrender, Petersburg to Appomattox blends military, social, cultural, and political history to reassess the ways in which the war ended and examines anew the meanings attached to one of the Civil War's most significant sites, Appomattox. Contributors are Peter S. Carmichael, William W. Bergen, Susannah J. Ural, Wayne Wei-Siang Hsieh, William C. Davis, Keith Bohannon, Caroline E. Janney, Stephen Cushman, and Elizabeth R. Varon.

Meade at Gettysburg

Meade at Gettysburg
Author: Kent Masterson Brown, Esq.
Publisher: UNC Press Books
Total Pages: 488
Release: 2021-05-03
Genre: History
ISBN: 1469662000

Although he took command of the Army of the Potomac only three days before the first shots were fired at Gettysburg, Union general George G. Meade guided his forces to victory in the Civil War's most pivotal battle. Commentators often dismiss Meade when discussing the great leaders of the Civil War. But in this long-anticipated book, Kent Masterson Brown draws on an expansive archive to reappraise Meade's leadership during the Battle of Gettysburg. Using Meade's published and unpublished papers alongside diaries, letters, and memoirs of fellow officers and enlisted men, Brown highlights how Meade's rapid advance of the army to Gettysburg on July 1, his tactical control and coordination of the army in the desperate fighting on July 2, and his determination to hold his positions on July 3 insured victory. Brown argues that supply deficiencies, brought about by the army's unexpected need to advance to Gettysburg, were crippling. In spite of that, Meade pursued Lee's retreating army rapidly, and his decision not to blindly attack Lee's formidable defenses near Williamsport on July 13 was entirely correct in spite of subsequent harsh criticism. Combining compelling narrative with incisive analysis, this finely rendered work of military history deepens our understanding of the Army of the Potomac as well as the machinations of the Gettysburg Campaign, restoring Meade to his rightful place in the Gettysburg narrative.