Series:

Civil War campaigns & commanders

4 total works

Cover of Texans in the Confederate Cavalry
Texas Rangers had patrolled on horseback since the early days of the Republic. Texas military heritage, born in a revolution from Mexico in the 1830s and maturing in the Mexican-American War of the 1840s, shaped all who lived there. Now, years later, a handful of these veterans and a generation raised in this heritage would make a colorful and heroic contribution to the Civil War as unique and independent "horse soldiers." This is the picturesque story of their battles and skirmishes where the often outnumbered cavalry, through bravado or sheer madness, frequently helped turn the tide of battle . . . from Colonel Parsons' assault on the Federal Navy during the Red River Campaign of 1864 to Terry's Texas Rangers with General Wheeler's horsemen tirelessly badgering Sherman on his "March to the Sea," it's all here. A lively and picturesque narration by a respected historian.

Cover of Raphael Semmes and the Alabama
May 1862. The C.S.S. Alabama is launched in Liverpool and makes its way to the Azores. There it receives its armaments, is commissioned under the command of Raphael Semmes, and embarks on a 21-month journey of unparalleled destruction of the Union merchant fleet. This campaign is highlighted by the sinking of the Union warship Hatteras off Galveston. Semmes and his Alabama search the seas from Newfoundland to the South Atlantic, from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, for Union merchant vessels. More than sixty ships are sunk or captured before Semmes and his exhausted crew finally meet their match. Trapped by the U.S.S. Kearsarge while anchored in the French harbor of Cherbourg, Semmes comes out to fight. For over an hour the ships bombard each other. Finally, the Kearsarge prevails, sinks the Alabama and takes many of her crew captive. Semmes and many of the rest of the crew are dramatically rescued by the English yacht, Deerhound, and make their way to England. A detailed account by a highly regarded expert in Naval History of the incredible exploits of Raphael Semmes and the Alabama during her 75,000-mile odyssey.

Cover of The Emergence of Total War
Summer 1862. The Confederacy has suffered several important defeats in the Western Theater and faces a serious threat to Richmond in the East. Federal politicians and citizenry, perplexed that fighting has continued into a second year, want an end to the war. Abraham Lincoln asks his battlefield commanders to develop a winning strategy in the East, a strategy that will not spare resources, terrain, nor the well being of private citizens--a strategy that would come to be known as "total war."

The plan, implemented in 1862, proves a failure, mostly because of the man charged with carrying it out: Gen. John Pope. Pope's defeat is the story of the Second Manassas campaign. While Pope's demise gives new life to the Confederacy and emboldens Robert E. Lee to invade Maryland, Lincoln remains convinced that a strategy of total war represents the North's best chance for victory. In 1864-1865, Generals Ulysses S. Grant and William T. Sherman will prove him right. A vivid account of how Civil War campaigns foreshadowed total war.

Cover of Cottonclads!

Cottonclads!

by Donald Frazier and Grady McWhiney

Published 4 April 1996
1862. Admiral David Farragut orders enclaves to be established in Texas as part of the Federal blockade. This involves attempts against Corpus Christi, Sabine Pass, Galveston, and Port Lavaca. By the end of the year Federal troops reduce the defenses of Sabine Pass and occupy Galveston, the state's principal port. However, the gains prove tenuous. While Federal sailors await Union infantry reinforcements, the Confederates, under Gen. John B. Magruder, seize the initiative. They organize a makeshift fleet of "cottonclads"--lightly armed and armored, but good platforms for sharpshooters--and boldly attack the Union fleet whenever it lies close to shore. Meanwhile, Confederate troops bombard from land. Ultimately, this counterattack results in the destruction or capture of four Union warships and three supply vessels and temporarily lifts the blockade. A lively account of innovative and daring tactics against superior forces by a dynamic historian.