Description
Book SynopsisFilled with fresh interpretations and information, puncturing old myths and challenging new ones, Battle Cry of Freedom will unquestionably become the standard one-volume history of the Civil War. James McPherson's fast-paced narrative fully integrates the political, social, and military events that crowded the two decades from the outbreak of one war in Mexico to the ending of another at Appomattox. Packed with drama and analytical insight, the book vividlyrecounts the momentous episodes that preceded the Civil Warthe Dred Scott decision, the Lincoln-Douglas debates, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferryand then moves into a masterful chronicle of the war itselfthe battles, the strategic maneuvering on both sides, the politics, and thepersonalities.
Trade ReviewAnyone interested in Texas and the republic to which it belongs should set some weeks aside for this big, smart porcupine of a book * Patrick G. Williams, Southwestern Historical Quarterly *
Table of ContentsEditor's Introduction Prologue: From the Halls of Montezuma 1. The United States at Midcentury 2. Mexico Will Poison 3. An Empire for Slavery 4. Slavery, Rum, and Romanism 5. The Crime Against Kansas 6. Mudsills and Greasy Mechanics for A. Lincoln 7. The Revolution o f1860 8. The Counterrevolution 9. Facing Both Ways: The Upper South's Dilemma 10. Amateurs Go to War 11. Farewell to the Ninety Days' War 12. Blockade and Beachhead: The Salt-Water War, 1861-1862 13. The River War in 1862 14. The Sinews of War 15. Billy Yank's Chickahominy Blues 16. We Must Free the Slaves or Be Ourselves Subdued 17. Carry Me Back to Old Virginny 18. John Bull's Virginia Rell 19. Three Rivers in Winter, 1862-1863 20. Fire in the Rear 21. Long Remember: The Summer of '63 22. Johnny Reb's Chattanooga Blues 23. When This Cruel War is Over 24. If It Takes All Summer 25. After Four Years of Failure 26. We Are Going to be Wiped off the Earth 27. South Carolina Must Be Destroyed 28. We Are All Americans Epilogue: To the Shoals of VIctory Afterward Abbreviated Titles Bibliographic Note Index
