Description
Book SynopsisBoldly reassessing the contested legacy of Lincoln's military appointments
Trade Review Winner of the Hay-Nicolay Prize of the Abraham Lincoln Association and the Abraham Lincoln Institute.
"A very fine study."--Civil War Book Review
"Readers, especially those interested in the fascinating relationship between war and politics in the Northern war effort, will find this book enjoyable and useful."--
Journal of American History"Work has produced a book certain to generate both controversy and further investigation. Recommended."--
Choice"Exciting and fresh."--
H-CivWar"In this thoroughgoing study of sixteen 'political generals' in the Union army, David Work demonstrates convincingly that these generals' efforts significantly aided the Union war effort in their capacity as administrators, political supporters, recruiters and organizers of troops, and advocates of the Union cause among key political and ethnic constituencies."--James M. McPherson, author of
Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era, winner of the Pulitzer Prize
"With an appealing even-handedness,
Lincoln's Political Generals fills a hole in the literature on the Civil War. David Work's military analysis of these men and their careers is sound and balanced. A very valuable contribution to our knowledge of both Lincoln and the Civil War."--Brian Dirck, author of
Lincoln the Lawyer"David Work's outstanding
Lincoln's Political Generals is a story of leadership, demonstrating Abraham Lincoln's political and military genius in appointing political generals to help win the Civil War. Democrats as well as Republicans were enlisted and aided in this effort. In this well written and judicious rendering, Work analyzes this dynamic of Lincoln's leadership as he performed the arduous duties of Chief Magistrate and Commander-in-Chief during America's worse crisis--until now."--Frank J. Williams, former Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court and founding chair of the Lincoln Forum
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix
1. The Necessity of the Time 1
2. Hunting for Generals 6
3. The Opening Campaigns 26
4. The Campaigns of 1862 47
5. The Vicksburg Campaign 76
6. Battles in the West and the East 98
7. The Western Theater in 1864-65 121
8. The Eastern Theater in 1864 139
9. Quasi-Civil Support 158
10. Slavery, Freedom, and Black Soldiers 184
11. Exerting Political Influence 202
Conclusion 227
Notes 235
Index 277
Illustrations follow page 138
