Battle at Bull Run: A History of the First Major Campaign of the Civil War - Softcover

Davis, William C.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0807108677 ISBN 13: 9780807108673

Publisher: LSU Press, 1981

Synopsis

From the first passage in William C. Davis’ book about “the twilight of America’s innocence: to the last, the reader is carried through what many in the 1860s believed would be the only major conflict between North and South. So optimistic were the people in Washington that a crowd of civilians came from the city with picnic hampers to witness the crushing defeat of the upstart “rebels.” The following day, however, the mood would shatter in a battle that confounded the expectations of both sides―the first Battle at Bull Run.

It was a training ground for some of America’s most colorful military figures: P.G.T. Beauregard, Joe Johnson, Irvin McDowell, and “Stonewall” Jackson. It also marked the first strategic use of railroads and was perhaps the first time the horrors of battle were photographed for the people back home. Drawing from a wealth of material―old letters, journals, memoirs, and military records―Davis brings to life a vivid and vital chapter in American history.

About this title

Review:

From the very first pages of this book, it's clear that historian William C. Davis is ready to deliver a gripping account of the first battle of the Civil War. He describes a female spy traveling with stolen information from Washington, D.C., to Confederate headquarters in Fairfax Court House, Virginia: "The whole scene so reeked of penny romance that it bordered on the ludicrous." Maybe so, but it's also real history, and Davis understands what many academic historians do not: a good history book needs to tell good stories. Davis has written many outstanding books on the Civil War era, and Battle at Bull Run is one of his earliest. It's also one of his best, and is perhaps the finest book available on how the Union's haughty overconfidence crumbled against Southern determination in a single afternoon. Confederate General Thomas Jackson earned his immortal nickname, "Stonewall," on that day, and the soldiers who fought under him showed the North that its cry "On to Richmond!" was a hollow one. Much of the book focuses on events leading up to the actual battle--how the two armies were hastily assembled, how each side found its leaders, and so on. This is a familiar tale, but probably never has been told as well as it is on these pages. --John J. Miller

About the Author:

William C. Davis, former executive director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies at Virginia Tech University, has written numerous books, including An Honorable Defeat: The Last Days of the Confederate Government.

About this edition

• Publisher: LSU Press
• Publication date: 1981
• ISBN 10: 0807108677
• ISBN 13: 9780807108673
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 298