Combat: The Civil War (The Civil War)

This book is the sixth in a series and as in his previous work, Congdon has selected narratives which project the intense personal experiences of men actually in the front lines. He believes that this is approach is the one most likely to give the reader an understanding of what the war was like. This book makes no attempt to present an overall history of the American Civil War. Battles fought west of the Mississippi are not included as they lacked the scope of major engagements fought in the East and had no comparable effect upon the war's outcome. Each combat selection is preceded by introductory material which helps clarify the grand strategy of the war, campaign by campaign, and shows individual battles in true perspective. The rest is up to the reader. And here he will find Billy Yank and Johnny Reb warming up their muzzle loaders while on the picket line.