Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1325086 in Books
• Published on: 1997-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 336 pages

Amazon.com Review
Virginia's Shenandoah Valley was a crucial avenue for Confederate armies intending to invade Northern states during the Civil War. Running southwest to northeast, it "pointed, like a giant's lance, at the Union's heart, Washington, D.C.," writes Jeffry Wert. It was also "the granary of the Confederacy," supplying the food for much of Virginia. Both sides long understood its strategic importance, but not until the fall of 1864 did Union troops led by Napoleon-sized cavalry General Phil Sheridan (5'3", 120 lbs.) finally seize it for good. He defeated Confederate General Jubal Early at four key battles that autumn.

In addition to a narrative of the campaign (featuring dozens of characters, including General George Custer and future president Rutherford B. Hayes), this book is a study of command. Both Sheridan and Early were capable military leaders, though each had flaws. Sheridan tended to make mistakes before battles, Early during them. Wert considers Early the better general, but admits that few could match the real-time decision-making and leadership skills of Sheridan once the bullets started flying: "When Little Phil rode onto the battlefield, he entered his element." Early was a bold fighter, but lacked the skills necessary to make up for his disadvantage in manpower. At Cedar Creek, the climactic battle of the 1864 Shenandoah campaign, Early "executed a masterful offensive against a numerically superior opponent, only to watch it result in ruin." With more Confederate troops on the scene, history might have been different. Wert relates the facts of what actually happened with his customary clarity and insightful analysis. --John J. Miller

Customer Reviews

Good analysis of the Shenandoah Campaign
An excellent narrative of the campaign. It's as if the thoughts of Philip H. Sheridan and Jubal A. Early were downloaded into print.

The details of battle are refreshing and go far into showing how these commanders handled themselves and their men in battle. Not only has the military aspect of the campaign been supported and thoughly researched, but the civilian population as well. Also, the statistics on both sides have been balanced to give proper respect to the men without playing favorites to one cause or another.

Old Abe owed much to Sheridan for his victories over Early. The President road into the Whitehouse on the coat-tails of these victories, and this book describes them in excellent detail.

This book comes highly recommended and a must for your Civil War collection!

Good Study of the 1864 Shennandoah Valley Campaign
Wert has written what is probably the best account to date of the confrontation between Sheridan and Early in the 1864 Shennandoah Campaign. While the book was originally published in 1987, I am not aware of any new studies of the campaign. The only other title on the campaign I have read is the one by Edward Stackpole that was published sometime in the 1950s - 1960s and I believe Wert's title is better written and more up to date.

Wert's writing style can be described as entertaining without being simplistic. He lacks the detail of other authors (for example, read Harry Pfanz' titles on Gettysburg if you want detail), but is able to keep the reader's attention. I enjoyed reading his descriptive accounts of the major characters (Sheridan, Early, Custer, Rodes, Ramseur, Russell, etc.) and the battles of Winchester, Toms Brook, Fisher's Hill, and Cedar Creek.

My major complaint with the book concerns the maps. The maps in this title and Civil War titles by other authors are too few and lack necessary detail. In my humble opinion, there could have been at least 7-10 more. Having more maps and more detail in the maps makes it much easier for a student (not a professional) of the Civil War like me to follow the actions and flow of the book.

Complaint aside, I do recommend the book as the definitive account of the 1864 Shennandoah Valley Campaign (unless there is a newer one that I am not aware of). Read and enjoy.

Very good study with a few omissions
This is a very good, useful close study of the Valley campaign in the fall and winter of 1864. Wert primarily focuses on studies of the major battles, giving enough first-person quotes to keep the narrative interesting. Occasionally his descriptions of the battlefield action are confusing, but that's probably a characteristic of the available sources. His discussion of the controversy over plundering at Cedar Creek is good, although I'm not entirely convinced. I find it a little surprising that, in discussing Early's failure to use his cavalry effectively, he does not mention the general's refusal of Mosby's offer of help, something which he brings up in his bio of Mosby. Also, in analyzing Early as a general, it might have been appropriate to mention the absolutely scathing and, in my view, entirely inappropriate speech which Early made to his troops after Cedar Creek blaming them for the defeat. Overall, this book has to be considered the canonical work on the campaign.