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A historian's investigation of the life and times of Gen. George Gordon Meade to discover why the hero of Gettysburg has failed to achieve the status accorded to other generals of the conflict.
Who was George Gordon Meade? He should be remembered as one of the Civil War's most important generals for receiving command of the Union's dysfunctional Army of the Potomac only days before he defeated Robert E. Lee's Confederates at Gettysburg. Instead, history has pushed him aside. Tom Huntington wanted to find out why. In Searching for George Gordon Meade, he tells the story of the general's life and participation in the Civil War's great engagements, from George McClellan's Peninsula Campaign to Appomattox, and also provides accounts of his own investigations of Meade's legacy. Along the way Huntington hikes across battlefields, recites the names of fallen soldiers at a candlelit ceremony at Gettysburg, drinks a champagne toast at Meade's grave on New Year's Eve, and visits a severed leg, a buried arm, and a horse's head. The result is a quirky and compelling mash-up of history, biography, travel, and journalism that casts new light on an overlooked figure from the past. -- Back cover.
Although he took command of the Army of the Potomac only three days before the first shots were fired at Gettysburg, Union general George G. Meade guided his forces to victory in the Civil War's most pivotal battle. Commentators often dismiss Meade when discussing the great leaders of the Civil War. But in this long-anticipated book, Kent Masterson Brown draws on an expansive archive to reappraise Meade's leadership during the Battle of Gettysburg. Using Meade's published and unpublished papers alongside diaries, letters, and memoirs of fellow officers and enlisted men, Brown highlights how Meade's rapid advance of the army to Gettysburg on July 1, his tactical control and coordination of the army in the desperate fighting on July 2, and his determination to hold his positions on July 3 insured victory. Brown argues that supply deficiencies, brought about by the army's unexpected need to advance to Gettysburg, were crippling. In spite of that, Meade pursued Lee's retreating army rapidly, and his decision not to blindly attack Lee's formidable defenses near Williamsport on July 13 was entirely correct in spite of subsequent harsh criticism. Combining compelling narrative with incisive analysis, this finely rendered work of military history deepens our understanding of the Army of the Potomac as well as the machinations of the Gettysburg Campaign, restoring Meade to his rightful place in the Gettysburg narrative.
The Union Generals Speak is the first annotated edition of the 1864 congressional investigation into Major General George Gordon Meade's conduct during the Gettysburg campaign. The transcripts alone, which present eyewitness accounts from sixteen participant officers at Gettysburg, offer a wealth of information about the what and the why of one of the most pivotal battles in American history; but it is the addition of contextual comments and background material by Bill Hyde that unleashes this virtually untapped resource for readers. Laden with ulterior motives, prejudices, faulty recollection, and outright lies, the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War's report is a minefield of inaccuracies. Hyde's comprehensive analysis, informed by recent scholarship, transforms it into an accessible, rewarding aid for students of the Gettysburg chapter in the Civil War. In the course of the volume, Hyde gives thorough examination to the origins and purpose of the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, the political climate and military thinking in Washington at the time of the Meade hearings, and the hidden agendas of the witnesses and seven committee members. He maintains that the JCCW's dissatisfaction with Meade went much deeper than disapproval of the general's hesitancy to pursue and cripple Lee's Army of Northern Virginia on July 4, 1863—a failure that disappointed every northern citizen from Lincoln to the ordinary soldier. The bipartisan body of mostly radical Republicans who favored a ruthless defeat of the South aimed, Hyde shows, to restore power to the committee's favorite, Major General Joseph Hooker, whom Meade had succeeded as commander of the Army of the Potomac only three days before Gettysburg. The unfolding of the Gettysburg campaign, the career of General Meade, and the North's highly politicized method of warmaking all receive new illumination in The Union General's Speak. Hyde's balanced critique of this important primary source reminds us that though Meade is remembered now mainly for his role in defeating the Confederates at Gettysburg, the JCCW hearings confirmed that he was not the leader to win the war.
"Most students of the American Civil War know the name George Gordon Meade, but few can tell you about the man. Rising from the Union officer corps to lead the previously ill-fated Army of the Potomac, Meade took overall command only hours before his forces encountered Robert E. Lee's Confederates at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, in the summer of 1863." "Historian Richard Sauers shows that while Meade led his men to victory in one of the most famous battles in history, he was soon embroiled in political battles with fellow generals and Washington politicians. Despite detractors' efforts to question Meade's judgment and smear his reputation - efforts often exacerbated by the general's own volatile temper and undiplomatic behavior - he continued to put duty to his country and his men first. When Ulysses S. Grant was named lieutenant general in charge of all Union forces, Grant made his headquarters with the Army of the Potomac and soon overshadowed Meade. Sauers chronicles the tense relationship that developed between the two men and the effect it had on the crucial last days of the war." "This concise but authoritative account is the only recent biography of Meade and should spark renewed study of one of the Civil War's most underrated leaders."--Jacket
“An important contribution to Civil War scholarship, offering an engrossing portrait of these important campaigns . . . this reviewer recommends it highly.” —NYMAS Review The fall of Vicksburg in July 1863 fundamentally changed the strategic picture of the American Civil War, though its outcome had been anything but certain. Union general Ulysses S. Grant tried for months to capture the Confederate Mississippi River bastion, to no avail. A bold running of the river batteries, followed by a daring river crossing and audacious overland campaign, finally allowed Grant to pen the Southern army inside the entrenched city. The long and gritty siege that followed led to the fall of the city, the opening of the Mississippi to Union traffic, and a severance of the Confederacy in two. In Tennessee, meanwhile, the Union Army of the Cumberland brilliantly recaptured thousands of square miles while sustaining fewer than six hundred casualties. Commander William Rosecrans worried the North would “overlook so great an event because it is not written in letters of blood”—and history proved him right. The Tullahoma campaign has stood nearly forgotten compared to events along the Mississippi and in south-central Pennsylvania, yet all three major Union armies scored significant victories that helped bring the war closer to an end. The public historians writing for the popular Emerging Civil War blog, speaking on its podcast, or delivering talks at its annual Emerging Civil War Symposium in Virginia always present their work in ways that engage and animate audiences. Their efforts entertain, challenge, and sometimes provoke with fresh perspectives and insights born from years of working at battlefields, guiding tours, and writing for the wider Civil War community. The Summer of ’63: Vicksburg and Tullahoma is a compilation of some of their favorites, anthologized, revised, and updated, together with several original pieces. Each entry includes helpful illustrations. This important study, when read with its companion volume The Summer of ’63: Gettysburg, contextualizes the major 1863 campaigns in what arguably was the Civil War’s turning-point summer.
“An outstanding read for anyone interested in the Civil War and Gettysburg in particular . . . innovative and thoughtful ideas on seemingly well-covered events.” —The NYMAS Review The largest land battle on the North American continent has maintained an unshakable grip on the American imagination. Building on momentum from a string of victories that stretched back into the summer of 1862, Robert E. Lee launched his Confederate Army of Northern Virginia on an invasion of the North meant to shake Union resolve and fundamentally shift the dynamic of the war. His counterpart with the Federal Army of the Potomac, George Meade, elevated to command just days before the fighting, found himself defending his home state in a high-stakes battle that could have put Confederates at the very gates of the nation’s capital. The public historians writing for the popular Emerging Civil War blog, speaking on its podcast, or delivering talks at the annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge in Virginia always present their work in ways that engage and animate audiences. Their efforts entertain, challenge, and sometimes provoke readers with fresh perspectives and insights born from years of working on battlefields, guiding tours, presenting talks, and writing for the wider Civil War community. The Summer of ’63: Gettysburg is a compilation of some of their favorites, anthologized, revised, and updated, together with several original pieces. Each entry includes original and helpful illustrations. Along with its companion volume The Summer of ’63: Vicksburg and Tullahoma, this important study contextualizes the major 1863 campaigns in what was arguably the Civil War’s turning-point summer.
The Battle of Gettysburg remains one of the most controversial military actions in America's history, and one of the most studied. Professor Coddington's is an analysis not only of the battle proper, but of the actions of both Union and Confederate armies for the six months prior to the battle and the factors affecting General Meade’s decision not to pursue the retreating Confederate forces. This book contends that Gettysburg was a crucial Union victory, primarily because of the effective leadership of Union forces—not, as has often been said, only because the North was the beneficiary of Lee's mistakes. Scrupulously documented and rich in fascinating detail, The Gettysburg Campaign stands as one of the landmark works in the history of the Civil War.
This vividly detailed Civil War history reveals many of the incredible true stories behind the legendary sites of the Gettysburg battlefield. Having unexpectedly been thrust into command of the Army of the Potomac only three days earlier, General George Gordon Meade was caught by a much harsher surprise when the Confederate Army of North Virginia launched a bold invasion northward. Outside the small college town of Gettysburg, the lead elements of Meade’s army were suddenly under attack. By nightfall, they were forced to take a lodgment on high ground south of town. There, they fortified—and waited. “Don’t give an inch, boys!” one Federal commander told his men. The next day, July 2, 1863, would be one of the Civil War’s bloodiest. With names that have become legendary—Little Round Top, Devil’s Den, the Peach Orchard, the Wheatfield, Culp’s Hill—the second day at Gettysburg encompasses some of the best-known engagements of the Civil War. Yet those same stories have also become shrouded in mythology and misunderstanding. In Don’t Give an Inch, Emerging Civil War historians Chris Mackowski and Daniel T. Davis peel back the layers to share the real and often-overlooked stories of that fateful summer day.