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Title: Attack and Die: Civil War Military Tactics and the Southern Heritage by Grady McWhiney, Perry D. Jamieson ISBN: 0-8173-0229-8 Publisher: Univ of Alabama Pr (Txt) Pub. Date: September, 1984 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 2.92 (13 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: ¿It was not war, it was murder¿
Comment: Probably better suited for more serious students of the Civil War, "Attack and Die" by Grady McWhiney and Perry D. Jamieson, provides an excellent expose' about how the Confederates "bled themselves nearly to death..." by attacking with greater frequency than their Northern counterparts. The book also presents a very compelling argument about how the use of outdated offensive tactics, learned during the Mexican War, and antiquated in the face of major technological improvements to muskets and cannon, had a devastating effect on the South.
Another interesting, and controversial, aspect of the book is the authors' conclusion that the tendency for offensive warfare was deeply rooted in Southern culture, and Celtic heritage. While the authors lacked sufficient evidence to be convincing on this point, they were far more convincing about how the advent of the rifle made bayonet attacks obsolete, the offensive use of cavalry ineffective, and entrenchments and fieldworks highly prized by Northern commanders.
Although, as the authors point out that there were good reasons for the South to adopt a defensive strategy, they elected to pursue the offensive to the detriment of their cause. Certainly, it is difficult to argue with the fact that the South lost 175,000 men during the first 27 months of the war due to their propensity for offensive action, or how they lost 97,000 men vs. 77,000 men for the North during the first twelve major battles of the war, or how Pickett's famous charge resulted in the loss of 62% of his command at Gettysburg.
It's no wonder that these tactics prompted D.H. Hill to respond with, "it was not war, it was murder," in reference to the losses the Confederates took after repeated attacks against heavily entrenched Union troops on Malvern Hill on July 1, 1862.
This book is an insightful and worthy addition to the study of Civil War strategy and tactics.
Rating: 3
Summary: GOOD READ FOR SOMEONE WHO ALREADY HAS A GOOD BACKGROUND
Comment: Attack and Die : Civil War Military Tactics and the Southern Heritage by Grady McWhiney and Perry D. Jamieson is a good compliment to other more complete histories of the Civil War. In and of itself the book is too focused on its central thesis - that the South lost due to the compulsion of its generals to be on the offensive and the resulting high casualty rate. While these tactics certainly had a dramatic effect on the outcome, the authors fail to put them in to the proper context of other causes.
The strength of the book is in its description of the reasons for the Confederate strategy, and the failure of almost all Civil War generals to come to grips with the effect that the introduction of the rifle had on the upcoming battles. The authors trace the introduction of the rifle and the displacement of the musket as well as how the tactics that were used being generally premised on the musket. What was missing was any refrence to General Longstreet's plan for the strategic offense combined with tactical defense. This is exactly what Longstreet suggested to Lee before the second day of Gettysburg.
The most interesting part of the book is the last two chapters. The second to last discusses how the Mexican War experiences of the generals predisposed the participants to take the offensive, since that is how the Mexican War was won. The increased accuracy and killing power of the rifle made those tactics obsolete.
The last chapter is the most interesting, although the authors may have taken their conclusions too far. Their conclusion is that given the Celtic roots of the Confederate Generals that they were culturally programmed to take the offensive. While the cultural antecedents of the generals cannot be dismissed as a factor, the Celtic battles that the authors discuss took place generations before the Civil War.
This is a worthwhile read for someone who already has a good Civil War background.
Rating: 1
Summary: Not credible
Comment: As many other reviewers have pointed out, the "Celtic" premise is ridiculously overblown. The Army of Northern Virginia can not be compared to the Scots at Culloden in 1745.
Also, as other reviewers have pointed out, the book ignores many "big picture" issues that played into the outcome of the war. Better alternative reading would be "Two Great Rebel Armies" by McMurry or "Why the South Lost" by Hattaway and company.
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Title: Battle Tactics of the Civil War by Paddy Griffith ISBN: 0300084617 Publisher: Yale Univ Pr Pub. Date: 01 March, 2001 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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Title: Civil War Command and Strategy: The Process of Victory and Defeat by Archer Jones ISBN: 0029166357 Publisher: Free Press Pub. Date: March, 1992 List Price(USD): $32.95 |
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Title: On the Altar of Freedom: A Black Soldier's Civil War Letters from the Front by James Henry Gooding, Virginia M. Adams, Corporal J. H. Gooding ISBN: 155849202X Publisher: Univ. of Massachusetts Press Pub. Date: April, 1999 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: Two Great Rebel Armies: An Essay in Confederate Military History by Richard M. McMurry ISBN: 0807845698 Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Pr Pub. Date: February, 1996 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Co. Aytch : A Confederate Memoir of the Civil War by Sam R. Watkins ISBN: 0743255410 Publisher: Touchstone Books Pub. Date: 01 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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