Guide to the Battle of Chickamauga (The U.S. Army War College Guides to Civil War Battles)

Rating:
Summary: Guide to the Battle of Chickamauga
Review: Many of you, no doubt, have acquainted yourselves with the series of books that comprise the US Army War College Guide to Civil War Battles. The latest volume, the Guide to the Battle of Chickamauga, edited by Col. Matt Spruill, constitutes a new and worthwhile addition.

The series follows a particular format that bears mentioning. Each guide uses excerpts from after-action reports, along with topo maps and detailed driving and, occasionally, hiking instructions. This enables a reader to place himself at critical points on the battlefield with a solid understanding of the terrain's significance. Spruill does not deviate from this standard. The choice of maps and selection of battle reports (most from the Official Records) along with his brief comments clearly document the fierce fighting which took place on these fields. Considering the heavily wooded terrain and confusing ebb and flow of forces over the area, Spruill paints a remarkably clear picture of what transpired.

The great clash of armies at Chickamauga played out over two intense days of combat along a front some several miles long. On this ground, characterized by forests of thick brush punctuated with only a few open spaces used for small farm cultivation, the hostile lines came almost into contact before fighting was possible. Blind to what lay before them and often unaware of the success or failure of supporting units, commanders threw their troops into attacks that flanked and routed the enemy only to be flanked and routed in return. Scattered farmer's fields became killing zones as artillery concentrated their attention on the openings in the surrounding woods. Each side felt for the others vulnerable flank in a deadly race to capture and hold the road to Chattanooga. Soldiers entrenched at every opportunity and built breastworks, however shallow, whenever a lull in the fighting permitted time.

Spruill's book depicts this story very well, guiding the reader from one disputed point to another. For the most part, he allows the participants to narrate each scene. Yet he tempers their tale by reminding you how restricted a view each possessed. Invariably, men felt the fighting on their front to be the fiercest they experienced, during the war. As a consequence, we travel in our mind's eye along the paths of victory and defeat, where soldiers marched and fought and died to possess the ground where we now tread. Let me recommend the book to you.