With a Sword in One Hand and Jomini in the Other: The Problem of Military Thought in the Civil War North

by Carol Reardon

Overview

When the Civil War began, Northern soldiers and civilians alike sought a framework to help make sense of the chaos that confronted them. Many turned first to the classic European military texts from the Napoleonic era, especially Antoine Henri Jomini's ###Summary of the Art of War#. As Carol Reardon shows, Jomini's work was only one voice in what ultimately became a lively and contentious national discourse about how the North should conduct war at a time when warfare itself was rapidly changing. She argues that the absence of a strong intellectual foundation for the conduct of war at its start--or, indeed, any consensus on the need for such a foundation--ultimately contributed to the length and cost of the conflict.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780807882573
Publisher:	The University of North Carolina Press
Publication date:	05/21/2012
Series:	The Steven and Janice Brose Lectures in the Civil War Era
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Carol Reardon is George Winfree Professor of American History Emerita at Pennsylvania State University and author of Pickett’s Charge in History and Memory.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

1 Exorcising the Ghost of Jomini: Debating Strategy in the Civil War North 17

2 Who Shall Command?: The Cult of Genius Versus the Primacy of the Professional 55

3 Lost in Jomini's Silence: The Human Factor in War 89

Epilogue 125

Acknowledgments 139

Notes 141

Bibliography 157

Index 169

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“This excellent book will change the perceptions of military historians in general and Civil War historians in particular.” — John F. Marszalek, executive director, The Ulysses S. Grant Association, Mississippi State University

“A superb book. Ingeniously researched, powerfully argued, and clearly written, it is a strikingly original contribution not only to Civil War literature but to the field of military theory as well.” — George C. Rable, author of God’s Almost Chosen Peoples: A Religious History of the American Civil War

“Carol Reardon offers an incisive analysis of the impact — or lack thereof — of Jomini and other writers on military strategy, but she does a great deal more. This book provides one of the best accounts we have of leadership, morale, and combat stress in the Union army.” — James M. McPherson

Editorial Reviews

“Nothing less than amazing. For anyone interested in military history that goes beyond — without losing sight of — battles and leaders and engages big issues in Civil War military history in a way that is provocative, insightful, and compelling, Reardon’s book is an essential addition to their library.” — Civil War Monitor

“Reardon examines the public debate in the North over what military strategy would best defeat the Confederacy.” — America’s Civil War

“Reardon’s revisionist contribution is . . . significant, timely, and thoroughly welcome.” — Journal of American History

“A succinct but thorough examination of the intellectual dimensions of waging the war. . . . Highly recommended.” — North Carolina Historical Review

“This is a book that deserves and should find a wide audience. In addition to shedding important light on aspects of the war that had heretofore not received adequate attention from scholars, it is also impressively researched, analytically rigorous, and clearly written.” — Blue & Gray Magazine

“Reardon’s approach to combat studies offers a new and promising framework to understand the connection between soldiers, combat, and unit effectiveness.” — Journal of Southern History

“Reardon knows her subject well, and this resulting contribution to Civil War literature ought not to be ignored by anyone hoping to understand the making of strategy or the moral component in war.” — The Historian

From the Publisher