Shades of Blue and Gray: An Introductory Military History of the Civil War

by Herman Hattaway

Overview

An introductory military history of the American Civil War, Shades of Blue and Gray places the 1861-1865 conflict within the broad context of evolving warfare. Emphasizing technology and its significant impact, Hattaway includes valuable material on land and sea mines, minesweepers, hand grenades, automatic weapons, the Confederate submarine, and balloons. The evolution of professionalism in the American military serves as an important connective theme throughout. Hattaway extrapolates from recent works by revisionists William Skelton and Roy Roberts to illustrate convincingly that the development of military professionalism is not entirely a post-Civil War phenomenon.

The author also incorporates into his work important new findings of recent scholars such as Albert Castel (on the Atlanta Campaign), Reid Mitchell (on soldiers' motivation), Mark Grimsley (on "hard war"), Brooks D. Simpson (on Ulysses S. Grant), and Lauren Cook Burgess (on women who served as soldiers, disguised as men). In addition, Hattaway comments on some of the best fiction and nonfiction available in his recommended reading lists, which will both enlighten and motivate readers.

Informative and clearly written, enhanced by graceful prose and colorful anecdotes, Shades of Blue and Gray will appeal to all general readers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826211071
Publisher:	University of Missouri Press
Publication date:	05/29/1997
Series:	Shades of Blue and Gray , #1
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	296
Product dimensions:	6.13(w) x 9.25(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Herman Hattaway is Professor of History at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including Why the South Lost the Civil War, How the North Won, and General Stephen D. Lee, all past selections of the History Book Club.

What People are Saying About This

Russell Weigley

There is no other one-volume history of the Civil War that is so up-to-date in its author's mastery of current scholarship, that so succinctly yet completely summarizes the military history of the war....Anything Herman Hattaway says on the Civil War has to be taken seriously.

George Rable

The best brief military history of the Civil War available. Wonderfully clear and concise.

Editorial Reviews

"There is no other one-volume history of the Civil War that is so up-to-date in its author's mastery of current scholarship on the war, that so succinctly yet completely summarizes the military history of the war. . . . Anything Herman Hattaway says on the Civil War has to be taken seriously."— Russell Weigley

"A perceptive, well-crafted account—the best clear, brief military history of the Civil War available. Good focus on themes of technology, strategy, tactics, and leadership with an emphasis on the West Point contribution. Wonderfully clear and concise accounts of campaigns and battles that never seem stale. Like all Hattaway's work it is characterized by great scholarship with a kind of charming quirkiness."—George Rable

From the Publisher

In his preface, Hattaway (Why the South Lost the Civil War, How the North Won) notes that his goal was to focus on "certain military aspects of the American Civil War and to relate them more broadly to technological and managerial realities." He succeeds admirably, providing the reader with a clear, succinct background of changes in military strategy and armament proceeding from the Napoleonic wars, the Second Seminole War, the Mexican War and the Crimean War before dealing with the Civil War. Well organized and well-written, the parts and chapters move through those years with primary attention to each battle's strategic process and outcome while stressing the importance of technological developments and resultant changes in operational strategy. For example, the gradual adoption of entrenchment defense was necessitated by the longer range and accuracy of new rifles. Despite Hattaway's welcome brevity, the text offers asides that may surprise even seasoned Civil War buffs. For example, in his discussion of Gettysburg, he discusses General Richard S. Ewell's mental state: "Ewell may even have had severe mental problems_ legends persist that he sometimes hallucinated that he was a bird; for hours at a time he would sit in his tent softly chirping." Throughout his text, Hattaway traces the growth of military professionalism and concludes that wars are inevitable and that only a professional military can prepare for them effectively.

Publishers Weekly - Cahners\\Publishers_Weekly

In his preface, Hattaway (Why the South Lost the Civil War, How the North Won) notes that his goal was to focus on "certain military aspects of the American Civil War and to relate them more broadly to technological and managerial realities." He succeeds admirably, providing the reader with a clear, succinct background of changes in military strategy and armament proceeding from the Napoleonic wars, the Second Seminole War, the Mexican War and the Crimean War before dealing with the Civil War. Well organized and well-written, the parts and chapters move through those years with primary attention to each battle's strategic process and outcome while stressing the importance of technological developments and resultant changes in operational strategy. For example, the gradual adoption of entrenchment defense was necessitated by the longer range and accuracy of new rifles. Despite Hattaway's welcome brevity, the text offers asides that may surprise even seasoned Civil War buffs. For example, in his discussion of Gettysburg, he discusses General Richard S. Ewell's mental state: "Ewell may even have had severe mental problems... legends persist that he sometimes hallucinated that he was a bird; for hours at a time he would sit in his tent softly chirping." Throughout his text, Hattaway traces the growth of military professionalism and concludes that wars are inevitable and that only a professional military can prepare for them effectively. Illustrations not seen by PW. History Book Club selection. (May)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Hattaway (Why the South Lost the Civil War, Univ. of Georgia, 1991) distills his immense knowledge of war and society into this compact volume. Here readers can sample recent scholarly thinking about the war and the ways management and technology decided the character and outcome of the conflict, all spiced by pithy sketches of major figures. Hattaway reckons that professionalism counted the most in the successful organization and conduct of wartime affairs, though an "amateur" like Lincoln could emerge as a great war leader. Hattaway also looks at the Indian wars, the Mexican War, the Crimean War, teaching at West Point, and political leadershipall to give a long view and a comparative perspective rare in such a short history. Only the hurried narrative and a sometimes quirky bibliography will keep readers from appreciating the complexity and subtlety of Hattaway's many insightful suggestions. A fine introduction to a huge subject.Randall M. Miller, St. Joseph's Univ., Philadelphia

Library Journal

An introduction to Civil War military history focusing on the evolution of warfare from the Napoleonic wars, the Mexican War, and Crimean War before dealing with specific Civil War technologies. Hattaway (history, U. of Missouri-Kansas City) discusses the impact of land and sea mines, minesweepers, hand grenades, automatic weapons, the Confederate submarine, and balloons. Although the core of the history is rooted in these discussions, the author uniquely connects them with anecdotes about the period and military leadership, reviewing recent scholarship and providing new insights which enliven the thesis. Includes photographs. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

Booknews

A succinct, clear, useful review of the battles and campaigns of the Civil War, and of the strategies that shaped them.

Hattaway (History/Univ. of Missouri, Kansas City; How the North Won, 1982, etc.) is particularly concerned with the ways in which the war spurred an extraordinary range of developments in military technology (from repeating rifles to armored vessels) and with the often haphazard ways in which both sides struggled to adapt old military theories to new conditions and to the American landscape (most of the war's major battles were fought in terrain that obscured visibility, in conditions unknown to the European strategists much studied by both sides). Hovering over many of the war's bloodiest battles, he suggests, were recollections of the Mexican war in the 1840s, when direct assaults on enemy positions carried the day. Commanders on both sides repeatedly, disastrously, attempted to replicate those successes. Also shaping the nature of Civil War battles was the absence of a large professional officer corps. The outcome of the war, Hattaway suggests, is in part the history of commanders learning how to fight in a new way, to utilize technology, and to wage war on a far broader scale. While the conflict's most influential battles are judiciously, if swiftly, described, Hattaway repeatedly returns the narrative to this question of the evolution of strategy. His portraits of Grant and Lee, the war's most influential strategists, are terse, often critical, and convincing.

Those looking for detailed studies of individual battles should turn elsewhere. (Hattaway provides very helpful annotated bibliographies of the best work on the war.) Those searching for a clear, persuasive introduction to the way in which battle shaped new strategies and a new idea of war could find no better or more compelling guide.

Kirkus Reviews