Jefferson Davis is a historical figure who provokes strong passions
among scholars. Through the years historians have placed him at
both ends of the spectrum: some have portrayed him as a hero,
others have judged him incompetent.
"In Jefferson Davis and His Generals," Steven Woodworth shows
that both extremes are accurate--Davis was both heroic and
incompetent. Yet neither viewpoint reveals the whole truth about
this complicated figure. Woodworth's portrait of Davis reveals an
experienced, talented, and courageous leader who, nevertheless,
undermined the Confederacy's cause in the trans-Appalachian west,
where the South lost the war.
At the war's outbreak, few Southerners seemed better qualified
for the post of commander-in-chief. Davis had graduated from West
Point, commanded a combat regiment in the Mexican War (which
neither Lee nor Grant could boast), and performed admirably as U.S.
Senator and Secretary of War. Despite his credentials, Woodworth
argues, Davis proved too indecisive and inconsistent as
commander-in-chief to lead his new nation to victory.
As Woodworth shows, however, Davis does not bear the sole
responsibility for the South's defeat. A substantial part of that
burden rests with Davis's western generals. Bragg, Beauregard, Van
Dorn, Pemberton, Polk, Buckner, Hood, Forrest, Morgan, and the
Johnstons (Albert and Joseph) were a proud, contentious, and uneven
lot. Few could be classed with the likes of a Lee or a Jackson in
the east. Woodworth assesses their relations with Davis, as well as
their leadership on and off the battlefields at Donelson, Shiloh,
Vicksburg, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, and Atlanta, to demonstrate
their complicity in the Confederacy's demise.
Extensive research in the marvelously rich holdings of the
Jefferson Davis Association at Rice University enriches Woodworth's
study. He provides superb analyses of western military operations,
as well as some stranger-than-fiction tales: Van Dorn's shocking
death, John Hood and Sally Preston's bizarre romance, Gideon
Pillow's undignified antics, and Franklin Cheatham's drunken
battlefield behavior. Most important, he has avoided the twin
temptations to glorify or castigate Davis and thus restored balance
to the evaluation of his leadership during the Civil War.
"A long-awaited work on an important topic--a counterpart for T.
Harry Williams's celebrated Lincoln and His Generals. Experts in
the field will have to take Woodworth into account. He writes
well--in a good, clear style that should appeal to a wide audience.
I found many passages to be pure pleasure to read. . . . The really
exciting thing, though, is his insightful series of
conclusions."--Herman Hattaway, author of "How the North Won."
"Highly readable, stimulating, and at times even provocative.
This fast-paced and compelling narrative provides a very effective
overview of Confederate command problems in the West."--Albert
Castel, author of "General Sterling Price and the Civil War in the
West."
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