In this new biography of General Ulysses S. Grant, acclaimed Civil War historian, Edward G. Longacre, examines Grant's early life and his military career for insights into his great battlefield successes as well as his personal misfortunes. Longacre concentrates on Grant's boyhood and early married life; his moral, ethical, and religious views; his troubled military career; his strained relationships with wartime superiors; and, especially, his weakness for alcohol, which exerted a major influence on both his military and civilian careers. Longacre, to a degree that no other historian has done before, investigates Grant's alcoholism in light of his devout religious affiliations, and the role these sometimes conflicting forces had on his military career and conduct. Longacre's conclusions present a new and surprising perspective on the ever-fascinating life of General Grant.

This lively and informative biography of General John Buford-the Union's most important cavalry officer-covers his entire military career, from his West Point days through his quartermaster duties, his field service on the frontier, and the Bleeding Kansas and Mormon campaigns, to his famous Civil War campaigns, including Brandy Station and Gettysburg. Acclaimed Civil War author Edward Longacre has combed family records, West Point cadet files, and the National Archives to produce what can safely be described as a classic of military biography.

Joshua Chamberlain became the "hero of Gettysburg" when he and his regiment, the 20th Maine, bravely held Little Round Top against a determined Rebel assault. Chamberlain's reputation as a celebrated soldier continued to grow in the decades that followed the war. Yet, Joshua Chamberlain, the soldier, is only part of the story of his remarkable life.Edward G. Longacre's biography of Joshua Chamberlain is the first biography to examine the entire life and career of this complicated man. The author skillfully investigates and analyzes all aspects of his life and character-before and after the Civil War. And Longacre re-examines Chamberlain's extraordinary military career as a Union officer, drawing on independent-and occasionally contradictory-eyewitness accounts of his battlefield actions. Longacre's meticulous research also suggests that Chamberlain's own account of his military actions can no longer be taken entirely at face value.