This a reprint of 1991 study published by the United States Army Center of Military History. "A Soldier Supporting Soldiers" represents the collective insights of distinguished U.S. Army logistician Joseph M. Heiser Jr. He infuses his narrative with specific firsthand experiences in the organization of combat service support, thus illuminating larger principles of not only logistics but also military leadership and ethics. Heiser describes and analyzes problems still familiar to those who provide the materials and other support required by today's Army, especially in an environment of limited resources and challenging contingency operations. Military logisticians and military policymakers will benefit greatly from the logistics lessons.

The battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, 1862-63, were remarkable in several respects. Both revealed the problems of mounting a serious attack at night and provided the first examples of the now-familiar trench warfare. Fredericksburg featured street fighting and river crossings under fire. Chancellorsville was marked by Stonewall Jackson's death and the rare instance of mounted cavalry attacking infantry. In addition, the latter battle also demonstrated in striking fashion the profound influence of the commander on the battle. The Union committed more soldiers, supplies, money, and better equipment than did the Confederacy, and yet Lee won.

Eyewitness accounts by battle participants make these guides an invaluable resource for travelers and nontravelers who want a greater understanding of five of the most devastating yet influential years in our nation's history. Explicit directions to points of interest and maps--illustrating the action and showing the detail of troop position, roads, rivers, elevations, and tree lines as they were 130 years ago--help bring the battles to life. In the field, these guides can be used to recreate each battle's setting and proportions, giving the reader a sense of the tension and fear each soldier must have felt as he faced his enemy.