ebooks A Long and Bloody Task: The Atlanta Campaign from Dalton through Kennesaw to the Chattahoochee; May 5-July 18; 1864 (Emerging Civil War Series) by Stephen Davis in History

Review

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A Savas Beatie look at the battle for Atlanta; Part IBy Steven PetersonAnother in the lengthening series on civil war battles by Savas Beatie. . . . The focus here is the aftermath of the battle of Chattanooga to General Joseph Johnston's cashiering at Atlanta after a 140 mile long series of clashes from south of Chattanooga to the gates of Atlanta.William T. Sherman commanded three armies--Army of the Cumberland (George Thomas commanding); Army of the Tennessee (James McPherson commanding); and the Army of the Ohio (John Schofield commanding). Against this force (100;000 plus strong) was Johnston's Army of the Tennessee (reinforced by Polk's "army").The book follows the dance between Sherman and Johnston; as the former used maneuver to force Johnston into a series of retreats. There was some serious fighting in the process (e.g.; Kennesaw Mountain); but the campaign led to inexorable retreat by Johnston. Finally; new the city of Atlanta itself; President Jefferson David had seen enough retreat and replaced Johnston with General John Bell Hood. The rest of the Atlanta story would be told in yet another addition to the library.Some nice features: the usual description of how to see the battlefields themselves (or what is left of them). Several appendices are noteworthy--such as the logistics of keeping Sherman's large forces properly supplied; whether Hood was particularly treacherous in trying to get Johnston replaced (by himself); and so on.Another fine entry in this series. . . .0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A much needed updateBy Bill PilonThe book provides a nice summary of the campaign; along with a fairly detailed and accessible driving tour for the campaign; and a pretty good overview of available sources and the current level of scholarship. I can’t wait to take the books up to Dalton and work my way south. Readers should be advised that Davis definitely has an opinion. He’s not a fan of Sherman; who he seems to think is over-rated; he also seems to be ambivalent about Johnston and Hood. He’s kind of mildly grumpy about pretty much all the major players. Anyway; the book is excellent and a much needed update for accessing the sites of the campaign in light of growth and development of the region.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. provided a good outline of the campaignBy Robert Talvanwell done; provided a good outline of the campaign. Spurred my interest to read further.