As a Captain in the Washington State Civil War Association I portray the Company "A" 1st Confederate Engineers commanding officer. We try to make our re-enacments as authentic as possible but information on the Confederate Engineers is very difficult to find as most records were lost when Richmond was evacuated. I have found Mr. Jackson's book to be of immense help in studying the history of the 1st C.E. The information he gives is obviously well researched and is presented in an interesting way so it is enjoyable to read. The use of letters from the participants gives the book a personal touch that I found drew me into the action as though I were actually there in the works at Petersburg while the seige was going on. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the War Between the States.

A very useful guide to the Chennault Papers, covering the American Volunteer Group and the 14th Air Force. Note that there is a microfilm version of the Chennault Papers at the Library of Congress, as well as the originals at Stanford. Though the LOC version is differently cataloged, the published guide can still lead you to what you want; once you get to the LOC manuscript room, you can supplement it with a paper finding aid. I spent weeks reading this material for Flying Tigers: Claire Chennault and the American Volunteer Group.

For anyone studying European History, this book is a must-have. I used it last year in my college-level history course, and it quickly became my best friend. It contains all the necessary information, and tons more besides. But because the book contains so much useful information, it is quite heavy reading. Its vocabulary and content is intended for the serious historical inquiry, not for people with a casual interest in the subject matter. Still, being a history major, I love this book, and can appreciate its breadth, its depth, its accuracy, and its recounting of history. By far, this is the best and most comprehensive look at European history I've ever seen.

"Lee Takes Command" is the volume in the Time-Life Civil War Series that reminds us the Army of Northern Virginia was not overly impressed with its new leader at the beginning of his legendary tenure. Winfield Scott might have convinced Abraham Lincoln to offer Robert E. Lee command of the Federal army, but the average Confederate soldier was not too keen about "Granny" Lee and his penchant for digging trenches in defense of Richmond in June of 1862. This volume begins with a photo essay on "The Making of a General," that covers the highlights of Lee's family and military career up to the moment he was ushered onto the stage of American history.

Lee took command of the Confederate army defending Richmond when General Joseph E. Johnston was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines. Several choice quotes regarding Lee's shortcomings as a military commander, include a patently ironic one from George B. McClellan, set the stage for the creation of a legend. The volume is divided into five chapters: (1) Mechanicsville to Gaines's Mill details how Lee forced the Federals to withdrawn across the Chickahominy River; (2) Flight to the James describes covers the battle of Malvern Hill, which saw McClellan withdraw his army to Harrison's Landing, thereby ending the Peninsula Campaign; (3) Taking the War North covers Stonewall Jackson's battle with Nathaniel Banks at Cedar Run; (4) Jackson's Bold Sweep finds John Pope now in charge of the Army of the Potomac and the two armies moving around northern Virginia until (5) Another Bull Run, which I have always tended to think of as a major battle, but which is reduced to being covered in a single chapter.

"Lee Takes Command" covers a lot of ground, both in terms of time and territory. As a result, this particular volume focuses more on the bigger picture than the details, as compared to other books in the series. Lee himself is not always at the forefront of the action, but certainly his surrogates, namely Jackson and Stuart, carry out their military efforts in his spirit. The book is illustated with historic photographs, etchings, drawings, paintings and such, which is one of the hallmarks of this series. For every illustration you recognize chances are you will find two or more than you do not. As with most episodes of the Civil War, you will be struck as much by the ineptitude of the Northern commanders as you will be by Lee's brilliance.

"Lee Takes Command" is the volume in the Time-Life Civil War Series that reminds us the Army of Northern Virginia was not overly impressed with its new leader at the beginning of his legendary tenure. Winfield Scott might have convinced Abraham Lincoln to offer Robert E. Lee command of the Federal army, but the average Confederate soldier was not too keen about "Granny" Lee and his penchant for digging trenches in defense of Richmond in June of 1862. This volume begins with a photo essay on "The Making of a General," that covers the highlights of Lee's family and military career up to the moment he was ushered onto the stage of American history.

Lee took command of the Confederate army defending Richmond when General Joseph E. Johnston was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines. Several choice quotes regarding Lee's shortcomings as a military commander, include a patently ironic one from George B. McClellan, set the stage for the creation of a legend. The volume is divided into five chapters: (1) Mechanicsville to Gaines's Mill details how Lee forced the Federals to withdrawn across the Chickahominy River; (2) Flight to the James describes covers the battle of Malvern Hill, which saw McClellan withdraw his army to Harrison's Landing, thereby ending the Peninsula Campaign; (3) Taking the War North covers Stonewall Jackson's battle with Nathaniel Banks at Cedar Run; (4) Jackson's Bold Sweep finds John Pope now in charge of the Army of the Potomac and the two armies moving around northern Virginia until (5) Another Bull Run, which I have always tended to think of as a major battle, but which is reduced to being covered in a single chapter.

"Lee Takes Command" covers a lot of ground, both in terms of time and territory. As a result, this particular volume focuses more on the bigger picture than the details, as compared to other books in the series. Lee himself is not always at the forefront of the action, but certainly his surrogates, namely Jackson and Stuart, carry out their military efforts in his spirit. The book is illustated with historic photographs, etchings, drawings, paintings and such, which is one of the hallmarks of this series. For every illustration you recognize chances are you will find two or more than you do not. As with most episodes of the Civil War, you will be struck as much by the ineptitude of the Northern commanders as you will be by Lee's brilliance.

"Lee Takes Command" is the volume in the Time-Life Civil War Series that reminds us the Army of Northern Virginia was not overly impressed with its new leader at the beginning of his legendary tenure. Winfield Scott might have convinced Abraham Lincoln to offer Robert E. Lee command of the Federal army, but the average Confederate soldier was not too keen about "Granny" Lee and his penchant for digging trenches in defense of Richmond in June of 1862. This volume begins with a photo essay on "The Making of a General," that covers the highlights of Lee's family and military career up to the moment he was ushered onto the stage of American history.

Lee took command of the Confederate army defending Richmond when General Joseph E. Johnston was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines. Several choice quotes regarding Lee's shortcomings as a military commander, include a patently ironic one from George B. McClellan, set the stage for the creation of a legend. The volume is divided into five chapters: (1) Mechanicsville to Gaines's Mill details how Lee forced the Federals to withdrawn across the Chickahominy River; (2) Flight to the James describes covers the battle of Malvern Hill, which saw McClellan withdraw his army to Harrison's Landing, thereby ending the Peninsula Campaign; (3) Taking the War North covers Stonewall Jackson's battle with Nathaniel Banks at Cedar Run; (4) Jackson's Bold Sweep finds John Pope now in charge of the Army of the Potomac and the two armies moving around northern Virginia until (5) Another Bull Run, which I have always tended to think of as a major battle, but which is reduced to being covered in a single chapter in this volume.

Consequently, "Lee Takes Command" covers a lot of ground, not just in terms of territory but also time. As a result, this particular volume focuses more on the bigger picture than the details, as compared to other books in the series. Lee himself is not always at the forefront of the action, but certainly his surrogates, namely Jackson and Stuart, carry out their military efforts in his spirit. The book is illustated with historic photographs, etchings, drawings, paintings and such, which is one of the hallmarks of this series. For every illustration you recognize chances are you will find two or more than you do not. As with most episodes of the Civil War, you will be struck as much by the ineptitude of the Northern commanders as you will be by Lee's brilliance.

This is an alphabetical list of colonels in the Army of Northern Virginia. Information provided includes service record, when/if wounded, etc.; there's little or no narrative material. Lee's Colonels will be irrelevant to the non-specialist but essential to the scholar. It may not be entirely complete -- I noticed that Col. Echols is missing -- but seems fairly comprehensive.

Despite being very close to several major clashes in the Civil War, the home of General Washington remained a site sacred to North and South alike. Muir draws heavily upon letters, military orders, and other period documents to tell this story of Mount Vernon in a very quick and lively manner, adding some interesting color to Civil War history and some insight into what day-to-day life was like for civilians near the USA-CSA border.