General St. John Richardson Liddell was a biased, cantankerous, violent man devoted to the Confederacy yet doubtful of its ultimate success. This is history with the varnish off; Liddell wrote this record immediately after the war and never expected it to be published in his lifetime. It's one of the essential texts for understanding the Confederate Army of Tennessee and provides great insight into the personalities of its commander. More importantly, it reveals in great detail the mind of one former Confederate.