I love this book. It is great to have beside you whenever you are reading any other book about Civil War battles. Although some other map books have more elaborate maps, this small volume is so handy to use that I find that it is the one I always consult first.

If you want to know the basics of the Civil War and its battles, this is the book for you. Symonds has distilled the information that is elaborated in larger tomes down to an easy to read and reference guide of every major land battle of the war.
There is a two-page fold for each battle (with some exceptions that have more, like Gettysburg). On one page is a simple but informative map of the battle, while the opposite is an instructive narrative about the battle's events. The battles are also broken up into three sections that introduce the major campaigns and the important actors (politicians, Generals) that are vital to understanding the events of the war.
If you like the Civil War as a hobby, buy this book. If you are reading about the war in another book or novel and want an atlas of the battles mentioned, buy this book. If you are taking a Civil War course... including Symond's own at the Naval Academy... buy this book. It is an invaluable resource.

This atlas is a must for armchair generals. The stunning graphics and battle inclusiveness make it a must have!

The "Historical Atlas of the U.S. Navy" does for Naval engagements what the "West Point Historical Atlas" series has done for land wars: simplify and illustrate conflicts and put them into their proper historical context. Over 90 maps include all major naval accomplishments, including voyages and battles from the American Revolution to the Civil War to the birth of the nuclear Navy to Desert Storm. This book contains charts and maps of naval battles and voyages accompanied by a narrative text on a facing page that explains clearly what happened and why it was significant. The maps are in color and are easy to read. The text is not overly complicated, but not so simplified that it's useless. The authors strike a good balance here, providing a reference work that will be useful to both military historians or casual readers of military history. Highly recommended.

A detailed and well documented trip through the mind of a great leader. An 18th century gentleman caught up in the burden of a 19th century conflict. Symonds shows how Johnston agonized through the days with Hood in the west, avoiding decisions that may have had a marked impact on the eventual outcome of the war in the west. Johnston's feud with Jefferson Davis is also well covered and it is clear that Johnston became so engrossed with this struggle that one cannot help but wonder if things in April, 1865, might have been very different had these two men cooperated rather than bickered with each other. Johnston's relationship with his classmate, Lee, is covered lightly, although the jealously in Johnston's heart sneaks through. The only reason I did not give the book five stars is the brief treatment of Johnston's early life - probably due to a lack of source material - and his life following the war. The treatment of this latter period seems rushed. All in all, an excellent history and an insightful look at a often unfairly maligned warrior. ...But, I'm prejudiced.

Symonds presents a well-balanced account of Johnston the man, the soldier, and the friend and husband. This book is interesting, not overly complex and contains as much detail of Johnston's life as one would require to render an objective opinion of Johnston.

Not until I read this book did I understand the impact that Johnston's leadership had on the Confederate army's achievements and set-backs during the Civil War. Johnston could be cautious in his execution of battle plans and overly sensitive to criticism of his leadership and the strategic use of his army. However, Johnston understood that winning battles against numerically superior odds required picking the right circumstances in which to use his men. Johnston's first priority as a soldier was always the well-being of his men. The book also explores in depth the antipathy that Johnston and Jefferson Davis shared toward each other, indeed for a lifetime. This biography provides an easy-to-read account of all significant events in the life of Joe Johnston.

This is an excellent, well written, un-biased look at the life and military carrier of Joseph E. Johnston. I now better understand Johnston's strategies, and the numerous problems between himself and President Davis. I must read to better understand the war in the western theater of operations.

For many years the officers and men who made up the Army of Tennessee have played second fiddle to Lee's eastern army. The very title of this book clearly illustrates this point for one never hears a general in Lee's army referred to as the Cleburne of the east. Finally though, thanks in large part to the efforts of historians like Thomas L. Connelly and Shelby Foote and the diaries of Sam Watkins, the brave men of the Army of Tennessee are being given due credit.

Craig Symonds has added his name to the above list with this excellent study of General Patrick Cleburne. No study of the Army of Tennessee would be complete without a study of one of its best generals, and therefore this biography is a very important addition to any Civil War library. Best of all, the author writes in a flowing style that helps make this book a joy to read.

Unfortunately, much of Cleburne's personal correspondence has not survived but Symonds has done an excellent job of digging up what does exist. Fortunately, the Irish general was very precise with his battle reports and the correspondence of many of his close associates does still exist. Working with these sources the author weaves together a fascinating story. He doesn't dwell on the logistics of various battles, which tends to make for dry reading but instead describes very concisely the part Cleburne played in the battle

Symonds also deals in some detail with Cleburne's personal life, from his early life in Ireland to his engagement. There is also a good deal of attention given to Cleburne's close friendships, both before and during the war, and his political beliefs and activities. Of course, Cleburne's proposal to arm and free the slaves is also dealt with in detail. From his own formulation of the plan, to the icy reception it received, to the possibility that his proposal may have been partially responsible for his lack of further promotion, the plan and its ramifications and insights into Cleburne's personality are closely examined.

For any student of the war this would be a worthwhile read, but for anyone with a particular interest in the Army of Tennessee it is an indispensable read.

These days, the publishing world is well-supplied with Civil War general biographies. Even Gideon Pillow has one! Among those Civil War generals little understood or long remembered, and unjustifiably so, has been Patrick R. Cleburne. Craig L. Symonds fixes that quite nicely with this solid, well-written biography.

Cleburne came to the U.S. from Ireland, a protestant who immigrated in a ship's cabin rather than a Catholic who came in steerage. His life in Ireland before he came here, including his service in the British Army, are detailed more than I've ever read elsewhere, and his political and private life in Arkansas are retold carefully also.

It's the war, however, that gets most of Symonds' attention. We learn how Cleburne rose in rank, where he fought in various battles, and much about the various squabbles he had with other generals, notably his army commander, Braxton Bragg. We also learn, at some length, about the famous emancipation document that Cleburne presented to the rest of the army in the winter of 1863-4, and the impact it had on the rest of the army, and his career. You get a considerable amount of respect for the quaities of the man, commander and person that he was. He actually ran map exercises on a primitive level for his brigade commanders that winter of 1863-4, among the first of their type in the world. This is an impressive and thoughtful biography, the sort of book Cleburne has long deserved and not gotten.

Quite simply, one of the finest biographies it has ever been my pleasure to read. Craig Symonds does a magnificent job in re-telling a story that all Civil War followers, particualry those of a Southern persuasion, should read.

After serving a short term in the British Infantry, Patrick Ronayne Cleburne travelled over from his native Ireland (to correct one earlier reviewer's mistake - Cleburne was an Irish Protestant, not Catholic!) to settle in Arkansas and make a successful life for himself. He became a high-ranking member of the local masonic institute and did extremely well in business. When his adopted state seceded and went to war he did the only thing his conscience would allow and volunteered to fight alongside his friends and neighbours.

His talent was quickly recognised and he would eventually reach the rank of Major General. He would (and should ) have gone even higher but his call for the south to free and arm its slaves won him many enemies. In time even Robert E. Lee would come to agree with what Cleburne had earlier advocated but by then it was too late for the Confedracy.

The one thing that comes shining through in this excellent book is Cleburne's practical battleground genius. He inspired confidence in his men and never failed them. His division performed consistently in fight after fight and must be considered to be one of the very best that saw conflict in the entire war. History does not treat bad commanders well and it is a measure of Cleburne's reputation and stature that so many have called him the "Stonewall of the West".

I thoroughly enjoyed Symonds' style of writing. He covers all of the angles and gives all of the necessary information but he never allows the book to become bogged down in needless detail and that allows for a brisk pace to be set, which often leads to you not being able to put the book down for long periods of time. He should be very proud of what he has achieved here. I have four written volumes on the life and military career of Patrick Cleburne and this is, IMHO, the best of all. I shall be checking out other books written by Craig Symonds.

For many years Cleburne was something of a forgotten hero, possibly because he fought for the hard luck Army of Tennessee, and partly because history tends to ignore the Western part of the Civil War and stick to the the better known Eastern theatre. In recent times though there does seem to have been a greater awareness of the fight in the west and therefore it is inevitable that Cleburne's name will come to the fore. He was a remarkable man and a remarkable soldier and this book does justice to his life and achievements.

To conclude this review I will make a small confession. I was so moved by the final chapter, covering Cleburne's futile death in the terrible carnage at the Battle of Franklin, that I almost started to cry. It was a close run thing as the tears welled up in my eyes, but I just managed to keep them back. If we hadn't have had guests in the house at the time I wouldn't have even tried to stop the tears from falling!

The copy outlines the significant areas of the battle very well. Regardless of your level of expertise, it is easy to follow the progress of the battle. Although the maps are clear and show topographical features, they do not include the roads added since the battle. However, there is a segment on the Battlefield Today that brings the past and present into focus. Overall, this is an excellent source. Buy it if you can find it.

Hunter, barely past the age of 16, enlisted in the Federal Navy in November 1862 as a "ship's boy." He was never a regular seaman, but more or less a steward, or waiter in the officers' wardroom. He had great curiosity about everything he encountered in the new world of the Navy, and somehow found astonishing freedom to explore it as he liked. His book is based upon a rather sketchy diary he kept at the time, and greatly expanded with (one hopes) a good memory for details. Hunter later became a schoolteacher, and his writing is entirely readable. His vessel was the monitor "Nahant," one of a class of Federal ironclads similar in design to the original "Monitor," but larger. And every bit as slow, cranky and unseaworthy. Hunter writes often of the bad air and cramped conditions belowdecks, giving a personal closeup view of the Civil War Navy that's available in few if any other books. His monitor saw action in several significant naval assaults by the Union's South Atlantic Squadron. It took part in the failed Federal attack on Sumter in April 1863. The "Nahant" also participated in the capture of the Confederate Ram "Atlanta," and in the famous and deadly Union assault on Fort Wagner, like Sumter a part of the defenses of Charleston. Hunter's story is basically a memoir, written 60 years after the events, a likeable old veteran's gift to his grandchildren. This is a superb book, one that deserves top rating except for the qualification (for historians) that such a large part of the text was necessarily written from an old timer's memory. All the same, both scholars and we enthusiasts are lucky to have it. Great reading.