Customer Reviews

Don Troiani's Regiments & Uniforms of the Civil War

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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Don Troiani has done it again. Fantastic book! Knowing the quality of Troiani's work, I'd had it pre-ordered for some time, and am thrilled to now have it in hand.

Many illustrations are of individual soldiers - allowing for a precise look at the uniform fit, colors and textures as well as how the accessories and accoutrements were worn. The book's illustrations are fantastic and it also has 250+ photographs of uniforms and equipment - many items are from the artist's personal, extensive collection. There is extensive coverage of Zouaves and Chasseurs.

If you've never seen a fully uniformed and armed soldier from the 3rd New Jersey Cavalry, 1st U.S. Hussars 1864-65, a quick purusal will explain why they were nicknamed The Butterflies.

After hearing Mr. Troiani speak in the summer of 2001 (and getting to briefly meet him), he has become my favorite Civil War artist by far. His soldiers are real - sometimes muddy, bloody and torn, and faces may have several days growth of beard, with their emotions and fatigue clearly visible. Hair and facial hair styles are accurate, as are body sizes and types, and all small details. Gaze deeply into one of his paintings, and soon you'll swear you can hear the noise of battle and feel the fear, confusion, determination and courage of the soldiers. Troiani takes you there.

The text, written by Earl Coates, Michael McAfee and Don Troiani, is accurate, concise and thoroughly expands one's understanding of the illustrations.

Extensive sources are given, as are recommendations for museums (and their websites) with extensive collections of Civil War uniforms. Don't let the price throw you, the book is well worth it.

If you enjoyed "Don Troiani's Civil War" and "Soldiers in America" you'll love the new "Regiments and Uniforms of the Civil War." What becomes more clear with each book is the incredible amount of research that goes into Mr. Troiani's work.
This latest book is a perfect combination of text, photography and art.
Noted Civil War authorities Earl Coates and Michael McAfee provide the in depth research text that reads like a novel. The photos of uniforms, headgear, buttons, et al show the extensiveness of resources (most from his personal collection) available to Troiani. Based on these two pillars of knowledge, Troiani creates art of Civil War soldiers in uniform that is unparallelled in accuracy as well as anatomy and action.

Because I'm a working historian with a strong interest in material culture and artifacts, combined with a tourist's interest in Civil War battlefields, I've long been a fan of Troiani's amazingly detailed, extremely accurate, almost photographic art. This gorgeous volume combines large-scale reproductions of 130 of his paintings with some 250 color photos of surviving uniforms and equipment from museums and collections around the country (including Troiani's own). After a couple hours of page-turning, I went back and spent much more time studying the depictions of units of special interest to me, such as the Washington Artillery of New Orleans and Terry's Texas Rangers. The variety in uniforms and insignia is staggering, especially compared to the "uniformity" of modern military uniforms. As usual, he includes extensive technical notes and specs, as well as an annotated guide to artifact collections. It's not a cheap book, but it's worth every penny.

Let me start off by saying that I am not a fan of the Civil War. I do not regulary buy books dealing with it. My primary interest is in the Napoleonic period and I have numerous books on this subject. My prime area of interest are Napoleonic uniforms. However, Don Troiani is such a fine and skillful artist that I have bought his books soley because the fine work he does in portraying the soldiers of the Civil War era. Regiments and Uniforms of the Civil War is a supurb work showing the detail and grit of the average soldier in that horrific conflict. There are dozens of paintings or maybe better described as portraits of individual soldiers covering the numerous regiments that took part in the conflict including infantry, cavalry and artillery. Also included in this book are a number of reproductions of his battle paintings which are also the best military paintings I have ever seen. Over the past 20 years I have bought hundreds of history books but only 5 on the Civil War and four of them I bought were simply for the Don Troiani reproductions. He is in my opinion the greatest military artist. Seeing his work makes me jealous for Civil War buffs and I wish that Troiani would paint uniforms of the Napoleonic era. No Napoleonic artist comes close to the detail, accuracy and skill that Mr. Troiani displays in his work. If you are into uniforms or military art of any period then buy this book. You do not have to be a Civil War buff to enjoy the great artwok of Don Troiani.

His stunning artwork has long been respected, but this work is an invaluable resource for reenactors and students of the period. Highly recommend!

Troiani's work is always top-notch. I would have given this book a 5-star rating, except that several units are covered more than once, which means other interesting uniforms were not included at all. I realize that with the sheer volume of his work it becomes a matter of picking and choosing, but I still would have appreciated wider coverage.

I bought this book for my wife. she wanted it for making uniforms for reenactors. Great pictures and information. Don Troiani's has a lot of books out but this is a really good one that covers a lot of information.

A good referance book. All regiments wore their own uniforms if they had uniforms,
consisting of all different sytles and colors.
Uniforms due to dying methods and materials used at the time
those dipicted in pictures may have faded badly over time. The colors of most uniforms are illustrated with desriptions. Seems at least half the union solders wore red pants as blue.
As many union solders wore grey as did the confederacy at the begining of the war,
however many of the confederacy wore butternut. An interesting book, reinforcing what a terrible war it was to fight.

This book is a marvelous guide to ACW Regiments & Uniforms. It covers Militia, Zouaves, Cavalry, Infantry & Artillery. It also has a section on specialists & General Officers. It does this with illustrations and a brief history on a number of ACW Regiments, both Union & Confederate. I was particularly delighted to find an entry on the generally obscure 62nd New York State Volunteers.

Illustrations consist of large colour paintings, as well as photos of historical items used during the war. This book is a must have for any person interested in exploring American Civil War history, and learning a little about several of the many Regiments engaged.

Well researched, amply illustrated, this is a valuable & enjoyable reference book for any Civil War buff.

Troiani's artwork and detail are astounding. This book is worth the price for that alone, although it would be nice if more Civil War buffs could afford all his work. I bought this particular book to identify two of my Civil War ancestors, one in Union blue and one in what I thought was Confederate gray. Troiani explains that gray was often worn by both sides, depending on what material was available and what manufacturer was supplying the Quartermaster. To be honest, I didn't find everything I wanted; for instance, one of my soldiers has a star on his collar and sports a sheathed knife that looks too small to be a cavalry sword and too large to be a Bowie. I couldn't find a regiment dressed similarly, but the disparity of uniforms and the individuality of gear makes that difficult. I found plenty of information I didn't have previously and learned fascinating details about regiments with which I wasn't familiar. The best part of Troiani's work is the compelling detail and expression on the faces of the soldiers. Each soldier has an expression you can almost feel: anger, fatigue, frustration, desperation, even hunger. Troiani details the tack on the cavalry horses to perfection and depicts the same poignant expressions of fear and uncertainty on the horses' faces that assail their riders.
I didn't find everything, but I found detail and information on which to build, and it's unrealistic to expect one book, even one as excellent as this, can supply all the missing links. A fine work.