Customer Reviews

Lee's Last Major General: Bryan Grimes Of North Carolina

5 star:		(4)
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I had heard about this new biography and picked it up at a local book store. The author did a great job with this book, and finally someone has taken the time to present an excellent and fresh new history of General Grimes. So many books today say the same thing about the same officers. This book is based on hundreds of family letters, and so is very personal and exciting reading. It also has some great photos and detailed maps that are really good. There are a few typos in the book, but so what. I would rather read something new and original than the same old Pickett's Charge re-hash. Thanks to both the author and publisher for making this book available! I highly recommend it.

This is a great biography of one of the South's best fighting generals. Bryan Grimes was the last person Lee recommended for appointment to the rank of Major General and thus the title of the book.
Bryan Grimes was born into a wealthy plantation family in North Carolina in 1828. He was educated at the University of North Carolina and had little military experience before the war. But he rose from lower officer ranks to general's rank during the course of the war. He had six horses shot out from under him as he led his men across the fields of battle; yet he was never seriously hurt during the war. He participated in many of the major battles in Virginia.
The author was assisted in writing this book by what he describes as a "treasure trove" of letters written by Grimes and written to him during the war, which are located at various archives in North Carolina. This primary source material gives the book a sense of immediatecy when describing Grimes's life during this period.
The book has many interesting anecdotes such as the time Grimes's soldiers recovered some bags of Yankee mail. Included were some letters written by Gen. George A. Custer to his wife and from his wife to him. Gen. Grimes in a letter to his wife, described Gen. Custer's letters as being "vulgar beyond all conversation" and those from Gen. Custer's wife as letters that "would make any honest woman blush".
Another interesting anecdote describes Gen Grimes's return to North Carolina after Lee's surrender. Passing through scenes of destruction of civilian property, Gen Grimes and his companions came across an old man who was by the ruins of his home. The Yankees had destroyed his home, scattered and destroyed its contents, shot his yearling, his mule colt and even his dog! Is it any wonder that people in the South hated people from the North for generations?
Strangely, after surviving the war, Gen. Grimes was murdered in 1880. The author describes his murder, the surrounding circumstances and its aftermath in great detail, including the trials of the accused. This book will be the best source for information on Gen. Grimes's murder for years to come.
The author obviously liked and understood his subject. This is one of the best biographies of a Confederate general that I have ever read. This book is well worth the full five stars and I recommend it highly.

The book, as has been noted above is excellent - about an excellent man who really wanted to be nothing but a farmer. From his position of wealth and prestige he could have accepted a high rank in the Confederate Army. Being a practical and honest man who would have no truck with losing men because of his inexperience, he chose to take a lower rank (Major) so he could learn from a West Point trained Army Officer. When Harrell Allen wrote this book he relied upon a publisher that was not up to the task of publishing a book - one that did a terrible job in setting the print and then proof reading his work. There are lots of mispellings and transposed illustration labels - for example mixing up the label of the picture of Bryan Grimes and his brother William in their 20's. Some chapters clearly got proof read, others clearly did not. It is a shame the publisher, in doing such a poor job of the mechanics of publishing this book have somehow reflected poor credit on Mr. Allen's excellent work. Despite the awkward typos' this is a wonderful book about the life and times of an honest man who honestly believed he was serving his country and did a damned good job of it.

I can't really add much to what has already been said by Cousin John. Dr. Allen has brought from the backgound to the forefront a true Son of the South and hero of America.