Customer Reviews

The March to Monterrey: The Diary of Lieutenant Rankin Dilworth, U.S. Army : A Narrative of Troop Movements and Observations on Daily Life With General Zachary Taylor's Army (Southwestern Studies)

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This book is a series of diary entries made by Lt. Rankin Dilworth of the 1st US Infantry. The diary reads like letters which were intended to be sent home. The entires start at Jefferson Barracks(St. Louis Missouri) on April 28, 1846 and end with Dilworth just outside of Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico on Sept 19, 1846. Lt. Rankin Dilworth was mortally wounded by a Mexican cannonball on Sept 21, 1846 during the intense assault on the city and died Sept 27, 1846.

There are 102 entries, with some being only a few words and others several paragraphs in length. There is one section of notes on flora & fauna written by Rankin Dilworth separate from the diary. Camp life in Texas, Matamoros, Reynosa, Camargo, and the route to Monterrey are covered with ancedotes about food, women, customs, and volunteers.-Lt. Dilworth, like many regular officers was not fond of the unruly volunteers and relates his experiences so the reader can empathize.

Editors Joseph Chance and Lawrence Clayton borrow heavily from Francis Heitman's Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army and George Cullum's Biographical Register of Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy to help identify officers mentioned in the entries. Since the US Army was so small during the era before the Mexican War and the officers seem to have been quite familiar, the helpful endnotes found on pages 73 to 114 are essential to determine who is who from the names/nicknames used by Lt. Dilworth.

The editors should also be credited with a 14 page introduction which helps those unfamiliar with the period understand the backround of the war. There are a few maps and sketches that also add to the book.

This is a good, quick read thanks to the diligent work of the editors. This book makes the reader drift into the time period.