Customer Reviews

The Passing of Armies: An Account Of The Final Campaign Of The Army Of The Potomac

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It was after being shown the film "Gettysburg" in August 1997 I first heard of Joshua Lawrence Chamnberlain and the 20 Maine. I found the film very moving, and the serious, very human and very sensitive character of Chamberlain (played by Jeff Daniels) a very appealing figure - a true leader, a man who could inspire the best from others, a man of courage and integrity.

I wanted to find out more, to discover the real Joshua Chamberlain. To my delight, I found he had written a personal account of his life with the Army of the Potomac. Unbelievably - "The Passing of the Armies" was now available in the UK.

I was overwhelmed by this book, a poem in prose, a beautiful command of language and emotion, sensitive and deeply felt. It helped me understand a little of what the American Civil War did mean and how men could endure such agony and danger.

The book is an incredibly personal account of the last days before Appomattox, followed by a almost mystical account of the last review of the battered but triumphant Army of the Potomac. The language is very romantic, very foreign to twentieth century ears, but Joshua Chamberlain was there, he risked everything, valued people, he saw the deaths and felt the loss. Wounded six times, he was once given up for dead after being shot through both hips by a musket ball while leading a charge at Petersburg in 1864.

He was a good man, an inspiring man, with a wonderful self-deprecating humour, as shown when he describes falling in a muddy river along with his horse. Raymond Chandler wrote a line for his creation Philip Marlowe which I feel is very appropriate for Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain - "If there were enough like him, the world would be a very safe place to live in, and yet not too dull to be worth living in."

I went on to read "In the Hands of Providence" by Alice Rains Trulock, the latest biography of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain which I would recommend to anyone.

Joshua Chamberlain is probably the most famous 'minor figure' of the American Civil War. While history has remembered an amazing number of Civil War generals (quick, name three generals from America's Revolutionary War), Chamberlain never rose to a position high enough to be generally considered important. Except, that is, for his amazing work on July 2, 1863, when his regiment, the 20th Maine, held the left flank of the Union army against repeated Confederate attacks, culminating with a bayonet charge when the regiment ran out of ammunition. For his actions on that day, Chamberlain received the Medal of Honor.

But while Chamberlain's heroism at Gettysburg was amazing and vitally important to the survival of the United States of America, they were hardly the only important actions Chamberlain took during the war. Chamberlain would go on after Gettysburg to be wounded six times, twice declared dead in The New York Times, and rise to the rank of Brevet Major General and division commander. During his time with the Army of the Potomac, Chamberlain had a front row view of the battles that ended the American Civil War, and he was on the field at Appomattox when Robert E. Lee finally accepted the inevitable and asked Grant for terms of surrender. Chamberlain was then selected to accept the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia.

Given those exploits, Chamberlain had quite a bit to report on, and in The Passing of the Armies he offers his views on the final campaign of the war and the disbanding of the Army of the Potomac. Chamberlain's writing is fascinating, although the style is appropriate to the 19th century and can appear a bit cumbersome to the modern reader. It is nonetheless a gripping read as the reader travels with Chamberlain across the last battlefields of the American Civil War, feeling the excitement and horror of the first industrial war in history. Chamberlain's perspective was at once close enough to feel the heat of the battle yet removed enough that he is able to describe the larger picture relative to the battlefield. All the book is really missing is a few better maps; it can be difficult to follow the battles given the limited maps included in the book. But that is a minor point, and the reader will be caught up in the battles even if unable to place them on a map.

Despite all the excellent books written on the Civil War, only those who actually experienced the war can provide a feeling for what it was like to survive the battles. Joshua Chamberlain's memoirs give the reader an opportunity to actually get inside the head of a true American hero. As such, they are invaluable reading for anyone interested in the American Civil War, war in general, or leadership.

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain's book is a well written, detailed account of the final days of the Civil War. (As it should be - he was a Rhetoric Professor at Bowdoin College.) The book is not for those with a desire to read a more action packed or anecdotal view of the Civil War. It is intended to be a historically accurate and detailed account of what happened during the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia.

With so few first hand accounts available about the final campaign of the Civil War, "The Passing of the Armies" clearly stands out as one of the most memorable for its content and style. Written by General Joshua L. Chamberlain towards the end of his long and productive life, the former soldier and college professor's book relates his thoughtful observations and recollections of the battles at White Oak Road and Five Forks from a selfless standpoint. He reminisces on the surrender at Appomattox and the last review in great detail with sensitivity and a touch of sentimentality towards the events. Chamberlain is an eloquent, perceptive writer who provides the reader with much valuable insight about the personalities and situations he describes. His imagistic prose make this book enjoyable and inspiring to read. This is definitely one to include in the collection of any student of the Civil War.

There can be little doubt about it; this book is a 300 page poem. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, the school teacher from Maine who rose to Brevet Major-General, wounded six times in battle, and commanded the surrender ceremony at Appomattox, effortlessly composed, in the waning years of his life, one of the most beautifully-written Civil War reminicenses ever written. You will feel every emotion Chamberlain felt, because it cannot be helped- his writing is irresistable, it is as understated and dignified as he was, both in battle and in life. It is truly wonderful.

Very few books have been written to which the term "classic" has been almost immediately applied. The Passing of the Armies by Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain is one of those books. Chamberlain enlisted in the Union Army in 1862 and was immediately commissioned Lieutenant Colonel of the 20th Maine Infantry. In May 1863 he was commissioned Colonel of the regiment and it was this position that he held when the 20th Maine gained renown for its defense of Little Round Top at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863. By the end of the Civil War he had risen to the rank of Major General and he carried shrapnel in his body for the rest of his life as a result of wounds received during the conflict.

Prior to enlisting Chamberlain was a college professor, having graduated from Bowdoin College in 1852. In 1856 he was teaching classes in natural and revealed religion at Bowdoin. By 1861 he added Professor of Modern Languages and in 1862 he had been granted a two year sabbatical to study in Europe when he decided to fight for the Union. After the war he was twice elected Governor of Maine; he became President of Bowdoin in 1876 and in later life he served as a government surveyor during the McKinley Administration.

Chamberlain begins his narrative with the beginning of the final campaign of the Army of the Potomac against Confederate General Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia. It was the spring of 1864 and Union General Ulysses S. Grant had Lee and his army backing up toward what finally became the siege of Petersburg, Virginia. The final campaign began on March 30, 1864 when the two armies clashed along the White Oak Road just southwest of Petersburg. Grant and Lee hurled their troops at each other's line in such a tenacious manner that Chamberlain was surprised when, at the end of the battle, Grant ordered a maneuver around Lee's flank instead of falling back to regroup, as had been the custom of the Union Army after sharp engagements during the preceding years of conflict. The author then goes on to discuss every major action of the campaign through the surrender of Lee at Appomattox Court House, Virginia and the final Grand Review of the Union Army in Washington, D.C.

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was not a historian. He wrote in the introduction to the book: "History is written for the most part from the outside. Truth often suffers distortion by reason of the point of view of the narrator, some preoccupation of his judgment or fancy not only as to relative merits but even as to facts in their real relations." In this same paragraph he writes that he will simply tell of things as he saw them.

What Chamberlain did was to write a book that transcended the entire war. He was able to see the participants for what they were; men doing a job as best as they could, given the horrific circumstances. At Appomattox he and his regiment had been assigned to oversee the final act of the surrender, the stacking of arms and the furling of the colors of the Army of Northern Virginia. He ordered his men to snap their muskets to "carry arms," a customary salute, as the Confederate column approached. Confederate General John B. Gordon, at the head of his column, draws his saber, spurs his horse so that he rears a bit, and brings the tip of the blade to the toe of his boot as a return salute. It was a soldier's salute, one that could only come out of the bonds of shared experience.

Chamberlain's narrative at times seems melodramatic, as when he describes a girl dressed in white placing a wreath around his neck during the Grand Review, or when he describes receiving the order that disbanded the army on July 1, 1865: "Ceases to exist? Are you sure of that?" He also uses the text to make a political statement. Chamberlain completed the book shortly before his death in 1915. It was written during a time when the awarding of the Congressional Medal of Honor during the Civil War was, in some instances, being questioned. Entire regiments had been awarded the medal simply for re-enlisting and some soldiers were still attempting to obtain the medal, often under dubious circumstances. Chamberlain wished to see those who had actually earned the medal keep it, "but let us not behold the sublime spectacle of vicarious suffering travestied by the imposition of vicarious honors."

The Passing of the Armies is part of the pantheon of Civil War literature. It is simply the work of one soldier trying to make some sense out of all he has seen. It is not a self-serving volume, as many books are that are written by high ranking officers. The scholar that wants to experience the conflict without the hatred should read this book.

For any student of the Civil War north or south this is a must read! It is well written and informative. And to top it all off it was written by a person who was there. This is not a second hand account.

This book is a book writen on the finnal acounts of the Civil War a general who had a first hand acount at Petersburg and Appomatics which the book is about. I rate this book a ten

This book is a brilliant account of the final days of the Army of the Potomac, and serves as a wonderful primary source reading. I aggree with the previous reviewer who stated that the introduction is completely unneccessary. Chamberlain may not have been above propaganda, but I do not think he would change the facts when he was in dying years (where most people tend to be truthful about events).

The inference from the reader above wo calls this book "dull" and "dry" shows me that he may admire the man, but he has no idea of Mr. Chamberlain's personality.

Be patient with the writing style. The author was an English professor, writing a century ago. But this is an engrossing firsthand account. I see the Civil War differently now.