Customer Reviews

Richard Taylor: Soldier Prince of Dixie

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This is a highly readable yet scholarly treatment of an important nineteenth century Southerner. Dick Taylor, son of President Zachary Taylor, was a Yale-educated aristocrat and Louisiana sugar plantation owner when the Civil War broke out. By war's end he was a Lieutenant General. Although he had no pre-war military training, he became one of the Confederacy's most able commanders. Parrish expertly covers Taylor's entire life, but naturally focuses on the Civil War exploits. In addition to being an excellent strategist and tactician, Taylor was colorful, self-confident, oblivious to what others thought of him, and a lifelong practitioner of noblesse oblige. Parrish is clearly enamored of his subject, but this does not stop him from critically examining the contradictions and hypocrisies inherent in Taylor's worldview. The book is free of the anachronisms and politically correct jargon which mar so much recent American historical scholarship.

Before reading the personal memoir of an historical figure, I always make an effort to first read a scholarly biography of that person if one is available. Since Richard Taylor's memoir "Destruction and Reconstruction" is often highly ranked among the suggested reading lists for the Civil War, I planned to read it, so I set out to first find a bio. That's when I found Parrish's "Soldier Prince of Dixie."

Through Parrish's depiction of Taylor's life we are given a front row seat first into the making of an aristocratic, Yale educated, slave-holding planter, and a son of a president no less. By following Taylor we see in microcosm the story of the late antebellum South and its destruction.

He became a planter by inheritance when his father died. He went from being an elitist Whig to being swept into the torrent by fire-eating democrats. With no prior military training he became an outstanding field commander for the C.S.A.; among talented amateurs he was surpassed only by Forrest and perhaps Cleburne. Early on he served in the east in the Valley with Stonewall. Later he returned to the Trans-Mississippi and eventually reached the pinnacle of his achievements by stopping Banks in the Red River campaign.

As a result of the war his plantation was destroyed, and he endured the death of his young son. Still, he retained some national influence. He advised President Johnson on cabinet appointments and was a personal acquaintance of Henry Adams, author of "The Education of Henry Adams."

For anyone planning on reading "Destruction and Reconstruction," Parrish's work is valuable for its maps, especially the ones that show the Trans-Mississippi areas like the Red River Valley and the Lafourche and Teche bayou regions.

This is a highly readable yet scholarly treatment of an important nineteenth century Southerner. Dick Taylor, son of President Zachary Taylor, was a Yale-educated aristocrat and Louisiana sugar plantation owner when the Civil War broke out. By war's end he was a Lieutenant General. Although he had no pre-war military training, he became one of the Confederacy's most able commanders. Parrish expertly covers Taylor's entire life, but naturally focuses on the Civil War exploits. In addition to being an excellent strategist and tactician, Taylor was colorful, self-confident, oblivious to what others thought of him, and a lifelong practitioner of noblesse oblige. Parrish is clearly enamored of his subject, but this does not stop him from critically examining the contradictions and hypocrisies inherent in Taylor's worldview. The book is free of the anachronisms and politically correct jargon which mar so much recent American historical scholarship.

Richard Taylor was one of the very best Confederate Generals ,but little known--Warren Hunt III M.D.

This is the best bio I have read to date of General Taylor, although sometimes one must wonder if Mr. Parrish had much sympathy for his subject, with his sometimes disparaging remarks about Southern patriarchy. Perhaps he was simply trying to be PC on the slavery issue, but this didn't add much to the book for me. Still, serious students of General Taylor's exploits and the Western theater of the war will find this book an excellent resource

It is hard to believe that other people have not written about Richard Taylor, but they need not bother now that Parrish has written this book. This book on Taylor is engaging and interesting, but also very scholarly. Although Parrish's writing style can be dry at times, his topic does not allow the book to get mired in details or become boring. Instead, Taylor's life jumps off the pages and Taylor led such a life that we, the reader, get a great overview of pre-Civil War politics, the war in the Trans-Mississippi, and the Reconstruction Era. Normally, I find the pages on the time before and after the war somewhat boring, but this was not the case with this book. The whole book really kept my attention and was very interesting. Thinking back, I really cannot think of any criticisms of this work. Just a good, solid history book.

In my humble opinion, Parrish's is one of the best biographies I have ever read. Admittingly, the book is about a fascinating person: the son of a US President and Mexican War Hero who continues his family's military heritage by becoming a Lieutenant General in the Confederate Army without the benefit of a West Point education and becomes power in pre and post Civil War Louisiana. Writing a book about such a person should result in an interesting read!

Throughout the book, Parrish maintains an excellent balance in presenting Taylor's life, including: early life and pressures as the son of a famous hero, early indifference to formal education, success as a wealthy plantation owner, relationships with slaves, views of slavery, entrance into Louisiana politics, CSA military service eventually leading to the rank of lieutenant general, post Civil War years, and later years. Parrish does an excellent job of covering each area and as a result, the reader learns the many sides of a fascinating character.

Particularly interesting to me were the descriptions of Taylor's relationships with several noted Civil War personalities: Lee, Davis, Beauregard, Johnston, Jackson, Grant, Sibley, Smith, Forrest, Bragg, and others. With few exceptions, Taylor was able to get along with most of the people he encountered during the war - a rare accomplishment indeed. Parrish does an excellent job or summarizing Taylor's valuable service to the CSA and the book contains excellent maps of the battles Taylor participated in.

All in all, an excellent and highly recommended read of one of the Civil War's most fascinating personalities!