A Savage Conflict: The Decisive Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War (Civil War America) [Hardcover]

Daniel E. Sutherland (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0807832774 | ISBN-13: 978-0807832776 | Publication Date: June 5, 2009 | Edition: First Edition

The American Civil War is famous for epic battles involving massive armies outfitted in blue and gray uniforms, details that characterize conventional warfare. A Savage Conflict is the first work to treat guerrilla warfare as critical to understanding the course and outcome of the Civil War. Daniel Sutherland argues that irregular warfare took a large toll on the Confederate war effort by weakening support for state and national governments and diminishing the trust citizens had in their officials to protect them.

Sutherland points out that early in the war Confederate military and political leaders embraced guerrilla tactics. They knew that "partizan" fighters had helped to win the American Revolution. As the war dragged on and defense of the remote spaces of the Confederate territory became more tenuous, guerrilla activity spiraled out of state control. It was adopted by parties who had interests other than Confederate victory, including southern Unionists, violent bands of deserters and draft dodgers, and criminals who saw the war as an opportunity for plunder. Sutherland considers not only the implications such activity had for military strategy but also its effects on people and their attitudes toward the war. Once vital to southern hopes for victory, the guerrilla combatants proved a significant factor in the Confederacy's final collapse.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Perhaps the most comprehensive analysis of guerrilla warfare during the Civil War to date. . . . Well written and exhaustively researched. . . . Specialists and enthusiasts of the Civil War will enjoy this book as it is an excellent addition to any Civil War library."
-On Point

"A book no serious student of the Civil War can do without."
-Arkansas Historical Quarterly

"Sutherland offers a near encyclopedic survey of Confederate use of guerilla tactics and of Union efforts to combat them. . . . [His book] powerfully underscore[s] the ugliness and moral complexity of the uncivil war that divided Americans between 1861 and 1865."
-American Historical Review

"Sutherland largely eschews the salacious rendering of individual acts of violence, choosing rather to bring sense and order to a tumultuous chapter of Civil War historiography."
-The North Carolina Historical Review

"The most comprehensive analysis of Civil War guerrilla warfare to date. . . . Intriguing. . . . Will surely captivate general readers and seasoned academics alike, as well as undergraduate and graduate students."
-West Virginia History

"Sutherland places the 'Gray Ghost,' John Singleton Mosby; John Hunt Morgan; 'Bloody Bill' Anderson; bushwhackers; Red Legs; and jayhawkers, among many others, in the larger context of the 'irrepressible conflict' in this wide-ranging account."
-Choice

"What [Sutherland] has proceeded to do . . . is give us a way of thinking about the guerrilla war as a comprehensive, far-reaching, deep-reaching, whole. The evidence is literally in the narrative."
-The Alabama Review

"A Savage Conflict is necessary reading for anyone who truly wants to understand the Civil War."
-The Journal of America's Military past

"The author's narrative style is neither pedantic nor theatrical, and probably about right for a scholarly work accessible to the public. . . . An excellent foundational work valuable to the Civil War or Irregular War historian, and a high mark for other scholars to match."
-Military History of the West

"A richly detailed narrative laced with cogent analysis. . . . [Sutherland] has acquired a mastery of the subject that shows on every page of this well-researched and elegantly written book. . . . Deserves a place of honor among the period's most outstanding literature."
-Civil War History

"Sutherland's solid scholarship dispels the resilient image of guerrillas as colorful ancillaries of the 'real war' and integrates them into the broader narrative of the period. . . . An extremely valuable book."
-Journal of American History

"[A] very strong analysis of guerrilla warfare that is pertinent to counterinsurgency operations today. . . . Provide[s] excellent analysis."
-Journal of Military History

"No one has ever undertaken a survey this complete, this solidly based in an almost incredible array of primary sources, and this well rooted in the historiography. . . . Sutherland's achievement in compiling all this material and elucidating it with a convincing thesis is formidable."
-Journal of Southern History

"Will surely invigorate discussion of guerilla conflict in the Civil War. . . . Sutherland has set the stage for further considerations on the place of guerilla warfare within American society."
-Virginia Quarterly Review

"A comprehensive survey, well written and very readable. . . . A needed view of the war that is seldom seen."
-TOCWOC: A Civil War Blog

"A welcome addition to the literature on guerilla warfare in America."
-Intelligence Service Europe Newsletter

"The most comprehensive investigation of the topic to date. . . . Sutherland's impeccably researched study is long overdue and certain to become essential reading for anyone attempting to understand the effect of guerrillas on the Civil War and especially on Confederate defeat."
-Virginia Magazine

"Provides comparative analysis of the forces that motivated guerrilla operations, along with analysis of their effectiveness, in a chronological timeframe that is inclusive of virtually all regions of the nation. . . . Simply a banquet for Civil War buffs eager to learn more. . . . Written in engaging prose abundantly sprinkled with exciting anecdotes, this book will be useful to the scholar just as it will entertain the general reader. Skillfully constructed to educate, rather than pontificate, Sutherland's study raises the bar of Civil War scholarship."
-H-Net Reviews

"Scholarly attention to guerrilla activity during the Civil War has expanded dramatically in recent years, with Dan Sutherland leading the charge. A Savage Conflict is a culmination of that good work, in which Sutherland makes the fullest and most compelling case yet for the pervasiveness of irregular warfare, for the many forms it took and the forces that drove it, and for its considerable impact on the course of the war, both militarily and on the home front. It's a masterful study and a major contribution to our understanding of the internal divisiveness that characterized this most uncivil of civil wars."
-John C. Inscoe, coauthor of The Heart of Confederate Appalachia

"Sutherland argues that the Civil War cannot be truly understood unless one examines the brutal guerrilla fighting that spread across the Confederacy and even into the Midwest. In scope and breadth, A Savage Conflict approaches the encyclopedic, stretching from Florida to Iowa. There is nothing like it in Civil War studies."
-Kenneth W. Noe, Auburn University

About the Author

Daniel E. Sutherland is professor of history at the University of Arkansas. He is author or editor of thirteen books, including Guerrillas, Unionists, and Violence on the Confederate Home Front.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 440 pages
• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press; First Edition edition (June 5, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807832774
• ISBN-13: 978-0807832776
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #199,329 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a needed view of the war that is seldom seen, August 11, 2009

By 

James W. Durney (Tampa Bay area) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: A Savage Conflict: The Decisive Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War (Civil War America) (Hardcover)

John Mosby, William Quantrill and Bloody Bill Anderson encompass most of our knowledge about guerrillas. The sack of Lawrence and understanding Missouri had a very active guerrilla war completes the picture. If you read a lot of Civil War history, you can discuss the problems caused by deserters and the battles between Unionists and Confederates in the CSA. Pushed, you might talk about guerrillas firing on shipping in the Mississippi River. Really pushed, you might mention North Carolina and/or East Tennessee as "hot spots" of guerrilla activity. After that, we have gone through our knowledge on the subject. After reading this book, you will be able to talk intelligently about this subject across the nation for the entire war.
For one book to pack so much information, be readable and have good historic sources is an accomplishment. This book manages to exceed all expectations by providing a summary with the right level of detail, in an intelligent readable format. The history hangs on a frame covering six to twelve month periods of the war in chronological order. Each part follows the development of the guerrilla war with a section of the nation during this period. The major sections are Kansas/Missouri/Arkansas, Kentucky/Tennessee, West Virginia/Virginia, Mississippi/Alabama and the Carolinas. Texas, Florida and Louisiana appear when they have something to contribute. The author adds sections, as they become part of the story. In Spring-Summer 1861, Kansas/Missouri/Arkansas, Kentucky/Tennessee, West Virginia/Virginia are the major story. This includes problems of guerrillas spilling into Iowa & Illinois from Missouri and into Ohio from Kentucky. As the war progresses, areas are added. By 1864, the entire South is aflame; the problems have escalated into endless theft and murder that has destroyed law in much of the Confederacy.
This is not just a history of military operations. The author details the Confederacy's early view of "partisan rangers" and the appeal of this service to individuals. From this foundation, we get a solid history of the CSA military and legal actions to establish and control these units. At the same time, the USA struggles to establish polices to deal with guerrillas, maintain the goodwill of the people and protect supply lines. Throw into this mix advancing armies, ill will, avarice and revenge for a witches brew creating endless problems. While logical and almost inevitable this is not a pretty story. As the CSA changes positions and loses territory the guerrilla bands change. Less control creates more foraging, more deserters and internal warfare. This changes the local people's attitudes. Union frustration and a hardening of reprisal policies add to their misery.
This is a comprehensive survey, well written and very readable. A full set of real footnotes, with a good mix of original and contemporary sources, appear as endnotes. These endnotes have page references, at the bottom of the page, making it easy to find the footnote you are looking for. An index, Bibliography, good regional maps and illustrations from Harpers complete this excellent book. This is a valuable addition to your library. While not covering the major armies or battles, this is a needed view of the war that is seldom seen.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Overlooked Side of the Civil War, July 16, 2009

By 

Michael R. Bradley (Tullahoma, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: A Savage Conflict: The Decisive Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War (Civil War America) (Kindle Edition)

Few books have been written about the guerrilla fighting which was a major part of the Civil War. Most Southern civilians did not experience the war by witnessing a major battle or seeing the passage of a major army; but a huge number of these civilians did experience the work of guerrillas--both Confederate and Union--and the attempts of the U.S. army's Provost Marshal troops to suppress the Confederate guerrillas.

While there are studies of the guerrilla war in specific localities, such as "With Blood and Fire" about Middle Tennessee or books about Champ Ferguson in the Tennessee mountains or John Mosby of Virginia, this is the first contemporary book to deal with the sweep of the guerrilla war across the South.

The strength of the book is the area it covers. The weakness of the book is the area it covers. A strength because the sweep of the work introduces the reader to the extent and effect of the guerrillas; a weakness because little can be said about specific locations and leaders. This book can do an excellent job of opening eyes to a neglected part of Civil War studies and in encouraging other authors to investigate and publish about the guerrilla war in detail in specific locations.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Scholarly Work -- The Definitive Book on Civil War Partisans, July 4, 2009

By 

David M. Dougherty (Arkansas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Savage Conflict: The Decisive Role of Guerrillas in the American Civil War (Civil War America) (Hardcover)

This is an excellent, scholarly book on the partisan warfare during the American Civil War. Author Sutherland contends that the Southern partisans or guerrillas ultimately exerted a negative effect of the Southern ability and resolve to wage war and thue helped bring about the South's defeat. Well, maybe, but after reading the book I tended to agree with the author.

The Confederate guerrilla bands included units with some legitimate military status like Mosby's Rangers, citizen bushwackers, and outright criminal bands using the war as justification for their activities. The problem was that their activities steadily provoked harsher and harsher Federal responses, mostly against civilians and their property. Towards the end of the war, this created a war-weariness in the South as the suffering passed the point of civilian endurance. When the main Confederate armies surrendered, there was simply no will to go on when one's farm was destroyed and there was little prospect for economic recovery.

The author vividly points out the breakdown in Confederate authorities and their ability to keep order, peace and security in Confederate territory as the war progressed. Citizens were reduced to defending themselves against Federals and Confederate partisans, taking the law into their own hands out of necessity. With impotent civil authorities, it was every man for himself, and the citizenry ultimately blamed the Confederate and state governments for their predicament. Everything became extremely localized, and sending men away to fight the Yankees was not an option with raiders and troublemakers on the prowl near one's own home. Desertions also increased in the main Confederate armies as soldiers returned home to defend their families and homes.

Some states were worse than others, but the whole Confederate Trans-Mississippi Department was effectively paralyzed and Northern Texas, Northern Arkansas and Missouri were no mans' land. Tennessee was overrun and devastated, and the Appalachians from Northern Alabama through Eastern Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia were brutal battlegrounds between murdering, burning and robbing bands of both sides. In fact, the author's detail recounting of all this brutality sometimes made for depressing reading.

The author discussed most of the principal bands of Confederate partisans as well as some on the Federal side like the Red Legs. After the was was over most surrendered, but some simply disappeared. No doubt many met ignominious ends in the Western states under assumed names.

All in all, this book is extremely valuable in depicting a war that is often overlooked. The author's thesis appears fully justified, once again proving that a soldier will not fight well hundreds of miles from home when he knows his family and home are subject to brutal predators and there is no one providing protection. In a sense, democracy became too local, and the Confederacy died as a result. Security is first and foremost the government's responsibility, and a government that cannot provide it is soon abandoned by its citizenry. Our current government should keep this lesson in mind, -- particularly as long as the 2nd Amendment continues in force.

I recommend this book most heartily to all those interested in the American Civil War.