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15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Selling Out? Hardly!, March 25, 2006
I read with incredulity the review that accused Gary Gallagher of "selling out" because he has steadily broadened his "Military Campaigns of the Civil War" series to incorporate more political, social, and cultural context. Wars do not occur in a vacuum, and the direction of Gallagher's series has shown both scholarly growth and real leadership.
Too much Civil War history falls into two categories. First, the category of operational/tactical studies -- narratives of combat for its own sake, usually with no sense of a larger military context (for instance, whether the ranges of engagement in a given battle better support the argument that the rifled musket had a revolutionary impact, or whether the fighting was essentially just incrementally different from Napoleonic combat). Second, the category of political and social histories that virtually ignore the fact that the Civil War was, indeed, a *war.*
Gallagher is one of the finest examples of a Civil War historian determined to bring these two categories into active conversation with each other. He has trained some of the best young Civil War historians we have, and has influenced them to look seriously at the intersection of military, political, social and cultural developments. One of his proteges, Bill Blair of Penn State University, has revitalized _Civil War History_, the flagship journal of the field, and Gallagher's two series for University of North Carolina Press--"Civil War America" as well as "Military Campaigns of the Civil War" -- regularly showcase up and coming historians as well as established ones. He is, I would argue, the most important single scholar shaping the field today.
I don't mind seeing historians criticized. That's part of the business. I don't even mind people who don't know what they're talking about, like the author of the "sell-out" comment. I do mind it when people can't express their opinions in a civil manner.
What's truly weird is that Gallagher's essay in this volume is a classic bit of strategic command-level analysis, while Bob Krick -- whom the "sell-out" reviewer praises for doing "pure" military history -- here contributes an essay on the development of Stonewall Jackson's public image.
It makes you wonder if the guy even read the book.
Oh, and one last thing: Mr. Sell-Out seems to think it's easy to edit a volume of essays. In my experience, it's as difficult as writing a book of one's own, and sometimes more so.
-- Mark Grimsley, author of _The Hard Hand of War_ and a specialist in military history at The Ohio State University
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another essay collection from Gary Gallagher, July 22, 2003
Back in the mid-90s, Gary W. Gallagher made a name for himself collecting a series of essays on the battle of Gettysburg. They were more than just histories of parts of the battle. For one thing, the authors looked into various parts of the battle that bad been neglected or misinterpreted, and reexamined things that were taken for granted. For another, the authors examined subjects that hadn't been written about before. One essay even looked into the historiography of Pickett's Charge, and why it was viewed the way it was by the participants. Since then Gallagher's been doing these at approximately the rate of one a year. All of the campaigns covered so far have been in the Eastern Theater, and all have been relatively well-covered in more comprehensive books. This volume, dealing primarily with Stonewall Jackson's campaign in the Shenandoah in 1862, is something of a departure for the series. The author admits that there's no comprehensive study of the campaign from both sides, and then apologizes half-heartedly for this entry to the series, which devotes most of its attention to the Confederates. Frankly, I don't think that's neccessary. I'm no Southerner, but to be honest, the Yankees in this campaign aren't that interesting. Stonewall, on the other hand, is fascinating, warts and all. The essays cover a wide range of subjects, and cover them well, for the most part. One deals with Lincoln the war president responding to the crisis in the Valley, another is devoted to Jackson's image and what it meant to the South. One looks at Ashby's image also (this is a common theme in the series, what things meant to the participants, and how they changed history in order to suit their preconceptions), while two other essays examine how the common people looked at the campaign, one following a particular Confederate regiment, the other the civilians in the path of the campaign. Another essay is a brief biography of Charles S. Winder, the commander of the Stonewall Brigade for part of the campaign, while the last image deals with the court martial of Richard B. Garnett. Of all the essays, only the Garnett one is inadequate, with the author plowing little new ground, and basically rehashing what we already know: Jackson couldn't stand to be contradicted, even when he was demonstrably wrong. The series has gotten away from the battlefield pretty much entirely now. I'm not sure I like this development. I did like it that the series spent some time paying attention to things that weren't directly related to the fighting, but I also enjoyed the battlefield analysis. I'm afraid I am a bit perturbed that Gallagher has gone as far as he has. That doesn't however mean I don't recommend the book; just that I wish he would balance things a bit more.
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4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Essays cover various aspects of well known campaign, August 26, 2003
With this book, Gary Gallagher continues his efforts to add details to well known Civil War campaigns by compiling essays from a variety of authors. In Gallagher's opinion, most Civil War battles have already been covered well enough by one author or another in narrative form. Thus, the challenge becomes, how can greater detail and insight be presented without simply rehashing the same facts and figures of previous works. His campaign series takes the approach that it would be interesting to have noted Civil War historians present detailed essays about various military aspects of a certain campaign. Typically, these books have resulted from summertime battlefield tours that Dr. Gallagher offers through his university history department (first with Penn State, and now with UVa). The Shendandoan Valley Campaign of 1862 is somewhat different than previous installments of this series for two main reasons. First, even Gallagher admits that a great overall narrative of this campaign has not been written. Most people know of the campaign, but they do not really know the details of what happened. I fall into this category. I know the basic plot of Stonewall Jackson helping save Richmond through his military exploits and victories against a handful of bumbling Union generals in the Shenandoan Valley. These essays have definitely helped broaden my understanding of what actually occurred. Secondly, as a previous reviewer mentioned, this book does not have much of a military focus. Instead, it covers a wide gamut of topics. I like the variety and enjoyed most of the essays, but I must admit that a few of them seem somewhat misplaced in a military campaign series. The first few essays discuss Jackson's success, and the impact it had on Union plans, and I would have like to see more of these type essays included. That is my main criticism of the book. Although I found all eight essays well written, at least two of them were not very interesting. Despite its flaws, I still recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about this campaign. If you are looking for a book that details the various battles fought during the campaign, this is not the right book for you. But, if you are looking for a broad perspective of the campaign, and how it impacted those involved (soldiers, generals, civilians, and government leaders), then you will be pleased by the contents of this book.
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