Yankee Blitzkrieg: Wilson's Raid through Alabama and Georgia [Paperback]

James Pickett Jones (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 12, 2000

“Jones handles the narrative details of the campaign in good fashion. He sets the context of events, with full appreciation of the command question involved, and includes the reactions of individual officers and enlisted men. . . . Excellent.” -American Historical Review

Editorial Reviews

Review

...a superb job in reconstructing Wilson's expedition... The definitive study of one of the Civil War's most important campaigns. -- Georgia Historical Quarterly

Comprehensive and filled with military details calculated to delight the ever faithful Civil War fans... A splendid account... -- The Alabama Review

“Does a great job of detailing battles and problems faced by both sides.” -- Paper Wars

“One of the best studies ever on the often-neglected central region of the Confederacy.” -- Florida Historical Quarterly

“Tells well the story of the largest Union cavalry operation during the Civil War.” -- Journal of the West

About the Author

James Pickett Jones is professor of history at Florida State University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Kentucky (October 12, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813190045
• ISBN-13: 978-0813190044
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,256,100 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Campaign that Captured Jeff Davis., February 7, 2004

By 

Michael E. Fitzgerald (Kingwood, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Yankee Blitzkrieg: Wilson's Raid Through Alabama and Georgia (Hardcover)

In the spring of 1865 Union General James Wilson mounted a cavalry campaign designed to destroy the industrial sections of Alabama and Georgia that were still untouched by combat. From the Tennessee River to Selma and Montgomery Alabama and on to Columbus and Macon, Georgia this campaign was lightening fast, crushing everything in its path.

Moving 14,000 men over 500 miles in just a month is a remarkably uncommon feat. So is fighting 4 major battles along the way. But General Wilson's forgotten campaign not only defeated and captured Nathan Bedford Forrest but also captured Jefferson Davis and Alexander Stephens as well.

This book is the study of a massive Union cavalry operation that was executed with impunity, one that destroyed what little was left of the Confederacy. It is also the campaign that captured the Confederate government!

James Pickett Jones details this event exceptionally well. You will not be disappointed.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent study of one of the most ignored campaigns!, April 8, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Yankee Blitzkrieg: Wilson's Raid Through Alabama and Georgia (A Brown Thrasher Book) (Paperback)

Yankee Bltizkrieg is one of the most enlightening studies of Wison's raiders in their finest hour. The book follows Wilson and his men from rain drenched northern Alabama to a triumphant capture of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in Irwinville, Georgia. It explores how Wilson effectively moved over 12,000 men for over 500 miles in the span of about a month. A feat which would have made Guderian proud! It is a must for Civil War enthusiasts and military strategist

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Jine the Cavalry:" Wilson's Raid Through Alabama & Georgia, August 15, 2010

By 

Mike Cunha (Boston) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Yankee Blitzkrieg: Wilson's Raid through Alabama and Georgia (Paperback)

In the cold and wet spring of 1865, in the Civil War's fourth year, 14,000 Union cavalrymen under Major General James Wilson surged forward like a mighty deluge into the Confederate states of Alabama and Georgia. Wilson's orders were to tear through this untouched region and gut any remaining industrial capacity of the dying Confederacy. Wilson's Raid covered well over 525 miles in less than two months, proving MG Wilson an able commander, capturing or killing several thousand rebels and leaving a swathe of territory in smoking ruins. The large-scale operation would have had more fame and recognition had its success not been necessarily overshadowed by Robert E. Lee's surrender and the final end of the long and terrible war itself.

James Pickett Jones' "Yankee Blitzkrieg" is the only work in book form to treat Wilson's Raid in detail. It is primarily an operational history, focusing on the movements of brigades and divisions during the conduct of the great raid. There are enough recollections of lower-grade Union officers and enlisted men to give the feel of the action, from accounts of destroying factories to daring cavalry assaults on Confederate positions. "Yankee Blitzkrieg" is a well-written history of the Civil War's largest cavalry operation but it does suffer from a lack of detailed maps. Despite this drawback it remains a worthy addition to any Civil War buff's bookshelf, and is a highly informative account of Wilson's Raid.