This Astounding Close: The Road to Bennett Place (Hardcover)

by Mark L. Bradley (Author) "On December 22, 1864, Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman concluded his March to the Sea by presenting the city of Savannah, Georgia, to President Abraham..." (more)
Key Phrases: foraging details, capital county, existing war, North Carolina, Uncle Billy, South Carolina (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Even though we know the outcome of the story, Bradley manages to imbue his tale with moments of high drama....Fascinating." -- DURHAM HERALD-SUN

Review
Bradley's book is readable, interesting, and informative.

Journal of American History

A remarkable book of painstaking research. Serious scholars of the Civil War will find This Astounding Close a valuable study.

On Point

Belongs on the shelf of every Civil War buff.

Blue & Gray

A well-documented and careful analysis. Bradley is to be commended for a well-written and impressively researched monograph.

Civil War History

A superb study that incorporates the best of new military history.

Civil War Book Review

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press; 1st edition, edition (September 18, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807825654
• ISBN-13: 978-0807825655
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #464,554 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Companion to "Last Stand in the Carolinas!", May 4, 2004

By	Matt Hering (Bartlett, TN) - See all my reviews

Mark Bradley has written an excellent companion book to his "Last Stand in the Carolinas," which has currently gone out of print. In this volume, Mr. Bradley picks up where he left off, following Johnston and Sherman from Bentonville to the surrender of the Army of Tennessee at Durham, North Carolina. Bradley's writing is, as in his other book, great!

But missing from "This Astounding Close," are the excellent maps created the very skilled cartographer Mark Moore. The maps provided are not bad--they are actually quite good--but they could have been better. The small numbers of maps left me wanting more, especially ones detailing the smaller skirmishes taking place during the maneuvering in North Carolina. If the maps had been better and mpre plentiful, I would have given the book five starts instead of four.

Being from the South, I have always considered Sherman and his subordinates nothing short of the devil-incarnate. But from this book, I gained a new respect for these men and saw the softer side of them. Bradley depicts how John "Black Jack" Logan saved Raleigh from destruction at the hands of raged Federal troops intent on avenging Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Mr. Bradley also told of how lenient Sherman was toward the surrendering Confederate troops and toward the civilians of North Carolina, especially after the surrender. Sherman even offered Johnston and his troops much kinder terms than those given to Robert E. Lee at Appomattox! But Northern politicians saw these terms as too soft and evetually gave Johnston the same terms given to Lee.

This is a very good book; no doubt a great addition to my rapidly growing Civil War library. Before reading this volume, I knew next to nothing about Johnston's surrender at Durham, North Carolina, in the Bennet Farmhouse. If you are a Civil War buff get this book; if you are a military history buff, get this book! I got it, and am happy I did.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fascinating Read on the Last Days of the Civil War in North Carolina!, July 25, 2006

By	Michael Taylor "Michael Taylor" (Indian Trail NC) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: This Astounding Close: The Road to Bennett Place (Paperback)

Mark Bradley has written a most excellent account of the last days of the Civil War in North Carolina between Joseph Johnston and William Sherman. Being a North Carolina native and having visited and traveled through many of the places in the book, I was particularly interested.

The book is not so much a detailed account of the last battles in North Carolina (Bentonville, Averasboro, Wyse Fork, Fort Fisher, etc.) as it is the military and political maneuvering between the two generals - Johnston in attempting to gain favorable surrender terms for his army and Sherman attempting to be lenient with the South at the end of the war. Indeed, aside from the aforementioned battles, most encounters between North and South during the last days in North Carolina were no more than brief skirmishes.

I particulary enjoyed reading the accounts of the Union occupation of Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, and Goldsboro. Having lived in Goldsboro and Raleigh earlier in my life, I enjoyed reading the accounts. Also interesting were the accounts of the Rebel occupation of Greensboro and Charlotte.

Throughout the book, Bradley manages to incorporate several interesting anecdotes: the unfortunate luck of Rebel Lietenant Walsh from Texas, the marriage of Northern General Atkins' courtship and marriage to a Chapel Hill lady, etc.

Bradley's writing style is interesting and maintains a fine balance between being a free-flowing read, just like his excellent Battle of Bentonville title.

Read and enjoy! Highly recommended.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Johnston's Last Hurrah!, March 15, 2004

By	Scott Bell (Jacksonville, Texas) - See all my reviews

The Civil War didn't officially end with General Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox. General Joe Johnston's Army of the South and General Kirby Smith's forces in the Trans-Mississippi still remained in the field.
This is the story of the situation in North Carolina facing Johnston and Union General William Sherman after the Battle of Bentonville. The author presents both sides of the story along with the political pressures from Richmond and Washington.
There is not an abundance of information about Johnston's eventual surrender of the Army of the South and other forces under his command. The author is a leading authority about the 1865 North Carolina Campaign and presents an entertaining, interesting and scholarly review of the events after Bentonville.