![West Pointers and the Civil War: The Old Army in War and Peace (Civil War America) by [Hsieh, Wayne Wei-siang]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61940NF-GNL._SY346_.jpg)
You may note that I gave West Pointers and the Civil War (WPCW) three stars. If I could I would have given it four stars for those with a solid basis in CW history and two for novices.
I saw Hsieh speaking on television on his book and was impressed by his insights and his ability to express relatively complex concepts in clear and direct language -- and I immediately ordered WPCW. If he could only write as well as he speaks. His prose is, at times, repetitive, dense, sometimes indirect, and often straying from the topic at hand. Hsieh has the defining characteristic of many academic historians -- if he made a note of an item of information, he will include it in the text without regard to how many other notes illustrate an identical point. In the text, many of his insights are little more than a collection of antebellum characterizations of a frontier constabulary that succeeded in its one great test - the Mexican War. He does provide valuable insights into civil-military relations and how the tone set before the war carried into the CW itself. And how the education provided at West Point was reflected in the commonality of both Union and Confederate officers.
Further his observations on the resources and approaches used to create huge armies from the melding of a few professionals with lots of recreational militia and raw volunteers was valuable. Likewise, his illumination of tactics in both the early and later war challenged stereotypes as he gathered existing information and presented it in a logical and concise fashion.
However, most of the information was not new to students of the Civil War. Or of the Old Army before the Civil War. Or the Mexican War. Hsieh does some good service in accumulating information that follows the creation of the Army's officer corps, its establishment as an institution, its failures and victories, and how it performed in the crucible of America's greatest trial. So, for one who is familiar with the topics presented, WPCW provides an interesting review coupled with some interesting and engaging evaluations and insights. But it is a bit of a wade through much of the language and structure.
And, for the neophyte, I fear that the content could easily be lost in the complex and academic nature of the text.
I did enjoy it, but would recommend other approaches to understanding the role and results of West Pointers in the Civil War, especially for those not already familiar with the era.
- File Size: 2737 KB
- Print Length: 295 pages
- Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press; Large Print edition (November 15, 2009)
- Publication Date: November 15, 2009
- Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
- Language: English
- ASIN: B00TA9ZI90
- Text-to-Speech:
Enabled
- Word Wise: Enabled
- Lending: Not Enabled
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Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#255,071 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #399 in Old West History of the U.S.
- #1151 in U.S. Civil War History
- #359 in Civil War History of the U.S.
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