Synopses & Reviews
General Joseph E. Johnston was in command of Confederate forces at the South's first victory--Manassas in July 1861--and at its last--Bentonville in April 1965. Many of his contemporaries considered him the greatest southern field commander of the war; others ranked him second only to Robert E. Lee. But Johnston was an enigmatic man. His battlefield victories were never decisive. He failed to save Confederate forces under siege by Grant at Vicksburg, and he retreated into Georgia in the face of Sherman's march. His intense feud with Jefferson Davis ensured the collapse of the Confederacy's western campaign in 1864 and made Johnston the focus of a political schism within the government. Now in this rousing narrative of Johnston's dramatic career, Craig L. Symonds gives us the first rounded portrait of the general as a public and private man.
Review
"This is by far the best and most scholary biography ever written about one of the greatest military talents in the Confederacy. It is amply illustrated with maps and painstakingly carries the reader through the major campaigns in which Johnston was involved. His analysis of Johnston as a military man and of his post-bellum life is judicious and credible. However the inclusion of small errors makes one question the quality of the editorial work which went into this volume; for example, the Virginian, Philip St. George Cocke, is mentioned with three variants of his last name: beside the correct spelling, Cooke and Cock are given equal authority, and in the index it is presented as Cooke. Poor workmanship like this is bound to affect the overall quality of the work, casting a questionable shadow upon the whole. Yet the biography is interesting and important." Reviewed by Daniel Weiss, Virginia Quarterly Review (Copyright 2006 Virginia Quarterly Review)
Review
"Riveting. . . . A thoughtful biography." New York Times Book Review
Review
"A vivid, fast-moving narrative of Johnston's dramatic career. Symonds brings careful research and even-handed judiciousness to a fascinating story full of incident and controversy." Charles Royster, Louisiana State University
Review
"A splendid, even-handed biography." Byron Farwell
Review
"The most readable and interesting biography yet on Joe Johnston." Washington Times
Review
"A significant contribution to Civil War scholarship. . . . An engrossing portrait." Journal of American History
About the Author
Craig L. Symonds is professor of history at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis and a specialist in military history.