Union and Confederate Civil War Strategies

The Civil War is an enormously important event in our nation's history, and not just a fleeting disagreement about slavery between the northern and southern states. As such, it has impacted our country's political course into modern day. The results of the Civil War reinforced the motto, E pluribus unum (Out of many, one), and strengthened the notion that the United States is indeed united, despite its many states, and despite the fact that the North and South continue to maintain significant different political views. Although the Civil War ended slavery based on legal doctrine, the oppression of the former slaves did not end, and racism has continued through the Civil Rights era and continues to some extent today. The war also brought to light that military leaders may change their basic moral standards when a conflict proves difficult to win.

There are many prisms through which one can view Civil War strategies, and one might naturally be tempted to draw many lessons from the Civil War. Rather than providing definite answers, this brief study aims at rousing additional interest and provoking critical thinking about what might have been the most important event in our nation's history. As such, it focuses on the underlying social and political factors that shaped the decision of the southern states to secede from the Union, and the Union's subsequent attempt to prevent their secession. Discussions include the following topics:

1. Political Background of the Civil War

2. Robert E. Lee's War Strategies

3. Ulysses S. Grant's and William Tecumseh Sherman's War Strategies

4. How Likely Was Victory for the Confederate States in the Early Years of the War?

5. Other Factors That Influenced Union Victory and Confederate Loss

6. Reshaping the Military in the Reconstruction Period

7. Military Reforms in the Last Decades of the Nineteenth Century

8. Topics for Further Study and Debate

The book is suitable for history interested readers looking for thought provoking topics, but not having a lot of time; and for teachers preparing the class for critical thinking about historical events, and how they have come to affect current affairs. More books with focus on domestic and international military history will be forthcoming in this new series titled, A 59-Minute Perspective.