About the Book
Acclaimed military historian Bevin Alexander offers a fresh and cogent analysis of Stonewall Jackson's military genius and reveals how the Civil War might have ended differently if Jackson's strategies had been adopted.
The Civil War of 1861-65 pitted the industrial North against the agricultural South, and remains the most catastrophic conflict in terms of loss of life in American history. With triple the population and eleven times the industry, the Union had a decided advantage over the Confederacy in terms of direct conflict and conventional warfare. One general had the vision of an alternative approach that could win the War for the South--his name was Thomas J. -Stonewall- Jackson.
It was Jackson's strategy to always strike at the Union's vulnerabilities, not to challenge its power directly. He won a campaign against the North with a force only a quarter of the size of the Union army, and he was the first commander to recognize the overwhelming defensive power of the new rifles and cannons. With most of its military forces on the offensive in the South, the North was left virtually undefended on its own turf. Jackson believed invading the eastern states along the great industrial corridor from Baltimore to Maine could divide and cripple the Union, forcing surrender. But he failed to convince Confederate president Jefferson Davis or General Robert E. Lee of the viability of his plan.
In Such Troops as These, Bevin Alexander presents a compelling case for Stonewall Jackson as a supreme military strategist and the greatest general in American history. Fiercely dedicated to the cause of Southern independence, Jackson would not live to see the end of the War. But his military legacy lives on and finds fitting tribute in this book.
About the Author :
Bevin Alexander has published numerous works of military history, including the international bestseller How Hitler Could Have Won World War II and MacArthur's War. With honor degrees from The Citadel and Northwestern University, Alexander was awarded the Commendation Medal for his service as a combat historian in the Korean War, where he also won three battle stars for action at the front. He has appeared often on the History, Discovery, and Military channels. He has provided testimony before the House Committee on International Relations, advised the Rand Corporation on military strategy, and taken part in a war game at the Army War College.
Review :
-In his superb new book, Bevin Alexander continues to demonstrate the breadth of his historical knowledge, the keenness of his insight and his outstanding capacity to write a compelling and engaging narrative. This is the best book on Stonewall Jackson's unique military genius and unmatched leadership published in many years. Alexander cuts through a century and a half of mythmaking about the Confederate high command to reveal not only Jackson's true genius, but to also expose the failures of Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis that cost the South any chance of victory.- --Colonel Jerry D. Morelock, PhD, U.S. Army, ret., Editor in Chief, Armchair General Magazine Praise for MacArthur's War -Fascinating, factual, and well-documented . . . Overall, a fair portrayal of history.---General Frederick J. Kroesen, former vice chief of staff of the U.S. Army and commander in chief, U.S. Army Europe -A stirring and insightful account of General Douglas MacArthur's controversial role in the Korean War that culminated . . . in one of the most dramatic incidents in American military history.---Carlo D'Este, author of Patton: A Genius for War -When President Harry Truman relieved General Douglas MacArthur of all his military commands at the height of the Korean War, it was a seminal moment in American history . . . Bevin Alexander's hard-hitting narrative captures in vivid detail the elements of that contest.---Harry J. Middleton, founding director of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library at the University of Texas, and author of LBJ: The White House Years
In his superb new book, Bevin Alexander continues to demonstrate the breadth of his historical knowledge, the keenness of his insight and his outstanding capacity to write a compelling and engaging narrative. This is the best book on Stonewall Jackson s unique military genius and unmatched leadership published in many years. Alexander cuts through a century and a half of mythmaking about the Confederate high command to reveal not only Jackson s true genius, but to also expose the failures of Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis that cost the South any chance of victory. Colonel Jerry D. Morelock, PhD, U.S. Army, ret., Editor in Chief, Armchair GeneralMagazinePraise forMacArthur s War Fascinating, factual, and well-documented... Overall, a fair portrayal of history. General Frederick J. Kroesen, former vice chief of staff of the U.S. Army and commander in chief, U.S. Army Europe A stirring and insightful account of General Douglas MacArthur s controversial role in the Korean War that culminated... in one of the most dramatic incidents in American military history. Carlo D Este, author ofPatton: A Genius for War When President Harry Truman relieved General Douglas MacArthur of all his military commands at the height of the Korean War, it was a seminal moment in American history... Bevin Alexander s hard-hitting narrative captures in vivid detail the elements of that contest. Harry J. Middleton, founding director of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library at the University of Texas, and author ofLBJ: The White House Years"
"In his superb new book, Bevin Alexander continues to demonstrate the breadth of his historical knowledge, the keenness of his insight and his outstanding capacity to write a compelling and engaging narrative. This is the best book on Stonewall Jackson's unique military genius and unmatched leadership published in many years. Alexander cuts through a century and a half of mythmaking about the Confederate high command to reveal not only Jackson's true genius, but to also expose the failures of Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis that cost the South any chance of victory." --Colonel Jerry D. Morelock, PhD, U.S. Army, ret., Editor in Chief, Armchair General Magazine Praise for MacArthur's War "Fascinating, factual, and well-documented . . . Overall, a fair portrayal of history."--General Frederick J. Kroesen, former vice chief of staff of the U.S. Army and commander in chief, U.S. Army Europe "A stirring and insightful account of General Douglas MacArthur's controversial role in the Korean War that culminated . . . in one of the most dramatic incidents in American military history."--Carlo D'Este, author of Patton: A Genius for War "When President Harry Truman relieved General Douglas MacArthur of all his military commands at the height of the Korean War, it was a seminal moment in American history . . . Bevin Alexander's hard-hitting narrative captures in vivid detail the elements of that contest."--Harry J. Middleton, founding director of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library at the University of Texas, and author of LBJ: The White House Years
Praise for "MacArthur's War"
"A superbly-written, blow-by-blow account of the most controversial civil-military clash in American history."--Colonel, ret. Jerry D. Morelock, PhD, Editor in Chief, "Armchair General Magazine"
"When President Harry Truman relieved General Douglas MacArthur of all his military commands at the height of the Korean War, it was a seminal moment in American history... Bevin Alexander's hard-hitting narrative captures in vivid detail the elements of that contest, as well as the chain of significant events that produced it... "MacArthur's War "is a valuable account of a chapter in the Cold War that we must never forget." --Harry J. Middleton, founding director of the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library at the University of Texas, and author of "LBJ: The White House Years"
"Bevin Alexander has written a stirring and insightful account of General Douglas MacArthur's controversial role in the Korean War that culminated...in one of the most dramatic incidents in American military history."--Carlo D'Este, author of "Patton: A Genius For War"
"A very interesting account of Douglas MacArthur's initial brilliant Inchon assault, his strategy and tactics that led to rapid advances before his concepts for capturing and freeing North Korea collapsed in defeat, and finally his resort to political confrontation with the President... a fascinating, factual and well-documented study."--General Frederick J. Kroesen, former Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army and Commander in Chief, U.S. Army Europe
