Fateful lightning : a new history of the Civil War and Reconstruction

The Civil War is the greatest trauma ever experienced by the American nation, a four-year paroxysm of violence that left in its wake more than 600,000 dead, more than 2 million refugees, and the destruction (in modern dollars) of more than $700 billion in property. The war also sparked some of the most heroic moments in American history and enshrined a galaxy of American heroes. Above all, it permanently ended the practice of slavery and proved, in an age of resurgent monarchies, that a liberal democracy could survive the most frightful of challenges. In __Fateful Lightning__, two-time Lincoln Prize-winning historian Allen C. Guelzo offers a marvelous portrait of the Civil War and its era, covering not only the major figures and epic battles, but also politics, religion, gender, race, diplomacy, and technology. And unlike other surveys of the Civil War era, it extends the reader's vista to include the postwar Reconstruction period and discusses the modern-day legacy of the Civil War in American literature and popular culture. Guelzo also puts the conflict in a global perspective, underscoring Americans' acute sense of the vulnerability of their republic in a world of monarchies. He examines the strategy, the tactics, and especially the logistics of the Civil War and brings the most recent historical thinking to bear on emancipation, the presidency and the war powers, the blockade and international law, and the role of intellectuals, North and South. Written by a leading authority on our nation's most searing crisis, __Fateful Lightning__ offers a vivid and original account of an event whose echoes continue with Americans to this day.
The Civil War is the greatest trauma ever experienced by the American nation, a four-year paroxysm of violence that left in its wake more than 600,000 dead, more than 2 million refugees, and the destruction (in modern dollars) of more than $700 billion in property. The war also sparked some of the most heroic moments in American history and enshrined a galaxy of American heroes. Above all, it permanently ended the practice of slavery and proved, in an age of resurgent monarchies, that a liberal democracy could survive the most frightful of challenges.

In Fateful Lightning, two-time Lincoln Prize-winning historian Allen C. Guelzo offers a marvelous portrait of the Civil War and its era, covering not only the major figures and epic battles, but also politics, religion, gender, race, diplomacy, and technology. And unlike other surveys of the Civil War era, it extends the reader's vista to include the postwar Reconstruction period and discusses the modern-day legacy of the Civil War in American literature and popular culture. Guelzo also puts the conflict in a global perspective, underscoring Americans' acute sense of the vulnerability of their republic in a world of monarchies. He examines the strategy, the tactics, and especially the logistics of the Civil War and brings the most recent historical thinking to bear on emancipation, the presidency and the war powers, the blockade and international law, and the role of intellectuals, North and South.

Written by a leading authority on our nation's most searing crisis, Fateful Lightning offers a vivid and original account of an event whose echoes continue with Americans to this day.

Content: Chapter 1: A Nation Announcing ItselfChapter 2: The Disillusion of CompromiseChapter 3: From Debate to Civil WarChapter 4: To War Upon Slavery: The East and Emancipation, 1861-1862Chapter 5: Elusive Victories: East and West, 1862-1863Chapter 6: The Soldier's TaleChapter 7: The Manufacture of WarChapter 8: Year That Trembled: East and West, 1863Chapter 9: World Turned Upside DownChapter 10: Stalemate and TriumphChapter 11: A Dim Shore AheadEpilogueIndex A Nation Announcing Itself The Game of Balances Year of Meteors Sullen Hymns of Defeat Elusive Victories : East and West, 1862-1863 The Soldier's Tale The Manufacture of War Year That Trembled : East and West, 1863 World Turned Upside Down Stalemate and Triumph A Dim Shore Ahead Epilogue. A comprehensive look at the Civil War and how it shaped American history and culture; includes coverage of major figures and the war's effect on politics, religion, gender, race, diplomacy, and technology A comprehensive look at the Civil War and how it shaped American history and culture, includes coverage of major figures and the war's affect on politics, religion, gender, race, diplomacy, and technology