The Army of the Potomac: Glory Road

I started Catton's trilogy of the Army of the Potomac with Vol. II, "Glory Road". I did so because my vacation was taking me through Fredricksburg and Gettysburg and I planned to visit the three battlefields talked about in this book. While I had hoped for an historical background of the battles, I received so much more. I had not realized that Bruce Catton was such an excellent writer. I just assumed that he was another Civil War buff who was a bit more successful than his peers. How wrong I was! What comes through most clearly from Catton's writing in his respect and admiration of the foot soldiers of the Army of the Potomac. What comes through nearly as well is his ability to explain the circumstances of the times; what was happening in Washington, what was happening in the homefront, who were these men in charge. Finally, what is also very appreciated by the reader is the detailed overview of the three main battles in the book; Fredricksburg, Chancellorsille, and Gettysburg. What I mean by detailed overview is not the minute by minute account that so many battle histories have. Rather it is an overview that allows the reader a clear understanding of how the battle proceeded with focal points throughout the event to better bring it to life. Mr. Catton seasons all of this with some much appreciated philosophy of the meaning of the events that take place. I am aware that I have just finished reading a masterpiece. What is embarassing for me to consider is that it sat on my bookshelf for several years. I will see to it that Vols I and III shall be attended to promptly.

This is the second in the trilogy of the Army of the Potomac and I enjoyed it even more. I had been reading Gone with the Wind, stuck in bed with a terrible chest cold. I was planning on finishing it, but my Auntie's Beagle Pepper decided GWTW was good eating...so I pick up Mr. Lincoln's army and was hooked.Bruce Catton writes like no other about the American Civil War. His insight makes you believe he was there, that he lived through it, coming from his years of listening to the veterans in his hometown. And though he is a Yankee, he strives very hard to be impartial. He tries, but surprisingly I sense an admiration for the colourful soldiers of the South slipping through the prose.Mr. Lincoln's Army, centred around the opening of the war, the trouble's Lincoln had with find a general to run his army that wanted to fight. The "On to Virginia" cry, meaning march about 50 miles down the road and capture the Capitol of the Confederacy, was something Lincoln could not seem to rid from the mind of his commanders...he knew you had to cut off the head of the Army of Northern Virgina, not capture their capitol to end the conflict. Was surprising, Lincoln understood this so clearly, yet the trained Generals never could until Grant.His struggles to find the perfect commander continues in GLORY ROAD. This book, quite possibly is Catton's best work, following Lincoln's army and the changes in Generals from the battles of Fredericksburg to Gettysburg. He gives you insight into each General, whiskered Burnsides inheriting command from "Little Mac" McClellan, to the rough-edged Hooker at Chancellorsville, and then the slow but steady Meade at Gettysburg. He was not flashy, but he would fight.Catton brings these battles alive, but more than that, he gives you to the ability to see the war through the eyes of the common soldiers, showing you everyday life, the small touches that transcends just being another history book. Like Capt. James Hall of the 2nd Maine Battery. Catton's description of dashing Hall having a discussion under cannon fire, with Southern blasting away, yet he acts if nothing is happening. When one shell bursts too close, he dismounts, goes to one of his guns, and fires at that the ONE particular Southern gun that DARED disturbed his conversations, remounts and returns to the talk like nothing had happened!! These snippets are just too marvellous!!His prose reads more like fiction; it's so enjoyable. I know it has been fashionable for many of the newer voices in the field to garner attention. However, if you really want a view of the War Between the States that is more like a visit with a time machine, then you must read the genius of Catton.

Bruce Catton is, in my opinion, the most readable author of American Civil War history. Whenever I've labored through some book I wanted to read but have struggled with, I reward myself with something he has written. This trilogy is, as all his work is, thoroughly researched and very balanced. It would be hard to detect any bias in this native Michiganer of the first half of the 20th century, though I vaguely suspect he had more sympathy for the South, if only for the "pluck" (he likes that word in fact) of their "David vs. Goliath" undertaking. This 2nd volume is perhaps the best. It describes what is in some ways is the most tragic period of the war, that period too long after Bull Run for the Confederates to still believe the North wouldn't or couldn't fight, and too long before Appomattox to allow the Northerners to see that they would prevail. It is particularly sad to think of the brave men who fought for the Union and died senselessly because they were lead by Generals of so little military talent (Pope, Burnside and even Hooker). The book does a wonderful job in detailing the battle of Gettysburg and it is clear that this is a favorite topic of the author. While Catton does not give much credit for the battle to Meade, he does point out that Meade at least stabilized the Army from the time he took over until Grant would come along (read Volume 3!). In any case, the real beauty of any of Catton's works is his insight not so much into the Generals and the politicians, but into the common soldier of both sides; what made them fight so savagely one moment, but embrace one another so fully the next? (Of particular fascination to me, and Catton brings this up frequently, is the unending custom of the pickets on both sides of a stable front to make informal [and unauthorized] truces and then to trade jibes, coffee, tobacco, newspapers, & even vital information with their enemy; these men did their duty when called upon to do so, but there was little if any ingrained, knee-jerk hatred of the enemy in this war) The answer lies in the strange brotherhood that developed between the men of the Army of Northern Virginia and those of the Army of the Potomac. These men, after many years of hardship and privation and death, were a bit more likely to see their generals as the cause of their suffering and a lot more likely to see the tens and hundreds of thousands on both sides who stayed home while they fought as the real enemy. In this common bond of men doing their duty and doing it admirably lay the seed which made reunification at least palatable in the minds of so many men from so many distant places.

I don't have much to add to the other reviews, but I see that Glory Road is now out of print. Some publisher out there needs to get this book back in print! There are dozens of highly specialized Civil War books coming out that probably do not have much appeal outside of Civil War enthuists. Glory Road is a great book for "buffs" or beginners who know nothing about the Civil War. The Civil War is a central part of the American experience, and Bruce Catton's books are an excellent way to understand the war. I highly recommend tracking down a used copy.

This is the second volume of Bruce Catton's Civil War trilogy. I've read the last "A Stillness at Appomattox," his Pulitzer-Prize winning final installment to the series. Like "Stillness," "Glory Road" is a masterpiece of history and writing.Catton has the rare ability, similar to Shelby Foote and Barbara Tuchman, to write well researched history as prose. While thoroughly covering the trials of the Army of the Potomac in its middle period (post McClellan, pre-Grant), he paints an excellent human picture of those who guided and fought the battles. Liberal use of diary and contemporary accounts from field officers and privates portrays a gritty depiction of army life and battle conditions. He also is very adept at finding the color that bring characters such as Burnside, Hooker, Meade and a host of others to life.The history is plentiful and solid. The stories of this transitional period for the Army of the Potomic are well told. Fredricksburg, a folly of planning and execution, tested the mettle of the army. Chancellorsville revealed its ability to act decisively (although the inability of Hooker to keep going set it up for spectacular defeat) as a well organized offensive war machine. Gettysburg gave it what it craved for two years -- an important victory over the Confederate forces.The battles are well explained from both a strategic point as well as in execution. The evolving organization and professionalization of the army is well told. In this period (and primarily as a result of Hooker's reforms), cavalry was made an effective service, logistics were brought up to snuff, moral was given its proper weight in the care of the army. Many of these non-battlefield stories had great impact on the eventual success of this army and Catton does them justice.Bruce Catton has here an excellent history that is also a wonderfully told story. Both the casual and involved Civil War fan will find much to enjoy in "The Glory Road."