In this second volume of Michael Weeks’ thoroughly researched guide to the battlefields of the Civil War, you will find complete tours of every major military campaign in the region from 1863 to 1865. In this second volume of Michael Weeks' thoroughly researched guide to the battlefields of the Civil War, you will find complete tours of every major military campaign in the region from 1863 to 1865, from the battles immediately following the great clash at Gettysburg to the fall of Richmond and the Appomattox campaign. Detailed directions and maps, along with a detailed history of each campaign, will guide you to and through some of the war's most critical battlegrounds, including The Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, Lynchburg and the battle for Richmond. A section devoted to commands and commanders tells the life stories of the famous and the little-known; an explanation of military structure, orders of battle, and the various military units helps you keep track of the course of events and the key players. Travel tips and further sources of information are also included to help your explorations run smoothly.

Includes over 30 maps and Illustrations The Staff Ride Handbook for the Vicksburg Campaign, December 1862-July 1863, provides a systematic approach to the analysis of this key Civil War campaign. Part I describes the organization of the Union and Confederate Armies, detailing their weapons, tactics, and logistical, engineer, communications, and medical support. It also includes a description of the U.S. Navy elements that featured so prominently in the campaign. Part II consists of a campaign overview that establishes the context for the individual actions to be studied in the field. Part III consists of a suggested itinerary of sites to visit in order to obtain a concrete view of the campaign in its several phases. For each site, or “stand,” there is a set of travel directions, a discussion of the action that occurred there, and vignettes by participants in the campaign that further explain the action and which also allow the student to sense the human “face of battle.” Part IV provides practical information on conducting a Staff Ride in the Vicksburg area, including sources of assistance and logistical considerations. Appendix A outlines the order of battle for the significant actions in the campaign. Appendix B provides biographical sketches of key participants. Appendix C provides an overview of Medal of Honor conferral in the campaign. An annotated bibliography suggests sources for preliminary study.

This tour guide features ten different itineraries that lead visitors through every major campaign site, as well as 450 lesser-known venues in unlikely places such as Idaho and New Mexico.

Travelers can follow the routes of both Union and Confederate armies, discover monuments in small towns and appreciate the impact of the Civil War on Maryland. If you want to touch the "hallowed ground" of a battlefield, follow in the footsteps of the ghosts of legions of soldiers as they tramped through the countryside of Maryland, or see with your own eyes how a Confederate smuggler's boat could disappear in the glare of the sun on the waters of the Potomac, then you need A Guide to Civil War Sites in Maryland. With more than two-hundred sites this book is the most comprehensive Civil War guide to Maryland ever published. Whether you travel by car, on foot, or by armchair this manual will lead you to both familiar places, and to places off the beaten track--all chosen to present an overall view of the Civil War in Maryland and how it affected the people who lived there. Detailed maps, and precise directions lead the traveler to each site, and modern photographs further help to identify sites. The volume is organized into nine regions for easier reference. It is equipped with a complete index and an index of sites. To make this guide even more valuable, more than ninety notable Marylanders of the Civil War who have been mentioned in the text receive short biographies in the appendix.

A historian's investigation of the life and times of Gen. George Gordon Meade to discover why the hero of Gettysburg has failed to achieve the status accorded to other generals of the conflict.