Attack and Die by Grady Mcwhiney

Attack and Die by Grady Mcwhiney

Describes tactical theory in the 1850s and suggests how each related to Civil War tactics

 

Why did the Confederacy lose so many men? The authors contend that the Confederates bled themselves nearly to death in the first three years of the war by making costly attacks more often than the Federals. Offensive tactics, which had been used successfully by Americans in the Mexican War, were much less effective in the 1860s because an improved weapon--the rifle--had given increased strength to defenders. This book describes tactical theory in the 1850s and suggests how each related to Civil War tactics. It also considers the development of tactics in all three arms of the service during the Civil War.

 

In examining the Civil War the book separates Southern from Northern tactical practice and discusses Confederate military history in the context of Southern social history. Although the Southerners could have offset their numerical disadvantage by remaining on the defensive and forcing the Federals to attack, they failed to do so. The authors argue that the Southerners' consistent favoring of offensive warfare was attributable, in large measure, to their Celtic heritage: they fought with the same courageous dash and reckless abandon that had characterized their Celtic forebears since ancient times. The Southerners of the Civil War generation were prisoners of their social and cultural history: they attacked courageously and were killed--on battlefields so totally defended by the Federals that "not even a chicken could get through."

 

PERRY D. JAMIESON is co-author of Attack and Die: Civil War Military Tactics and the Southern Heritage, and author of Crossing the Deadly Ground: United States Army Tactics 1865-1899. Both titles were selections of the History Book Club. He also authored another book from McWhiney Foundation Press titled Winfield Scott Hancock: Gettysburg Hero (2003). Dr. Jamieson is an historian for the Air Force History Support Office in Washington, D.C.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780817302290
ISBN 10	0817302298
Title	Attack and Die
Author	Grady Mcwhiney
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	University Of Alabama Press
Year published	1984-07-30
Number of pages	232
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.