With some discussion of the Carolinas campaign coming up on the podcast, these are a couple of books I enjoyed that cover this time frame:
-Bentonville: The Final Battle of Sherman and Johnston - Hughes
This book is a detailed look at the battle of Bentonville, there are only a few works on this 3 day battle. Bentonville was Joe Johnston's last real offensive gasp as he scrapped together as much power as he could and struck Slocum's wing while it was marching isolated from Howard's wing. Johnston had a rag tag force at this point with a mix match of troops from various commands, as well as a number of senior generals including Bragg, Hardee, A.P. Stewart, W.B. Bate, Hampton and D.H. Hill. Panic by Bragg led to a poor deployment of the limited Confederate reserves on the first day, which likely limited the chances of success for Johnston. Reinforcements from Howard's wing reinforced Slocum and completed the victory on the 3rd day. Following the battle Johnston would write Lee, "Sherman's course cannot be hindered by the small force I have. I can do no more than annoy him. I respectfully suggest that it is no longer a question whether you leave present position; you have only to decide where to meet Sherman. I will be near him."
-The Battle of Monroe's Crossroads and the Civil War's Last Campaign - Wittenberg and Bradley
Monroe's Crossroads is the biggest source of bad blood between cavalry commanders Wade Hampton and Judson Kilpatrick. Hampton and his men were able to ambush Kilpatrick outside Fayetteville NC. Kilpatrick was seen fleeing from the initial assault into the nearby swamp in his undershirt, leading to the battle often being referred to as "Kilpatrick's Shirt-Tail Skedaddle".
-This Astounding Close - Bradley
This book is not about the battles but rather is about the final few weeks of the campaign including the surrender negotiations and the initial movement home of the troops. A great quote from Johnston is included in the book when he wrote early in the campaign, "When I learned that Sherman's army was marching through the Salkehatchie swamps, making its own corduroy road at the rate of a dozen miles a day or more, and bringing its artillery and wagons with it I made up my mind that there had been no such army in existence since the days of Julius Caesar." Included in the book is the back and forth of the surrender negotiations, Sherman's eventual falling out with both Stanton and Halleck over the initial terms, as well as Sherman's troops moving to the Grand Review. Sherman at one point would refer to Stanton, as "mean, scheming, vindictive politician who made it his business to rob military men of their glory."
@long2821 Aaannnnddddd...that's more books added to the list!
I've been working on my notes for our episode aboot the Carolina's Campaign and I find Rubin gives a good brief overview of it in "Through the Heart Of Dixie". She starts off with stating it was very different from the March.
I think the Carolina's campaign is definitely overshadowed by the March to the Sea in many respects but I see it as being just as important. Thoughts?
@Mare The Carolina's campaign was definitely different than the march, the Carolina's actually faced opposition, and was over much different terrain. Bentonville gets overlooked, but it was not a small engagement. Completely agree the campaign gets overshadowed, I have enjoyed reading more about it over the years. Sherman also mentions the perception of the two campaigns in another book about the Carolina's, "The Battle of Wise's Forks", it includes:
"Sherman later commented on the public's fascination with his March to the Sea, to the neglect of the far more demanding Carolinas campaign. In December 1865, he wrote that "no one ever has and may not agree with me as to the very great importance of the march north from Savannah. The march to the sea seems to have captivated everybody, whereas it was child's play compared with the other.""
Looking through the Official Reports I noticed the quote below from General Geary commander of a division in the XX Corps in Slocum's wing. It provides another relevant comparison of the Carolinas campaign to the March to the Sea.
"The Carolina campaign, although in its general military features of the same nature as that from Atlanta to Savannah, was one of much greater labor, and which tested most thoroughly the power of endurance and elasticity of spirit among American soldiers. The distance marched was much farther, through regions presenting greater natural obstacles, and where a vindictive enemy might naturally be expected in force sufficient to harass our troops and interfere frequently with our trains. The season was one of comparative inclemency, during which the roads were in the worst condition, yet my command marched from Savannah to Goldsborough without serious opposition, and without a single attack upon the trains under my charge. The spirit of my troops throughout was confident and buoyant, expressive of that implicit trust in their commander-in-chief, and belief in themselves, which are always presages of military success."
A friend I grew up with went to UNC Wilmington about 20 years ago & took a history course led by a professor who wrote, "The Wilmington Campaign: Last Rays of Departing Hope" The Author is Chris E. Fonvielle Jr. She let me borrow this book about 8 years ago, & I have been trying to get in touch with her lately to let me borrow it again. I may cave & buy it on Amazon if the local library doesn't have it. It has some splendid data & facts. It does include the battle of Bentonville & does well to show how Sherman went to Goldsboro to cut Railroad Tracks before heading to Bentonville to crush the lingering remnants of Johnston's Army. I was planning on heading East to see the reenactment of Bentonville last year, 2020, & now after planning on going this year, it has been yet again canceled due to the Virus. Be sure to check this one out. It is hard to put down.
"While prior books on the battle to capture Wilmington, North Carolina, have focused solely on the epic struggles for Fort Fisher, in many respects this was just the beginning of the campaign. In addition to complete coverage (with significant new information) of both battles for Fort Fisher, The Wilmington Campaign includes the first detailed examination of the attack and defense of Fort Anderson. It also features blow-by-blow accounts of the defense of the Sugar Loaf Line and of the operations of Federal warships on the Cape Fear River. This masterpiece of military history proves yet again that there is still much to be learned about the American Civil War." -Taken from Amazon.com