Lieutenant General James Longstreet's deployment to East Tennessee promised a chance to shine. The commander of the First Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia had long been overshadowed by his commander, Robert E. Lee, and the now-martyred Second Corp commander, Stonewall Jackson. Lee had nonetheless leaned heavily on Longstreet, whom he called his "Old Warhorse." Reassigned to the Western Theater because of sliding fortunes there, the Old Warhorse hoped to run free with-finally-an independent command of his own. This ...
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Lieutenant General James Longstreet's deployment to East Tennessee promised a chance to shine. The commander of the First Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia had long been overshadowed by his commander, Robert E. Lee, and the now-martyred Second Corp commander, Stonewall Jackson. Lee had nonetheless leaned heavily on Longstreet, whom he called his "Old Warhorse." Reassigned to the Western Theater because of sliding fortunes there, the Old Warhorse hoped to run free with-finally-an independent command of his own. This experience is depicted in A Fine Opportunity Lost: Longstreet's East Tennessee Campaign, November 1863 - April 1864 by Ed Lowe (Col., Ret.) For his Union opponent, Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside, East Tennessee offered an opportunity for redemption. Burnside's early war success had been overshadowed by his disastrous turn at the head of the Army of the Potomac, where he suffered a dramatically lopsided loss at the battle of Fredericksburg followed by the humiliation of "The Mud March." Removed from army command and shuffled to a less prominent theater, Burnside suddenly found his quiet corner of the war getting noisy and worrisome. The mid-September loss by the Union Army of the Cumberland at the battle of Chickamauga left it besieged in Chattanooga, Tennessee. That, in turn, opened the door to Union-leaning East Tennessee and imperiled Burnside's isolated force around Knoxville, the region's most important city. A strong move by Confederates would create political turmoil for Federal forces and cut off Burnside's ability to come to Chattanooga's aid. Into that breach marched Longstreet, fresh off his tide-turning role in the Confederate victory at Chickamauga. The Old Warhorse finally had the independent command he had longed for and an opportunity to capitalize on the momentum he had helped create. Longstreet's First Corps and Burnside's IX Corps had shared battlefields at Second Manassas, South Mountain, Antietam, and Fredericksburg. Unexpectedly, these two old foes from the Eastern Theater now found themselves transplanted in the Western-familiar adversaries on unfamiliar ground. The fate of East Tennessee hung in the balance, and the reputations of the commanders would be won or lost.
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New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 192 p. Emerging Civil War. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Fine. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 192 p. Emerging Civil War. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Col. Ed Lowe's first book, "A Fine Opportunity Lost: Longstreet's East Tennessee Campaign" (2024) is part of the Emerging Civil War Series (ECW) which aims to present important events in the Civil War to a broad readership. Although the East Tennessee Campaign of November 1863 -- April 1864 may be unfamiliar to many readers, it receives a well-paced, thorough treatment in this new volume. Lowe places the camapign in context and he focuses on the story of the two leaders: Confederate Lieutenant General James Longstreet and Union Major General Ambrose Burnside.
Longstreet was Robert E. Lee's key subordinate in the Army of Northern Virginia. He had disagreed with Lee's approach at Gettysburg and also longed for his own independent command. He volunteered to go west to assist General Braxton Bragg and the Army of Tennessee and played a key role in the Battle of Chickamauga and in the subsequent siege of the Union army at Chattanooga.
After some initial success, Burnside performed poorly at Antietam and then failed miserably as the commanding Union general at Fredricksburg. He was sent to east Tennessee as part of what was deemed a less challenging assignment. Later in the War, Burnside would again face strong criticism for his role in the Battle of the Crater during the Siege of Petersburg.
When the abraisive Braxton Bragg and Longstreet came to serious disagreement, Bragg sent Longstreet on a mission to east Tennessee to neutralize Burnside's army and to capture Knoxville. Longstreet was only too happy to leave. Most students regard this decision as a serious blunder in that it weakened the Confederate forces around Chattanooga at a crucial moment. The Union, under General Ulyssess Grant would soon break the siege and set the stage for what became Sherman's Atlanta Campaign.
Lowe puts the East Tennessee Campaign into context and then goes into detail. Longstreet's campaign was hampered from the beginning by the weather, lack of supplies, squabbling among subordinates and by mistakes. The much criticised Burnside defended well. He slowed Longstreet's advance at the November 16, 1863, Battle of Campbell's Station and, from November 24-- 27, 1863 rebuffed Longstreet's attempt to capture Knoxville, primarily during an assault at Fort Sanders. Following the failure to capture Knoxville, Longsteet spent a fruitless, cold winter with his army in east Tennessee before rejoining the Army of Northern Virginia before the Battle of the Wilderness.
Lowe describes the military events of the campaign and explains the political importance of east Tennessee. He describes the suffering of the campaign occasioned by the rain and cold and the sharpness of Longstreet's repulse at Fort Sanders. Much of the account is devoted to the enigmatic figure of Longstreet both before, during, and after the campaign. Longstreet did not acquit himself well in eastern Tennessee.
This book fulfills its purpose of giving interested readers an understanding of an important but lesser-known Civil War campaign. The book includes useful maps and images, three Appendices by Civil War scholars giving further perspectives on the campaign, a short bibliography for those interested in learning more, and an Order of Battle. The publisher of the Emerging Civil War series, Savas Beatie, kindly sent me a review copy.