Year of Desperate Struggle: Jeb Stuart and His Cavalry, from

Year of Desperate Struggle: Jeb Stuart and His Cavalry, from Gettysburg to Yellow Tavern, 1863-1864

By the summer of 1863, following Chancellorsville, it was clear to everyone on both sides of the Civil War that the Army of Northern Virginia was the most formidable force Americans had ever put in the field. It could only be â€œtiedâ€ in battle, if against great odds, but would more usually vanquish its opponents. A huge measure of that armyâ€™s success was attributable to its cavalry arm, under Major General J.E.B. Stuart, which had literally â€œrun ringsâ€ around its enemies.

But Northern arithmetic and expertise were gradually catching up. In this work, the sequel to his acclaimed Year of Glory, author Monte Akers tracks Stuart and his cavalry through the following year of the war, from Gettysburg to the Overland Campaign, concluding only when Jeb himself succumbs to a gunshot while fending off a force three times his size at the very gates of Richmond. Gettysburg put paid to the aura of unstoppable victory surrounding the Army of Northern Virginia. But when Grant and Sheridan came east they found that Lee, Stuart, Longstreet, and the rest still refused to be defeated. It was a year of grim casualties and ferocious fightingâ€”in short, a year of â€œdesperate struggleâ€ with the gloves off on both sides.

This work picks up where Year of Glory left off, with a minute examination of Stuartâ€™s cavalry during the controversial Gettysburg campaign, followed by the nine months of sparring during which the Army of Potomac declined to undertake further major thrusts against Virginia. But then the Unionâ€™s western chieftains arrived and the war became one huge â€œfuneral procession,â€ as Grant and Sheridan found that their prior victories had by no means prepared them for meeting the Army of Northern Virginia.

In this work Akers provides a fascinating, close-in view of the Confederacyâ€™s cavalry arm during this crucial period of the war. After Stuartâ€™s death the Army of Northern Virginia would eventually be cornered, but while he was alive it was often the Northerners who most needed to look to their security.

REVIEWS

This is a very well written balanced look at the last year of Stuartâ€™s life. The handling of Gettysburg is excellent! The author balances the conflicting stories in presenting a factual honest account. This is done a second time in the handling of the Dahlgren Affair.
Each campaign is covered with proper space given the important actions...This is a good-looking book with a good hand-feel that makes â€œprintâ€ books so enjoyable
James Durney
Country USA
Brand Casemate
Manufacturer Casemate
Binding Hardcover
ReleaseDate 2015-02-19
UnitCount 1
EANs 9781612002828

Country	USA
Brand	Casemate
Manufacturer	Casemate
Binding	Hardcover
ReleaseDate	2015-02-19
UnitCount	1
EANs	9781612002828

Year of Desperate Struggle: Jeb Stuart and His Cavalry, from Gettysburg to Yellow Tavern, 1863-1864

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