James M. McPherson, "Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Oxford History of the United States)"

Winner of the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for History

Filled with fresh interpretations and information, puncturing old myths and challenging new ones, Battle Cry of Freedom will unquestionably become the standard one-volume history of the Civil War.

James McPherson's fast-paced narrative fully integrates the political, social, and military events that crowded the two decades from the outbreak of one war in Mexico to the ending of another at Appomattox. Packed with drama and analytical insight, the book vividly recounts the momentous episodes that preceded the Civil War--the Dred Scott decision, the Lincoln-Douglas debates, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry--and then moves into a masterful chronicle of the war itself--the battles, the strategic maneuvering on both sides, the politics, and the personalities. Particularly notable are McPherson's new views on such matters as the slavery expansion issue in the 1850s, the origins of the Republican Party, the causes of secession, internal dissent and anti-war opposition in the North and the South, and the reasons for the Union's victory.

This authoritative volume makes sense of that vast and confusing "second American Revolution" we call the Civil War, a war that transformed a nation and expanded our heritage of liberty.

Amazon.com Review
Published in 1988 to universal acclaim, this single-volume treatment of the Civil War quickly became recognized as the new standard in its field. James M. McPherson, who won the Pulitzer Prize for this book, impressively combines a brisk writing style with an admirable thoroughness. He covers the military aspects of the war in all of the necessary detail, and also provides a helpful framework describing the complex economic, political, and social forces behind the conflict. Perhaps more than any other book, this one belongs on the bookshelf of every Civil War buff.

From Publishers Weekly
Likely to become the standard one-volume history of our Civil War, this vivifies, with palpable immediacy, scholarly acumen and interpretive skill, events foreshadowing the conflict, the war itself and its basic issue: slavery.

Contents

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Maps Illustrations Editor's Introduction Prologue: From the Halls of Montezuma 1 The United States at Midcentury 2 Mexico Will Poison Us 3 An Empire for Slavery 4 Slavery, Rum, and Romanism 5 The Crime Against Kansas 6 Mudsills and Greasy Mechanics for A. Lincoln 7 The Revolution of 1860 8 The Counterrevolution of 1861 9 Facing Both Ways: The Upper South's Dilemma 10 Amateurs Go to War 11 Farewell to the Ninety Days' War 12 Blockade and Beachhead: The Salt-Water War, 1861–1862 13 The River War in 1862 14 The Sinews of War 15 Billy Yank's Chickahominy Blues 16 We Must Free the Slaves or Be Ourselves Subdued 17 Carry Me Back to Old Virginny 18 John Bull's Virginia Reel 19 Three Rivers in Winter, 1862–1863 20 Fire in the Rear 21 Long Remember: The Summer of '63 22 Johnny Reb's Chattanooga Blues 23 When This Cruel War Is Over 24 If It Takes All Summer 25 After Four Years of Failure 26 We Are Going To Be Wiped Off the Earth 27 South Carolina Must Be Destroyed 28 We Are All Americans Epilogue: To the Shoals of Victory Abbreviated Titles Bibliographic Note Index

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Tags: USHistory, CivilWar, TOHOTUS