Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War by Charles Bracelen Flood

[gilda_elise]

Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War by Charles Bracelen Flood

Started Nov 12, completed Nov 28 4 stars

They were both prewar failures—Grant, forced to resign from the Regular Army because of his drinking, and Sherman, holding four different jobs, including a much-loved position at a southern military academy—in the years before the firing on Fort Sumter. They began their unique collaboration ten months into the war, at the Battle of Shiloh, each carefully taking the other's measure. They shared the demands of family life and the heartache of personal tragedy. They shared similar philosophies of battle, employed similar strategies and tactics, and remained in close, virtually daily communication throughout the conflict. They were incontestably two of the Civil War's most important figures, and the deep, abiding friendship they shared made the Union's ultimate victory possible.

Poignant, riveting, and elegantly written, Grant and Sherman is a remarkable portrait of two extraordinary men and a singular friendship, forged on the battlefield, that would change the course of history.

I appreciated the book beginning with an overview of both mens’ lives Both had graduated from West Point, Grant serving during the Mexican-American War, Sherman in California. But both had resigned, for different reasons, but both would answer their country’s call, and find greatness.

Getting to that greatness would take time, especially for Sherman. While Grant had confidence in himself, Sherman did not. But Grant’s drive would bring him the leadership role in the attack on Fort Henry. In a fortuitous happenstance, Sherman would be ordered to ready men and supplies to send to Grant, who appreciated Sherman’s methodical work ethic. And so it would begin.

From Fort Donelson, to the terrible victory at Shiloh where they would finally meet and begin to know each other’s worth. The siege at Vicksburg, probably their crowning achievement, would also be the catalyst that would eventually send them their separate ways, at least for the duration of the war. Grant was now Lincoln’s man, and soon after the battle at Chattanooga would be promoted to Lt. General, a rank only George Washington had ever held.

Though now fighting on opposite sides of the country, Grant and Sherman would stay in touch by telegraph. Then, with the war entering its final phase, they would meet with Lincoln to discuss how the final battle would play out. It would be Grant harrying Lee to Appomattox, while Sherman in the West would try to bring Joseph Johnson to heel.

Lincoln’s assassination, and Sherman’s lenient surrender terms to Johnson would create dissent, but Grant was able to save his friend from his unintended misstep as the War finally came to an end.

After the War, they would have disagreements, but would remain friends, with Sherman lending support to Grant as he fought the cancer that would take his life. It was a friendship forged in battle, yet would remain vital in peace. Concise and easy to read, this is a book not to be passed by.






Links are to more information regarding each book or author, not to the review.


1. A Wicked War
2. The Grapes of Wrath
3. The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments, from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses
4. Thera: Pompeii of the Ancient Aegean
5. Unbury Carol
6. The Institute
7. With Speed and Violence: Why Scientists Fear Tipping Points in Climate Change
8. Elevation
9. The Remaking
10. The Great Lakes Water Wars
11. The Heresy of Dr Dee (John Dee Papers #2)
12. The Black Death
13. A Chain of Thunder (Civil War: 1861-1865, Western Theater #2)
14. American's Last Wild Horses
15. Children of Time (Children of Time #1)
16. Julius Caesar
17. The Elfstones of Shannara
18. Animal Farm
19. Bloody Mary
20. The Hercules Text
21. Richard III: Loyalty Binds Me
22. The Town House
23. Wakenhyrst
24. The Rise of Wolf 8: Witnessing the Triumph of Yellowstone's Underdog
25. Dreamland
26. The Gap Into Ruin: This Day All Gods Die (Gap #5)
27. The End of the Myth: From the Frontier to the Border Wall in the Mind of America
28. Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster
29. The Smoke at Dawn: A Novel of the Civil War (Civil War: 1861-1865, Western Theater #3)
30. The Wishsong of Shannara (The Original Shannara Trilogy #3)
31. The Brothers York: An English Tragedy
32. Children of Ruin (Children of Time #2)
33. Paladins of Shannara
34. Dark Wraith Of Shannara (The Original Shannara Trilogy #3.5)
35. A Talent for War (Alex Benedict #1)
36. Black Wave: Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the Forty-Year Rivalry That Unraveled Culture, Religion, and Collective Memory in the Middle East
37. The Genesis Machine
38. The Other People
39. A House at the Bottom of a Lake
40. In the Hands of Providence: Joshua L. Chamberlain and the American Civil War
41. Sir John Franklin's Erebus and Terror Expedition: Lost and Found
42. The Glass Hotel
43. A Thousand Acres
44. Alexander the Great
45. Imaginary Friend
46. Her Secret Son
47. Grant and Sherman: The Friendship That Won the Civil War




2020 MONTHLY MOTIF - "Dynamic Duos"

A book with a couple of characters that make the perfect pair whether in business or in love.
(Ex. Sherlock & Holmes, Elizabeth & Darcy)



Though I'm posting it here in December, I finished the book in November, as Goodreads will attest.

Comments

[shooting2kill.livejournal.com]

Sounds like a very good rec, thank you.

[gilda-elise.livejournal.com]

You're welcome. :-) It's definitely a keeper.

[bradygirl_12]

I've always enjoyed reading about their friendship/professional partnership. Lincoln knew he had finally struck gold with these two.

[gilda-elise.livejournal.com]

Me, too. The two just meshed, their personalities in sync. They knew what they needed to do, and they did it.

Lincoln certainly had to go through enough generals to finally find these two. When he did, he certainly did know what he'd found.

[nakeisha.livejournal.com]

This sounds like a really interesting book.

[gilda-elise.livejournal.com]

It is. I really admire Grant, and reading about his friendship with Sherman just adds him in my estimations. And both men had to overcome great obstacles to get where they did.

[besoyt.livejournal.com]