Desperate Engagement: How a Little-known Civil War Battle Saved Washington, D.C., and Changed American History

Marc Leepson

Brief Synopsis:

The July 9, 1864, Battle of Monocacy is one of the Civil War's most significant, yet little-known, battles, occurring just a few miles from Washington, D.C.

Long Synopsis:

The July 9, 1864, Battle of Monocacy is one of the Civil War's most significant, yet little-known, battles. What played out that day in the corn and wheat fields near Frederick, Maryland, was a full-field engagement between 12,000 battle-hardened Confederate troops led by the controversial Jubal Early, and 5,800 Union troops, many of them untested in battle, under the mercurial Lew Wallace, best known as the author of Ben Hur. When the fighting ended, some 1,300 Union troops were dead, wounded, or captured, and Early- who suffered some 800 casualties- had won the northernmost Confederate victory of the war. Two days later, Early sat astride his horse outside the gates of Fort Stevens in the upper northwestern fringe of Washington, D.C. He was about to make one of the war's most fateful decisions: whether or not to invade the under-defended nation's capital. There was near panic in the streets when Washington learned of the impending Rebel attack. But Jubal Early did not pull the trigger, giving General Ulysses S. Grant just enough time to bring thousands of veteran troops up from Richmond. Historian Marc Leepson uses memoirs, diaries, and other primary sources in a reader-friendly and engaging retelling of the events surrounding what became known as "the Battle that Saved Washington," its impact on the last nine months of the Civil War, and on the course of American history.

Book Quality:

Excellent

Book Size:

304 Pages

ISBN-13:

9780312382230

Publisher:

N/A

Date of Addition:

10/10/08

Copyright Date:

2007

Copyrighted By:

Marc Leepson

Adult content:

No

Language:

English US

Categories:

History, Military, Nonfiction

Submitted By:

KariG

Proofread By:

Kenny Peyatt