A comprehensive study of the Florida Brigade, which served under Robert E. Lee in the famed Army of Northern Virginia.

One hundred and fifty years ago, Florida was shaken by battle, blockade, economic deprivation, and the death of native sons both within and far outside its borders. Today, tributes to the valor and sacrifice of Florida’s soldiers, sailors, and civilians can be found from the Panhandle to the Keys. Authors Lees and Gaske look at the diversity of Civil War monuments built in Florida between Reconstruction and the present day, elucidating their emblematic and social dimensions. Most monuments built in Florida honor the Confederacy, praising the valor of Southern soldiers and often extolling the righteousness of their “Lost Cause.” At the same time, a fascinating minority of Union monuments also exists in the state—and these bear notably muted messages. Recalling Deeds Immortal shows how the creation of these bronze and stone monuments created new social battlegrounds as, over the years, groups such as the Ladies’ Memorial Associations, United Daughters of the Confederacy, and the Grand Army of the Republic competed to control the messages behind the memorialization of fallen soldiers and veterans. Examining the evolution of Civil War monuments, the authors demonstrate that the construction of these memorials is itself an important part of Civil War and post-Civil War history.

The Maps of Spotsylvania through Cold Harbor continues Bradley M. Gottfried’s efforts to study and illustrate the major campaigns of the Civil War’s Eastern Theater. This is the ninth book in the ongoing Savas Beatie Military Atlas Series. After three years of bloody combat in Virginia, President Abraham Lincoln promoted Ulysses S. Grant to general-in-chief in early 1864. Grant immediately went to work planning a comprehensive strategy to bring an end to the war. He hungered to remain with the Western armies, but realized his place was in Washington. Unwilling to be stuck in an office, Grant joined George Meade’s Army of the Potomac. His presence complicated Meade’s ability to direct his army, but Grant promised to stay out of his way and give only strategic directives. This arrangement lasted through the Wilderness Campaign, the first action in what is now referred to as the “Overland Campaign.” This book continues the actions of both armies through the completion of the Overland Campaign. After the Wilderness fighting, the Army of the Potomac attempted to swing around the right flank of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia and shoot straight for Richmond. The Confederate capital was never the goal; the move was intended to force Lee out into the open, where the larger and well-stocked Union army could destroy it. The head of Lee’s army blunted the enemy at Spotsylvania Court House, where both sides dug in. Days and men were wasted on fruitless attacks until Col. Emery Upton designed an audacious strike that temporarily penetrated Lee’s works. A much larger offensive against the “Mule Shoe” two days later tore the line open, destroyed a Rebel division, and triggered a long day of fighting. More fighting convinced Grant of the folly of further attempts to crush Lee at Spotsylvania and again he swung around the Rebel right flank. The march ignited almost continuous fighting at the North Anna, Bethesda Church, and Cold Harbor, where this volume ends. This study includes the various cavalry actions, including those at Spotsylvania Court House, Yellow Tavern, Haw’s Tavern, and Matadequin Creek. The Maps of Spotsylvania through Cold Harbor breaks down the entire operation into thirty-five map sets or “action sections” enriched with 134 detailed full-page color maps. These cartographic originals bore down to the regimental and battery level and include the march to and from the battlefields and virtually every significant event in between. At least two, and as many as ten maps accompany each map set. Keyed to each piece of cartography is a full facing page of detailed footnoted text describing the units, personalities, movements, and combat (including quotes from eyewitnesses) depicted on the accompanying map, all of which make the Spotsylvania story come alive. This unique presentation allows readers to easily and quickly find a map and text on any portion of the campaign, from the march to Spotsylvania to Cold Harbor. Serious students will appreciate the extensive and authoritative endnotes and complete order of battle. Everyone will want to take the book along on trips to these battlefields. Perfect for the easy chair or for stomping the hallowed ground, The Maps of Spotsylvania through Cold Harbor is a seminal work that belongs on the bookshelf of every serious student of the battle.

Main Selection of the History Book Club The Battle of Gettysburg, the Civil War’s turning point, produced over 57,000 casualties, the largest number from the entire war that was itself America’s bloodiest conflict. On the third day of fierce fighting, Robert E. Lee’s attempt to invade the North came to a head in Pickett’s Charge. The infantry assault, consisting of nine brigades of soldiers in a line that stretched for over a mile, resulted in casualties of over 50 percent for the Confederates and a huge psychological blow to Southern morale. Pickett’s Charge is a detailed analysis of one of the most iconic and defining events in American history. This book presents a much-needed fresh look, including the unvarnished truths and ugly realities, about the unforgettable story. With the luxury of hindsight, historians have long denounced the folly of Lee’s attack, but this work reveals the tactical brilliance of a master plan that went awry. Special emphasis is placed on the common soldiers on both sides, especially the non-Virginia attackers outside of Pickett’s Virginia Division. These fighters’ moments of cowardice, failure, and triumph are explored using their own words from primary and unpublished sources. Without romance and glorification, the complexities and contradictions of the dramatic story of Pickett's Charge have been revealed in full to reveal this most pivotal moment in the nation’s life. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Dig into a treasure trove of nearly forgotten Sunshine State Civil War history. At the outset of the Civil War, Florida's entire population was only a bit larger than present-day Gainesville. Still, the state played an outsized role in the conflict. Floridians fought for the Union and Confederate armies. Sunshine State farmers provided beef and other foodstuffs for the Confederacy, rations that proved increasingly consequential as the years wore on. The battles of Olustee and Natural Bridge, where boys from the West Florida Seminary entered the fray, helped keep Tallahassee as the only Confederate-held capital east of the Mississippi River. Even the conspirators involved in Lincoln's assassination wove a trail that led to Florida. Join author Robert Redd on a tour of the lesser-known aspects of Florida in the Civil War.

Thousands of inkwells have been emptied documenting the Campaign and Battle of Gettysburg. And while nearly all aspects of the campaign have been explored in one form or another, this work attempts to weave the tapestry of the campaign from the viewpoints, activities, and decisions of its participants. From men at the highest levels of command to those on the battle line, all would play a part in the drama which unfolded in Southern Pennsylvania. The persona, character, military bearing, and skill of those who fought the greatest battle ever to occur on the North American continent, would be forged not only during the war, but for some, many years prior to the conflict. This is the opening act of their story.