File:The Civil War - the national view (1906) (14576313397).jpg

Identifier: civilwarnational00thor (find matches)
Title: The Civil War : the national view
Year: 1906 (1900s)
Authors: Thorpe, Francis Newton, 1857-1926
Subjects:
Publisher: Philadelphia : George Barrie & Sons
Contributing Library: Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection
Digitizing Sponsor: The Institute of Museum and Library Services through an Indiana State Library LSTA Grant

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
, were on constant raids. Grants losses downto the 1st of July were about 50,000; the Army of theJames, 7,000; the missing, about 11,400 more. This ap-palling rate could not be kept up long. Grants critics atthe North began talking loudly of his inactivity, save insacrificing soldiers. General Lee who estimated Grant morecorrectly than did his Northern critics saw the perils to theConfederacy if Petersburg should be taken, and resolved tothreaten Washington, but Grant was not to be swervedfrom his purpose. The Confederate foray failed. Lee haddoubted all along whether he could distract Grant from hispurpose. The most noteworthy incident in the siege ofPetersburg was the construction and explosion of the mineby which it was planned access could be had, by assault, tothe crest of Cemetery Hill, overlooking the fortifications.It was a failure and the mutual blame resulted in muchCongressional investigation, charges and countercharges,which continued long after the war. General Ambrose E.
Text Appearing After Image:
THE FOURTH YEAR OF THE WAR 405 Burnside was the most conspicuous victim of the disaster,his military career being brought to a close, that day,through charges of insubordination and failure to attack,brought against him by General Meade. The worst feature brought to light by the ceaseless fight-ing about Petersburg was the lowering tone of the Unionarmy. The raw troops were not so efficient—their qualityas men not so high as that of the veterans who had fallen;the recruits obtained by the draft were, in the aggregate,inferior men to the original body of the Army of thePotomac. The situation was never more critical; the pro-fessionalism never more exacting, but the fighting capacityof the army was diminishing. To remedy this the officersbegan systematic drilling of troops, which continued allwinter long. Grant was re-creating his army. Meanwhile politics was dividing sentiment at the North:the year 1864 was a presidential year; a successor to Abra-ham Lincoln must be chosen. There we

Note About Images