Crisis of Command in the Army of the Potomac

Journalist Jay W. Simson is a member of the Western Ohio Civil War Roundtable, and has previously written on naval strategies of the Civil War. He lives in Van Wert, Ohio.

“a solid look at an under-discussed topic”—TOCWOC-A Civil War Blog.

• Table of ContentsIntroduction and Acknowledgments      Prologue: Sheridan Takes Command      Part I: William Woods Averell The Man Who Preferred Mountains1. Averell’s Background      2. The Battle of Kelly’s Ford      3. The Chancellorsville Campaign      4. Redemption in the Mountains      5. Averell and Sheridan      6. Fisher’s Hill      7. Sheridan Sacks Averell      Part II: Alfred Thomas Archimedes Torbert The Man Who Was Promoted Too Far8. Commissioned by Both Sides      9. Torbert in the Overland Campaign and at Trevilian Station      10. Chief of Cavalry      11. Failure at Milford      12. Hesitation at Tom’s Brook      13. The Battle of Cedar Creek      14. Flunking the Final Exam at Gordonsville      Part III: Gouverneur Kemble Warren The Man Who Suffered from Combat Fatigue15. The Master Engineer, Cartographer and Teacher      16. Showing the Spark at Second Manassas/Bull Run      17. The Hero at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg      18. A Strong Performance at Bristoe Station      19. Moral Courage at Mine Run      20. The Long Hard Grind of the Overland Campaign      21. On the Road to Five Forks      22. Broken Hero at the Fatal Victory of Five Forks      23. The Court of Inquiry      Part IV: Ranald Slidell Mackenzie The Man Who Proved the Rule24. The Most Promising Young Officer in the Army      25. The Perpetual Punisher      26. Mackenzie at Five Forks      27. The Pursuit to Appomattox      28. The Most Tragic One of Them All      29. Sheridan’s Troubleshooter      Epilogue: The Method Behind Sheridan’s Madness      Notes      Bibliography      Index