Mosby's Rangers: The True Adventures of the Most Famous Command of the Civil War

by Jeffry D. Wert

No single battalion was more feared during the Civil War than the 43rd Battalion of Virginia Cavalry. As one contemporary said, "They had...all the glamour of Robin Hood...all the courage and bravery of the ancient crusaders." Better known as Mosby's Rangers, they were an elite guerilla unit that operated with stunning success in northern Virginia and Maryland from 1863 to the last days of the war.

In this vivid account of the famous command of John Singleton Mosby, Jeffrey D. Wert explores the personality of this iron-will commander and brilliant tactician and gives us colorful profiles of the officers who served under him. Drawing on contemporary documents, including letters and diaries, this is the most complete and vivid account to date of the fighting unit that was so hated by General Ulysses S. Grant that he ordered any captured Ranger to be summarily executed without trial.

Genres: Civil War, History, Nonfiction, American Civil War, Biography, Adventure, American History

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

American historian and author specializing in the American Civil War. He graduated cum laude with a B.A. from Lock Haven University, and a M.A. from The Pennsylvania State University, both in History. He worked for many years as a history teacher at Penns Valley Area High School in Spring Mills, Pennsylvania.

Reviews

[Charles van Buren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of Hardcover edition
PublisherSimon & Schuster
Publication dateSeptember 1, 1990
LanguageEnglish
Product Dimensions1.2 x 6.4 x 9.4 inches
Shipping Weight1.5 poundsBook length384
ISBN-100671673602
ISBN-13978-0671673604

Good account of Mosby and his men

One of the best books about Mosby and his men. The old 1960's TV show, The Grey Ghost, hooked me and many of my friends on Mosby and his exploits. Many of the episodes are available on U tube for free. As a child, George Patton is said to have sat on Mosby's knee and listened to his tales.

I bought this as a Christmas gift for a friend but as it was some weeks before I saw him, I made time to read the book. Outstanding account. Every bit as good as the classic RANGER MOSBY by Virgil Carrington Jones.

Wirt's book has considerably more detail than the Jones book. Wirt goes into the minutiae of the history while Jones is probably better entertainment for most people.

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of the Gray Ghost and his soldiers throughout the war years. Very well researched.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

"No single battalion was more feared during the Civil War than the 43rd Battalion Of Virginia Cavalry, better known as Mosby's Rangers." So says the dust jacket of Jeffrey Wert's "Mosby's Rangers". Wert obviously has a great deal of affection and admiration for Mosby and his band of horsemen who operated virtually (and late in the war, in reality) behind Union lines staging guerrilla raids on supply lines and railroads. Wert has impeccably researched his subject and has what must be one of the most thorough of the Rangers ever written - which is part of the problem. Wert has put so much time into his subject, and has such affection for the men of the Rangers, he feels the need to include every detail of every raid, right down to listing as many individual soldiers as possible who participated. Wert follows the Rangers from their formation as an independent command in January 1863 right up to their disbandment (not surrender as Wert clearly points out)in April 1865. Along the way, he shows the exploits of these men - mostly in their late teens and twenties - of raids, scouts, and plunderings of Union supply wagons, trains and towns, including the kidnapping of a Union general from his own headquarters in the middle of an occupied town. This was the glamorous war that the public envisioned at the outset of the conflict - not the slogging affair of the regular armies. However, the reality is that while Mosby and his men were successful in what they did, what they did accomplish did not amount to much. The Rangers were like a gnat buzzing around the eyes of a person - an irritant, but not particularly harmful one. According to the sources, Mosby himself felt that he made a great contribution to the Southern war effort, but apart from some scouting missions during the Shenandoah campaign, Wert fails to convince the reader of it. It would also have been helpful to learn a bit more about the Mosby the man and what drove him. An effective book, but not completely so.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book. Excellent description of successful insurgent techniques (although an unsuccessful result) by a charismatic leader and carefully selected soldiers. The major drawback of the book is that the author tried to write about everything that happened, instead of focusing on a few of the important or interesting events and describing them in detail. The detail is good in some parts and makes the story interesting, but sometimes he breezes through some events that would be helpful to have more information about.
This is an excellent book for anyone who wishes to know more about the most successful small unit in the Civil War, as well as anyone who may benefit from seeing techniques used both against the guerillas and by the guerillas (i.e. anyone involved in the current GWOT), as well as for anyone who just wants an interesting and exciting story to read.

[bup · Rating 3 out of 5]

If anybody ever requests of me where John Mosby was on any date between June 1862 and April 1865, I shall consult this book. If it can't be found in these pages, it is unknown.

The chronological journey of Mosby, and, starting in January 1863, his 43th Battalion - a cavalry of "partisan rangers" - could not be more thorough. Wert does his share of arguing how important and influential this band was in keeping northern Virginia one of the most frustrating pieces of land for the union army to attempt to bring under control, too. Somehow, though, I found myself wanting more from this in terms of the author's take - the historical significance of these names and actions and places.

Then again, I'd probably be complaining about that, too, had he romanticized it and been a Confederate apologist.

Probably my favorite part of the book was the epilogue, where Wert does talk about what it all amounted to, and I did appreciate that even their enemies respected them. I found it fascinating that Mosby himself became a friend of Grant and a Republican after the war, both of which were apostasy for a former rebel.

Finally, I'm glad I read it because it helps those parts of Virginia, the counties hugging the Potomac from from DC to Harpers Ferry, which is some of my favorite land in the world, "come alive" for me. I hope I remember what transpired there next time I'm at Point of Rocks, or Marshall, or Front Royal, or a hundred other places where Mosby's Rangers fought.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally finished this book after skimming over the last 100 pages. But I feel a rating of 3 is still proper. 5 stars for the research and the information contained in this book but 1 star for the entertainment value. Another reviewer stated quite accurately that this book read like a police blotter. Short sentences that were heavy on names and places but boring as hell. The exploits of Mosby and his Rangers are legend and a well written book would make a great read.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

A history of the 43rd Battalion Virginia Cavalry, formed and led by John S. Mossy, and it's daring exploits during the Civil War which made it the most feared military group of Confederate soldiers during the duration of the war. Excellently researched, well written.

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a more dry book about Mosby's rangers. It contains a ton of information, but is written in a less readable style than Mosby uses himself.
For any hard core historian, Civil War fanatic, or any Mosby fan, it is a really worth while book.

[Trevor Seigler · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a long period in the Civil War, John Mosby operated a guerilla band behind enemy lines, harassing Federal troops in northern Virginia and becoming a legend. When the war ended, he disbanded his command rather than surrender. While the efforts of Mosby's command may not have turned the war into a Confederate victory, it did put his name in the history books.

"Mosby's Rangers," by Jeffry D. Wert, chronicles the history of the 43rd Battalion of Virginia Cavelry, which operated in a region of the state known as "Mosby's Confederacy." Charged with disrupting Union efforts to utilize the region to help their cause of bringing Richmond to its knees, the Rangers launched surprise attacks upon targets important to the Union cause, from railways to sutlers' wagons. They terrorized the Yankee soldiers in the area, earning their respect as well. The local population looked out for and sheltered the Rangers, and eventually paid a high price for it during Sheridan's campaign in the Shenandoah in 1864. But by the end of the war, Mosby proved as defiant as ever, walking out of a proposed surrender when he felt that the terms weren't to his liking.

I grew up reading a lot about the Civil War, and usually just military histories, stories of battles and leaders which rarely touched upon the causes of the war like slavery. Reading Shelby Foote's three-volume history and James MacPherson's "Battle Cry of Freedom" seems to have sated my thirst for military histories, and I find myself more drawn to books about the lead-up to the war and its aftermath, and what that meant for society then and what it means for us now. So "Mosby's Rangers" is a bit of an outlier for my reading nowadays, and it's alright for what it is. But I'd like to find a biography of Mosby, who ended up being one of the few ex-Confederates to acknowledge slavery central role in causing the war and who spent much of his postwar career repudiating "The Lost Cause" myth of postwar racists.

This is a solid, though sometimes dull, military history of a unit of partisans who kept the Union on its toes for much of its existence, and it's well worth seeking out if you want a history of an arena of the war that isn't inside the scope of most histories of the Civil War.

[Pat Phelps · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Loved Mosby’s resilience and determination to overcome against a much larger Army, with a seemingly endless supply of soldiers and equipment. His love for the dream of an independent Confederacy seemed to drive him, and his men.

Loved the book, and would recommend it to anyone with an interest in the topic.

[Iain · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gave it 80 pages and set it aside. An odd mix of bland details spiced with a dash of hyperbole. One would think it difficult to make clandestine actions boring, but here the focus is too much on the names of individual participants and too little on narrative flow.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

too hagiographic.

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Little analysis. Not much context.

[Charly · Rating 5 out of 5]

compelling.

[Tara · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not my type of story.
Didn't get very far as I was uninterested in the details.

[Shelly♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the author asserts that John Mosby is a well-known Civil War leader and the deeds of his Rangers well known, time has wiped away the memory of The partisans from many history texts. It is wonderful to see that the true history of the war and the many colorful characters still live on and are being recalled it books like Mr. Wert's. "Mosby's Ranger" is a narrative on the history of this storied band. It is not a personal biography of the leader or a fictionalized and romanticized tale meant to make readers feel a certain way about this group of men. It is history at its finest - detailed, annotated and with a full bibliography. Wert takes us through week by week the two years of the unit's existence, highlighting raids and activities.

Recommend for: Civil War buffs and those who enjoy Military History.

[Jimmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, detailed unit history of this famous battalion. I gave this book only three stars since personally I'm not too interested in guerilla/partisan operations and activities. Also, while there's a good general area map at the front of the book, it probably would have been helpful if there were maps for the smaller actions.

While his force no doubt caused problems for the Union during the two years of its existence, Mr. Wert argues that Mosby failed to have an appreciable effect on the overall war.

[Luke · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good account of the operations of Mosby and his Rangers. Unlike other books about Mosby this is not a biography of him or an account of an his operations that is centered around him, instead it details the operations of he and his rangers and focuses more on the unit as a whole rather than its leader. The book is written with a good narrative style that is attentive to detail while not overwhelming and dry in its description of fact and accompanying analysis.

[Glenn Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Living in the Mosby Heritage area for close to 10 years, it is about time I read this. Fascinating leader of a crew that grew to be 800 soldiers that had daring raids on the Union for 3 years. Mosby had a long career afterwards as an attorney and government official. Well researched, Mr. Wert describes the region to a tee, or a tree, as I see some of the trees he writes about as I commute and drive to the daily chores. Very good book on a small part of the war between the States.

[Bap · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mosby lead a guerrilla band in the Virginia suburbs of Washington D.C., an area they called Mosby's confederacy. They manage to disrupt an tie up huge numbers of federal troops in 1863-1864 and ultimately lead to brutal reprisals on the part of Sheridan and others.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a history of a guerrilla warfare battalion of the Confederate Army operating in Northern Virginia and Maryland. Officially they were the 43rd Battalion of Virginia Cavalry commanded by John S. Mosby. This is a good read of irregular operations during the American Civil War.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story of Mosby and his Rangers, the 43rd Battalion of Virginia Cavalry. U.S. Grant hated them so much he ordered their execution when captured. Good story of daring raids and the union's attempt to stop them.

[Grant Turnage · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed Wert's telling of Mosby's story more than Ramage's. Both have their own merits but I think this one was better written. Mosby was a great officer and his story is amazing. If you're a Civil War buff, read it. It's a great account of a Confederate guerilla.

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read. Interesting. Book cover makes actual combat seem more dramatic than reality proved to be. In general very good book about a clandestine confederate unit that drove the Union crazy.

[Tom Woodard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing history of that part of the civil war. Pretty easy read but some disjointed sections. I would recommend it.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Fascinating little piece of American history.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well researched story of a daring and innovative Confederate named Mosby who gave the Union Army fits becoming known as the Gray Ghost for his elusiveness.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book - the first I have read on Mosby. Detailed and well researched.

[Jerry Peregoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative and interesting!

[Robin Mcnemar · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a hard time keeping my interest. I am an avid Civil War fan but couldn't finish I am not giving up and will pick it up again