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Civil War America
Lee's Last Retreat: The Flight to Appomattox
Few events in Civil War history have generated such deliberate mythmaking as the retreat that ended at Appomattox. William Marvel offers the first history of the Appomattox campaign written primarily from contemporary source material, with a skeptical eye toward memoirs published well after the events they purport to describe.
Marvel shows that during the final week of the war in Virginia, Lee's troops were more numerous yet far less faithful to their cause than has been suggested. He also proves accounts of the congenial intermingling of the armies at Appomattox to be shamelessly overblown and the renowned exchange of salutes to be apocryphal.
Marvel shows that during the final week of the war in Virginia, Lee's troops were more numerous yet far less faithful to their cause than has been suggested. He also proves accounts of the congenial intermingling of the armies at Appomattox to be shamelessly overblown and the renowned exchange of salutes to be apocryphal.
322 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
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About the author
William Marvel
29 books15 followersWilliam Marvel grew up on Davis Hill in South Conway, New Hampshire where he still lives. He has been writing about nineteenth-century American history for more than three decades.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 9, 2012
This is for those who enjoy Civil War history but are still stuck in the mythology. This book goes a long way towards debunking many of the myths surrounding both Lee's retreat from Petersburg, the final campaign and the surrender at Appomatox. As usual, their are villans on both sides who manage to re-write history for their benefit. The author explores in detail much of what has become conventional wisdom about the last campaign of the Army of Northern Virginia and gives a much more realitics picutre -- the stragelling along the line of march, which units managed to maintain a modicum of cohesion, the supply issue and the command and control issues which surrounded the Army as it tried to break contact and gain freedom of manuever against foes bent on pursuit and destruction. The Union forces receive their share of examination as well. If you are one of the many Joshua Chamberlian fans (or General Gordon, CSA) and want to remain cloistered in your "Killer Angels" view of the War Between the States, you might want to pass on this.
June 11, 2021
I got this book because I was going on a vacation that included visits to Sailor's Creek and Appomattox. This book primarily covers Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army from April 3 to April 9. It is not a detailed tactical study, which the author admits upfront and recommends The Appomattox Campaign: March 29 - April 9, 1865 for readers interested in that kind of book on the campaign. Rather this is a focused look at the leadership, logistics, and morale of the the Confederates. The Union side is only lightly covered. The engagements are covered in brief.
The story presented is one of an army disintegrating. The Army of Northern Virginia already had sagging morale and rising desertions during the first three months of 1865. Then came Five Forks, which wrecked two divisions, followed by the massive Union assault and breakthrough at Petersburg on April 2 which rendered A. P. Hill a corpse and mauled his corps.
Over the course of a week retreating western the Army of Northern Virginia (supplemented by various units from Richmond) slogs through mud, battles exhaustion and swollen rivers, and tries to fend off Union efforts to simultaneously intercept them and nip at their heels. Men and horses slowly starve. Desertions continue to spiral while morale crumbles. It's not a rout as the Confederates do put up a fight and deliver some stinging reverses especially on isolated Union detachments, but it is unmistakably an army disintegrating.
There are three excellent appendices dealing in depth with the questions of Lee's real numerical strength and losses, the reason for the delay at Amelia and the lack of supplies there, and Lee's relieving three of his generals of their commands during the campaign.
The biggest weakness of the book is the maps. They are few in number and very simple, and only show basic geographic locations not unit placement or movement. I also think the writing was generally okay.
The story presented is one of an army disintegrating. The Army of Northern Virginia already had sagging morale and rising desertions during the first three months of 1865. Then came Five Forks, which wrecked two divisions, followed by the massive Union assault and breakthrough at Petersburg on April 2 which rendered A. P. Hill a corpse and mauled his corps.
Over the course of a week retreating western the Army of Northern Virginia (supplemented by various units from Richmond) slogs through mud, battles exhaustion and swollen rivers, and tries to fend off Union efforts to simultaneously intercept them and nip at their heels. Men and horses slowly starve. Desertions continue to spiral while morale crumbles. It's not a rout as the Confederates do put up a fight and deliver some stinging reverses especially on isolated Union detachments, but it is unmistakably an army disintegrating.
There are three excellent appendices dealing in depth with the questions of Lee's real numerical strength and losses, the reason for the delay at Amelia and the lack of supplies there, and Lee's relieving three of his generals of their commands during the campaign.
The biggest weakness of the book is the maps. They are few in number and very simple, and only show basic geographic locations not unit placement or movement. I also think the writing was generally okay.
July 23, 2015
Appreciate that he broke down mythology. However, it was muddled at time and difficult to follow. There is still great need for a good study of those 7 days from Petersburg to Appomattox.
October 25, 2019
William Marvel has come under a fair amount of criticism for this book. Mostly he is accused of being anti-southern and attempting to re-write history in a manner that is not flattering to the troops of the Army of Northern Virginia. On the contrary, I found this to be an engaging book that not only does not rip away the luster of courage that is usually bestowed on the common Confederate soldier but actually, in some ways accentuates it. The reader will find that some of Marvel's harshest criticism is reserved for Phil Sheridan and George Custer and their fanatical drive for unearned glory and Joshua L. Chamberlain's ego.
The one really glaring problem with this book is the maps or rather the lack thereof. There are a few maps but not nearly enough and what maps there are could have been made much more useful by actually showing troop movements on them. It is fairly hard to follow the armies across Virginia without good maps; I don't care how well the author tells the story. I think maybe he assume the reader is as familiar with the area as he is. Marvel does argue that the Confederates had a better chance of making the link with Johnston than has been accepted fact, but he backs up his argument. His argument that sheer wealth and numbers in the overall war did not overwhelm the South however is just silly fortunately that argument only comes up at the end of the book. Other than that though I found this to be a highly readable, well-researched, intelligent and fair book.
The one really glaring problem with this book is the maps or rather the lack thereof. There are a few maps but not nearly enough and what maps there are could have been made much more useful by actually showing troop movements on them. It is fairly hard to follow the armies across Virginia without good maps; I don't care how well the author tells the story. I think maybe he assume the reader is as familiar with the area as he is. Marvel does argue that the Confederates had a better chance of making the link with Johnston than has been accepted fact, but he backs up his argument. His argument that sheer wealth and numbers in the overall war did not overwhelm the South however is just silly fortunately that argument only comes up at the end of the book. Other than that though I found this to be a highly readable, well-researched, intelligent and fair book.
April 10, 2024
Very interesting book, could have benefitted with more and better maps, depicting units, so you can keep track of what’s going on. The author has a point to make, I get it, but his nonstop poking at what he views as Lost Cause mythology gets old after a while.
gone-gave-away
August 20, 2025Sort of regret giving this one up.
Had a great trip to Appomattox recently, and had an ancestor that was in on the campaign.
Had a great trip to Appomattox recently, and had an ancestor that was in on the campaign.
March 22, 2015
Lee's Last Retreat covers the events of Monday, April 3 through Sunday, April 9, 1865. The two earlier days which saw the battle of Five Forks and the breakthrough at Petersburg are not covered in detail and the three days after are covered in one chapter.
I noticed five points of interest. The Army of Northern Virginia was much bigger than frequently portrayed as it began its retreat. I shrugged over this because what constitutes an actual count isn't easy to define. The combined Armies of the Potomac and the James were significantly bigger and in better condition than their opponent.
The "fatal delay" at Amelia Court House was not over supplies; the army was still too far spread apart and Lee waited for his rear echelons to catch up.
Lee's decision to surrender was in part caused by his belief that the troops' morale was no longer up to it (although being surrounded surely was a telling factor, too).
The fun fact concerned Generals Gordon and Chamberlain at the surrender ceremony. Ya know how you think you know something fairly obscure but interesting, and then have what you think you know turned topsy-turvy? I won't play spoiler, just read pages 193 and 194 and Glenn LaFantasie's article in The Gettysburg Nobody Knows (ed. Gabor Boritt), pp. 31-55.
Finally, at the final battle at Appomattox itself, more than just a cavalry skirmish occurred. The Rebs gave at least as good as they got before the two Union corps began to make their presence felt.
The book's point of view seems to be mainly from the Army of Northern Virginia's experience. There was a number of named "common soldier" experiences which did not make a difference in the action but does serve to illustrate the rot of an army in flight. Maps were of the road grid, but, troop positions not being illustrated, it was hard to follow the action. Footnotes, at the back of the book, substantiate whole paragraphs instead of specific facts, but seem sufficient.
I live near the sites of the above actions. It may be a hoot to query a park ranger during the sesquicentennial celebrations as to some of Marvel's points (especially the surrender bit).
I noticed five points of interest. The Army of Northern Virginia was much bigger than frequently portrayed as it began its retreat. I shrugged over this because what constitutes an actual count isn't easy to define. The combined Armies of the Potomac and the James were significantly bigger and in better condition than their opponent.
The "fatal delay" at Amelia Court House was not over supplies; the army was still too far spread apart and Lee waited for his rear echelons to catch up.
Lee's decision to surrender was in part caused by his belief that the troops' morale was no longer up to it (although being surrounded surely was a telling factor, too).
The fun fact concerned Generals Gordon and Chamberlain at the surrender ceremony. Ya know how you think you know something fairly obscure but interesting, and then have what you think you know turned topsy-turvy? I won't play spoiler, just read pages 193 and 194 and Glenn LaFantasie's article in The Gettysburg Nobody Knows (ed. Gabor Boritt), pp. 31-55.
Finally, at the final battle at Appomattox itself, more than just a cavalry skirmish occurred. The Rebs gave at least as good as they got before the two Union corps began to make their presence felt.
The book's point of view seems to be mainly from the Army of Northern Virginia's experience. There was a number of named "common soldier" experiences which did not make a difference in the action but does serve to illustrate the rot of an army in flight. Maps were of the road grid, but, troop positions not being illustrated, it was hard to follow the action. Footnotes, at the back of the book, substantiate whole paragraphs instead of specific facts, but seem sufficient.
I live near the sites of the above actions. It may be a hoot to query a park ranger during the sesquicentennial celebrations as to some of Marvel's points (especially the surrender bit).
November 18, 2022
A very good account of the final campaign of the Civil War. Marvel examines the myths that surround the campaign and demonstrates their fallacy. He does stay primarily focused on Lee and the Confederates. It is a must read to dig into the deeper truths of this campaign.
September 16, 2021
Overall, this book is a very good history of the Appomattox campaign. However, I wish the author had went into more detail with the tactical details of the battles; also, the book could have used more detailed maps of the individual battles.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews