The Atlas of the Civil War

by James M. McPherson

Here is the definitive reference to the battles of the Civil War, written by America's leading military historians and edited by the Pulitzer Prize-winning Civil War expert James M. McPherson. This authoritative volume includes gripping eyewitness accounts plus 200 specially commissioned, full-color maps that detail all of the major campaigns and many of the smaller skirmishes of the war between the states. Maps provide a superb visual reference to troop movement, battlefield terrain, and communication lines. Dynamic reconstructions depict battles fought on land, river, and ocean, and time-line descriptions provide play-by-play commentary of the action. With more than 200 photographs and many personal accounts that vividly recount the experiences of soldiers in the fields, this book brings to life the human drama that pitted the north against the south.

Genres: History, Civil War, Nonfiction, American Civil War, War, Atlases, Military History

224 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1994

About the author

James M. McPherson, Ph.D. (Johns Hopkins University, 1963; B.A., Gustavus Adolphus College (St. Peter, Minnesota), 1958) is an American Civil War historian, and the George Henry Davis '86 Professor Emeritus of United States History at Princeton University. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Battle Cry of Freedom, his most famous book. He was the president of the American Historical Association in 2003, and is a member of the editorial board of Encyclopædia Britannica.

Reviews

[Margaret Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a reference volume of battle maps, but by reading the narrative page by page as the war action is presented chronologically, one acquires an enhanced sense of the vast spread of destruction of the land as armies of soldiers marched and shot their way over miles and miles and miles. Virginia, West Virginia, both Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Kansas, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, each saw unanticipated devastation in burned forests and buildings and trampled farms and gardens in both countryside and cities. More than 600,000 dead bodies scattered over people's farms and yards or burned skeletons in what had been woods had to be confronted by the survivors. The maps may be dry, but seeing them collected this way invites reflection again about "what it was like" for those who were there.

A problem with reading the whole text, however, is that the editing is shockingly sloppy, with typeset errors on almost every page.

[Matthew Nickerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love maps, but atlases in general tend to disappoint me. They rarely have any content that adequately explains what the map shows. Likewise in my historical reading I've seen plenty of associated maps that fail to illustrate what is being described in the text. The Atlas of the Civil War is the one atlas I have seen that gets both parts right. Entertaining, informative and highly recommended.

[Jimmy · Rating 2 out of 5]

As far as basic overviews of the Civil War go, this book does a fairly good job covering the major campaigns. However, it also doesn't go into a lot of detail about any individual battles. (Except Gettysburg; it uses one two-page spread for the invasion, plus a further three spreads for each day of the battle). It also rushes through 1865 rather quickly, omitting any other Confederate surrenders after Appomattox and almost all other military operations.

Most likely, this book would be more interesting for those people who are just getting interested in the Civil War.

[Richard George · Rating 4 out of 5]

A few errors, could be printers ones, nothing I could not correct myself, did spoil it a bit. Otherwise pretty excellent overall.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good atlas to accompany a history of the war.

[Michael Cawley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting detailed atlas of the American Civil War.

[William Olenick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This general summary of the war features largely short descriptions with maps. Although some of the maps are harder to read they get the point across. Being an old book, some information, photo descriptions and maps could use some updates. It is a great place to start if trying to learn about the war.

[Lotka · Rating 5 out of 5]

5+ atlas bitew dla ludzi, którzy o wojnie secesyjnej usłyszeli tylko kilka zdań w szkole.