West Pointers and the Civil War: The Old Army in War and Peace (Civil War America)

302 Pages·2009·2.63 MB·English

by  Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh

West Pointers and the Civil War
  
Civil War America
Gary W. Gallagher, editor
West Pointers and the Civil War
the old army in war and peace
  
Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh
the university of north carolina press
Chapel Hill
© 2009 The University of North Carolina Press
All rights reserved
Designed and set by Rebecca Evans in Monotype Walbaum
Manufactured in the United States of America
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence
and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for
Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.
The University of North Carolina Press has been a member
of the Green Press Initiative since 2003.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hsieh, Wayne Wei-siang.
West Pointers and the Civil War : the old army
in war and peace / Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh.
p. cm. — (Civil War America)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-8078-3278-3 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. United States — History, Military — To 1900. 2. United
States. Army — History — 19th century. 3. Military art and science —
United States — History — 19th century. 4. Mexican War, 1846–1848 —
Campaigns. 5. United States — History — Civil War, 1861–1865 — Campaigns.
6. Generals — United States — History — 19th century. 7. United States
Military Academy — Alumni and alumnae — Biography. I. Title.
e181.h79 2009 355.00973 — dc22 2009016646
Portions of this work appeared earlier, in somewhat different form, as
“ ‘I Owe Virginia Little, My County Much’: Robert E. Lee, the United States
Regular Army, and Unconditional Unionism,” in Crucible of the Civil War: Virginia
from Secession to Commemoration, ed. Gary W. Gallagher, Edward L. Ayers, and
Andrew W. Torget (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2006), 35–57.
13 12 11 10 09 5 4 3 2 1
In memoriam
isaac jacob meyers
(1979– 2008)
  
In honor of
veterans of oif/oef
This page intentionally left blank
contents
  
Acknowledgments
xi
introduction
1
chapter one
Colonials, Continentals, and Federals
The Origins of American Military Professionalism
11
chapter two
Tactical Expertise and the U.S. Army
before the War with Mexico
34
chapter three
The Old Army’s Vindication
The Mexican War
54
chapter four
Tactical Continuity in the
Decade before the Civil War
75
chapter five
The Beginning of the End
The Old Army on the Precipice
91
chapter six
War in Earnest
The First Battles of 1861
112
chapter seven
The Peninsula
Lee and McClellan Leave Their Legacies
134
chapter eight
Morale, Cohesion, and Competence from
Second Bull Run to Missionary Ridge
158
chapter nine
Decisions East and West
The End of the Civil War
177
epilogue
196
Notes
199
Bibliography
245
Index
267
tables, figures, and maps
  
Tables
1. Movement Rates in Infantry Tactics 44
2. West Pointers’ Affiliation or Behavior in the Secession Winter 92
Figures
1. Wellington’s Headquarters Staff 29
2. Napoleon’s Headquarters Staff 30
3. U.S. Army General Staff (1818) 31
Maps
1. The Mexican War: Zachary Taylor’s Campaign 58
2. The Mexican War: Winfield Scott’s Campaign, Overview 65
3. The Mexican War: Winfield Scott’s Campaign, Mexico City 68
4. Campaigns of the Civil War 114