Research Catalog

Title

Little Phil : a reassessment of the Civil War leadership of Gen. Philip H. Sheridan / Eric J. Wittenberg ; foreword by Jeffry D. Wert.

Author

Wittenberg, Eric J., 1961-

Publication

Washington, D.C. : Brassey's, ©2002.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xxi, 250 pages : illustrations, maps; 24 cm

Summary

"In Little Phil, historian Eric J. Wittenberg reassesses the war record of a man long considered one of the Union Army's greatest leaders." "Throughout his life, Phil Sheridan was by all accounts a lucky man. He was fortunate to receive merely a suspension, rather than an expulsion, when as a West Point cadet he attacked a superior officer with a bayonet. During the Civil War, he was ultimately rewarded for numerous acts of insubordination against his superiors, while he punished his own officers for similar offenses. In his first effort as a cavalry commander with the Army of the Potomac in the spring of 1864, he gave a performance that has long been overrated. Later that year in the Shenandoah Valley, where Sheridan gained fame by making his legendary ride to Cedar Creek, he benefited greatly from the tactical ability of his subordinates and from a huge manpower advantage against the beleaguered Confederate troops of Lt. Gen. Jubal Early. Further, in his after-action combat reports and postwar writings, Sheridan often manipulated facts to depict himself in the best possible light. Thus, he ensured himself an exalted place in his own version of history." "Wittenberg has written a thoroughly researched and cogently argued study that explodes the mythical image of Philip Sheridan and exposes the human frailties that bedevil the art and science of military leadership."--Jacket.

Subject

• Sheridan, Philip Henry, 1831-1888 > Military leadership
• Sheridan, Philip Henry, 1831-1888
• Sheridan, Philip H
• United States. Army > Biography
• United States. Army
• 1861-1865
• Command of troops > Case studies
• Generals > United States > Biography
• Command of troops
• Generals
• Military campaigns
• Sezessionskrieg 1861-1865
• Feldzug
• United States > History > Campaigns. > Civil War, 1861-1865
• United States

Genre/Form

• collective biographies.
• Biographies.
• Case studies.
• History.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 233-241) and index.

Contents

Philip Henry Sheridan : a sketch of his life and career in the Civil War -- Sheridan as cavalry corps commander : mediocrity reigns -- Little Phil in the Shenandoah Valley : a victorious campaign bereft of decision -- Sheridan's disobedience to orders -- Little Phil's cavalier destruction of lives and careers -- Sheridan's mendacity -- Little Phil's finest moment : the pursuit of Robert E. Lee, spring 1865 -- Conclusion : Philip Henry Sheridan reassessed.

ISBN

• 1574883852
• 9781574883855

LCCN

2002002657

OCLC

• ocm49320302
• 49320302
• SCSB-1276675

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library