Fierce
Patriot: The Tangled Lives of William Tecumseh Sherman
by Robert L. O'Connell (Random House, 2014, 432 pages, $28.00/$11.84)
distinguishes itself for its unusual structure, great clarity,
insight into a seminal figure in the creation of our country, and
wonderful examination of the Civil War which, by focusing on the
efforts of one of it's crucial leaders, brings the larger picture of
the war into clearer light. This is one of the best biographies I've
ever read, well deserving of the attention of anyone interested in
the Civil War or the the development of modern America. I recommend
it most highly! William Tecumseh Sherman led a complex, convoluted
life. By breaking his life into three often overlapping components to
deal with each separately, O'Connell does the reader a huge favor,
providing clarity of vision to this intriguing, and often
contradictory, character. Perhaps the most successful general of the
Civil War, if not in all American history, Sherman participated in
many crucial events of the nineteenth century: Indian removal and
decimation in Florida and then the West, fighting to maintain the
Union by waging total war in his march through Georgia and then north
to Virginia, building the transcontinental railroad, and creating an
unforgettable historical character. However his comments and focus
were kept on larger strategic issues rather than on slavery, human
treatment of Native Americans, or the nobility of the common soldier.
O'Connell urges readers to judge Sherman by his behavior towards
others rather than his remarks about them, and consistently points
out the contrasts.
Sherman
O'Connell
chooses to illuminate Sherman's character and achievement through
adopting an unusual structure. Conventional biography often begins
with a rather long (and often mind numbing) discussion of the central
character's genealogy, childhood, upbringing, and development before
getting to the elements that created the character interesting to
history or seminal events. O'Connell divides his story into three
major sections: The Military Strategist, The General and his Army,
and The Man and His Families. While in practice these categories may
overlap and are not exclusive, they give him a chance to keep focused
on the elements he wants to emphasize. By leaving much of the
genealogy and family history to the third section, he makes that
section more interesting and more relevant to the larger story. Such
a turnaround may slightly challenge the reader, but may stand as a
larger barrier to an academic researcher seeking a new interpretation
of an important historical figure. O'Connell pulls this all off by
providing lucid writing, keeping focused on relevant detail in each
section, and adding clarity and focus to Sherman's life as well as
the Civil War itself. This is a highly admiring biography which never
hides from the warts on Sherman's character, giving it still greater
credibility.
Sherman Gazes Over Atlanta
As a
strategist, Sherman seems to have been capable of almost always
keeping his eye on the larger objectives, not letting smaller
distractions (like Indian welfare, the abolition of slavery) get in
his way. However, when his behavior is examined, he treated others
with dignity and respect while always remaining flexible enough to
take advantage of what they had to offer. His treatment of African
Americans is perhaps the best illustration of this. Sherman was slow
to get behind abolition as a goal. However, when he realized during
his campaigns in the West (Tennessee, Mississippi) and during his
march to the sea that freed slaves were both a good source of labor
and information, he was quick to exploit these sources. While, as a
West Point professional, he was slow to accept the strength and
ability of citizen soldiers, he soon adapted to their valor and
adaptability in bringing typical American ingenuity to the new
demands of a changing technology of warfare. In his famed march
through Georgia and then northward across South Carolina and North
Carolina, he is often wrongly accused of wantonly destroying property
and lives. Rather, once successful, he always treated vanquished
enemies with dignity and respect, often providing food and other
kinds of support. He was a master of military psychology who
understood that to defeat the Confederacy and bring it back to the
Union, he needed to break its spirit as well as defeat it militarily.
Similarly, his knowledge of terrain and his vision of a unified
continent, sacrificed Indians and buffalo to the vast expansion of
the territorial United States, leading it to become a continental
power.
Augustus Saint Gauden's Sherman Monument
Central Park in New York City
Sherman
was well-liked by his peers and beloved of his men. Perhaps the
source of this admiration grew from the fact that he was wary of
wasting lives, not willing to throw masses of human capital at
loosing positions, unlike Grant, who used his army like a battering
ram. With the possible exception of the Kennesaw Line in Georgia, his
troop movements conserved lives while gaining territory and defeating
the enemy. He recognized innovation coming from below, even
encouraged it, earning him the love of his troops and the sobriquet
of “Uncle Billy.” Later, as General of the Army, he continued to
burnish his own reputation by maintaining the pride and patriotism of
the veterans of the Union Army well into the 1880's. While often
mentioned as a presidential candidate, Sherman, who preferred to lead
from a secondary position, never considered a political career or
sought the top job.
The
third section of this highly readable biography focuses on the
complexities of an extraordinairily complex family life. Brought into
the home of the powerful Ewing family as a foster child while still
young, Sherman was both influenced and challenged by Thomas Ewing.
Matters became increasingly complicated when he fell in love with and
later married his foster sister, Ellen. There ensued many years of
competition for “custody” of the daughter/wife as Ewing sought to
control Sherman's career through her. As with many 19th
century people, Sherman's family was often devastated by the death of
children to disease. A complicating factor was the competition that
developed between the largely non-religious general and his ardently
Catholic wife. Through many long and difficult separations, the
couple remained together, even though Sherman had friendships (and
perhaps more) with a number of women through the years.
Robert L. O'Connell
Robert L. O’Connell has worked as a
senior analyst at the National Ground Intelligence Center, as a
contributing editor to MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military
History, and most recently as a visiting professor at the Naval
Postgraduate School. He is the author of Of Arms and Men: A History
of War, Weapons, and Aggression; Sacred Vessels: The Cult of the
Battleship and the Rise of the U.S. Navy; Ride of the Second
Horseman: The Birth and Death of War; Soul of the Sword: An
Illustrated History of Weaponry and Warfare from Prehistory to the
Present; and the novel Fast Eddie.
Fierce
Patriot: The Tangled Lives of William Tecumseh Sherman
by Robert L. O'Connell (Random House, 2014, 432 pages, $28.00/$11.84)
is a highly readable and tightly written biography of one of the most
important figures in American history. O'Connell makes Sherman
eminently likable without ever seeking to hide or disguise his
faults. The structure of the biography makes it easier to understand
the vastly complicated life Sherman led and seems, upon
consideration, to be a logical way to build the story of an important
figure. I read the book in an electronic galley provided by the
publisher through Edelweiss on my Kindle.
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