Following his successful campaign into Georgia, which results in the Union capture of Atlanta, Gen. William T. Sherman embarked on his next great mission in November 1864: to sweep across the breadbasket of Georgia, inflicting serious damage on the state’s ability to feed the Southern armies.
The March to the Sea is a masterful undertaking, as Sherman maneuvers his 60,000-man army so skillfully that the Southern commanders cannot unite any force sufficient to hold him away. Ultimately, Sherman captures Savannah, cementing his reputation as the North's most accomplished hero.
Southern forces are also helpless to prevent the destruction of the South Carolina capital of Columbia, and to interfere with Sherman’s drive toward Raleigh. Confederate Gen. Joseph Johnston's last hope lies in uniting his forces with Lee’s. But that vanishes when on April 9, 1865, Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox. On April 26, Johnston surrenders to Sherman, ending the war.
Best-selling author Jeff Shaara draws on meticulous research in a discussion of the key actions and decisions of the commanders on both sides of Sherman's legendary campaign, including Grant, Sherman, Johnston, Pierre Beauregard, William Hardee, and others. He examines this final stroke of the Civil War through the eyes of the key players whose actions would come to shape the future of the United States.
Shaara’s newest book, The Fateful Lightning (Random House), the final installment in his Civil War series, is available for signing.
