The Story
John Bell Hood, a native of Kentucky bred on romantic notions of the Old South and determined to model himself on Robert E. Lee, had a tragic military career, no less interesting for being calamitous. After conspicuous bravery in leading a Texas brigade, he rose in the ranks to become the youngest of the full generals of the Confederacy. The misfortune in store for Hood, a far better fighter than a strategist, illustrates the strain and risks of high command. One of the lasting images to come out of the Civil War is that of the onelegged General Hood strapped in his saddle, leading his men in a hopeless counteroffensive against Shermans march on Atlanta. In this prizewinning book Richard M. McMurry spares no details of Hoods ultimate complete and disastrous failure, but he is concerned to do justice to one of the most maligned and misunderstood figures in Civil War history.
Description
John Bell Hood, a native of Kentucky bred on romantic notions of the Old South and determined to model himself on Robert E. Lee, had a tragic military career, no less interesting for being calamitous. After conspicuous bravery in leading a Texas brigade, he rose in the ranks to become the youngest of the full generals of the Confederacy. The misfortune in store for Hood, a far better fighter than a strategist, illustrates the strain and risks of high command. One of the lasting images to come out of the Civil War is that of the onelegged General Hood strapped in his saddle, leading his men in a hopeless counteroffensive against Shermans march on Atlanta. In this prizewinning book Richard M. McMurry spares no details of Hoods ultimate complete and disastrous failure, but he is concerned to do justice to one of the most maligned and misunderstood figures in Civil War history.
