This Hardcover Book item from Penguin Press HC, The was reviewed on 11-Oct-2008.
Search ISBN:1594201919 offer from Abebooks or used books from Alibris. Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief Reference Book. Classifications : General United States Historical Biographies & Memoirs Subjects Books Presidents & Heads of State Leaders & Notable People Biographies & Memoirs Subjects Books Lincoln, Abraham ( L ) People, A-Z Biogr . Click the following link to view the cover of Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief. Related topics: General. United States. Historical. Subjects. Books. Subjects. Books. Lincoln, Abraham. ( L ). People, A-Z. requestid: 6f09f756-2fea-457d-bd42-d9c924157965
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1) Hardcover Book Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief by Penguin Press HC, The. Since Lincoln was exceptionally cool, I´ve always enjoyed reading his biographies. My judgment of this book (as a casual reader and not as a scholar) is that it´s not as engrossing as Goodwin´s "Team of Rivals." Mainly because Lincoln´s personality and those of his contemporaries aren´t as vividly or sharply drawn. Yet, this is a sympathetic and readable account of Lincoln´s agonizing frustration with his asinine and temperamental Generals and assorted Northern politicians--many of whom were basically unwilling to get off their duffs and fight a "hard war" by aggressively pursuing the secessionists. It really makes one wonder how the Union eventually managed to prevail.¤ 2) Hardcover Book Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief by Penguin Press HC, The. In his typical style---fluid, concise, insightful--- McPherson lays out how Lincoln discharged his duties as commander in chief. And, yet again, demonstrates Lincoln as a great leader. He never let his ego get in the way of doing the best thing for the country. Yes, it would have felt so good to Lincoln to sack McClennan, but to do so too soon would have harmed the war effort, not moved it forward. He was, in the best sense of the word, opportunistic. When Hooker submitted his resignation just three weeks before Gettysburg, Lincoln saw his window of opportunity and took it. And, when he was wrong, he said so. His note to Grant on the taking of Vickburg acknowledged that Lincoln´s plan was flawed, Grant´s was not, and thanked him for a job well done. Too many saw all this as weakness. It was not. Although in fairness to the generals who hesitated to fight, they may have sensed the carnage that a full blown war would bring. But it was only that, as Lincoln well understood, that would end the war and save the Republic.¤ 3) Hardcover Book Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief by Penguin Press HC, The. This book, well written, is authored by the eminent historian James McPherson. The focus is plainly stated at the outset (Page xiv): "In the vast literature on our sixteenth president, however, the amount of attention devoted to his role as commander in chief is disproportionately smaller than the actual percentage of time he spent on that task."
Lincoln´s own military experience was slender, his 1832 service in the militia. However, as McPherson puts it (Page 5), he was ". . .a more hands-on commander in chief than any other president." He assumed or presided over five war-making functions (in declining order of importance, as the author judges matters): policy, national strategy, military strategy, operations, and tactics.
McPherson observes that Lincoln read a great deal about military issues, to become more informed and to develop grounding in strategy and tactics. Indeed, as the book argues, he needed to, since so many of his military leaders were passive and did not "take charge." Thus, the thesis of this book makes sense, given the context of the times while Lincoln served as president.
The book covers the war, year by year, Lincoln´s frustrations with his military commanders, his desire to find someone who had "it," the will and ability to triumph, to share Lincoln´s vision of what had to be done. Of course, in the end, U. S. Grant and his subordinates, such as Sherman, Sheridan, and Thomas played that role, after the years of failure with the likes of Buell, Halleck, Rosecrans, Sigel, Banks, Butler, and so on.
For those not so familiar with the Civil War, this book will be most useful. For those steeped in the study of the Civil War, there is not a great deal that is new. However, what such readers know is put into useful context, as per the book´s focus. So, in the end, this is a handy volume, especially for those who are not deeply read in the relevant works.
¤ 4) Hardcover Book Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief by Penguin Press HC, The. A lucid, concise yet sweeping account of President Lincoln´s appointment and oversight of the Union´s battlefield leaders in the Civil War. This book provides a good introduction for someone seeking a broad overview of how President Lincoln handled and directed the various Union generals during the difficult progress made towards what proved to be final victory under U.S. Grant.
This is not new scholarship, but is the distilled thinking of a significant American historian in the twilight of his distinguished career. (If you have not read Dr. McPherson´s great "Battle Cry of Freedom", please consider doing so.)¤ 5) Hardcover Book Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief by Penguin Press HC, The. "Tried By War", James McPherson´s short book about the Commander-in-Chief aspect of Abraham Lincoln, centers on Lincoln´s relationships with his many Union generals. The first half is devoted to General George McClellan, whose cautiousness is a well-known fact, with the second half covering the notable rise of Ulysses S. Grant. It´s a solid endeavor by McPherson and the story is told well.
The incredible juggling act that Lincoln delivered almost every day of his presidency has given him a just legacy, and as McPherson points out, this part of our nation´s history was the most tenuous. That the Union ever held on to achieve victory is remarkable in itself. Lincoln faced a countless number of generals who were good or even great in one area but lacking in others. His political skills kept him at arm´s length from McClellan, one of the most overrated participants in the war. But what followed after McClellan´s departure were men such as Burnside, Butler, Meade, Rosecrans and McClernand, each of whom stymied Lincoln and no doubt prolonged the war. When Grant entered the fray (and had some unique failures to show for himself early on) with Sheridan and Sherman, the Confederacy was doomed.
Much of this we know already, but McPherson´s narrative is acute and dramatic. His addition of "peace" Democrat Clement Vallandigham is a bonus as this is not included in every study of the war. McPherson gives us a rich flavor as he quotes Horace Greeley´s opinions and how they changed and how supercharged the newspapers of the day could be to wildly swinging daily and weekly public temperature. "Tried By War" offers a slightly different look at how Lincoln ran the war and in turn, his presidency. It´s worth the read.¤ 6) Hardcover Book Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief by Penguin Press HC, The. James McPherson, a bestselling historian of the Civil War, illuminates how Lincoln worked with—and often against— his senior commanders to defeat the Confederacy and create the role of commander in chief as we know it.
Though Abraham Lincoln arrived at the White House with no previous military experience (apart from a couple of months spent soldiering in 1832), he quickly established himself as the greatest commander in chief in American history. James McPherson illuminates this often misunderstood and profoundly influential aspect of Lincoln’s legacy. In essence, Lincoln invented the idea of commander in chief, as neither the Constitution nor existing legislation specified how the president ought to declare war or dictate strategy. In fact, by assuming the powers we associate with the role of commander in chief, Lincoln often overstepped the narrow band of rights granted the president. Good thing too, because his strategic insight and will to fight changed the course of the war and saved the Union.
For most of the conflict, he constantly had to goad his reluctant generals toward battle, and he oversaw strategy and planning for major engagements with the enemy. Lincoln was a self-taught military strategist (as he was a self-taught lawyer), which makes his adroit conduct of the war seem almost miraculous. To be sure, the Union’s campaigns often went awry, sometimes horribly so, but McPherson makes clear how the missteps arose from the all-too-common moments when Lincoln could neither threaten nor cajole his commanders to follow his orders.
Because Lincoln’s war took place within our borders, the relationship between the front lines and the home front was especially close—and volatile. Here again, Lincoln faced enormous challenges in exemplary fashion. He was a masterly molder of public opinion, for instance, defining the war aims initially as preserving the Union and only later as ending slavery— when he sensed the public was at last ready to bear such a lofty burden.
As we approach the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth in 2009, this book will be that rarest gift—a genuinely novel, even timely, view of the most-written-about figure in our history. Tried by War offers a revelatory portrait of leadership during the greatest crisis our nation has ever endured. How Lincoln overcame feckless generals, fickle public opinion, and his own paralyzing fears is a story at once suspenseful and inspiring.¤ Page Updated: Robert N. Goolsby, 8-Nov-2008, 15942019199781594201912, 700-250-830-640-710-561-771-841-191-8 
Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief, Book, Image © Penguin Press HC, The
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