American Civil War (Smithsonian History of Warfare)

The Civil War was the bloodiest war in American history and a defining moment of the nineteenth century. In this concise and authoritative volume, Brian Holden Reid -- a leading expert on the subject -- reveals how industrialization and emerging methods of mass production gave birth to a new age of warfare, most dramatically represented in the unprecedented destruction and mass casualties of the American Civil War.

• Detailed, chronological history of the strategic and operational dimensions of both the Northern and Southern campaigns
• Strengths and weaknesses of the opposing sides
• Fresh perspectives on the war's global context
• Culmination of the war, peace negotiations, and their ramifications for the future