Engineering Victory brings a fresh approach to the question of why the North prevailed in the Civil War. Historian Thomas F. Army; Jr.; identifies strength in engineering―not superior military strategy or industrial advantage―as the critical determining factor in the war’s outcome.Army finds that Union soldiers were able to apply scientific ingenuity and innovation to complex problems in a way that Confederate soldiers simply could not match. Skilled Free State engineers who were trained during the antebellum period benefited from basic educational reforms; the spread of informal educational practices; and a culture that encouraged learning and innovation. During the war; their rapid construction and repair of roads; railways; and bridges allowed Northern troops to pass quickly through the forbidding terrain of the South as retreating and maneuvering Confederates struggled to cut supply lines and stop the Yankees from pressing any advantage.By presenting detailed case studies from both theaters of the war; Army clearly demonstrates how the soldiers’ education; training; and talents spelled the difference between success and failure; victory and defeat. He also reveals massive logistical operations as critical in determining the war’s outcome.
#227464 in Books 2014-05-27 2014-05-27Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x 1.20 x 6.12l; 1.60 #File Name: 1416597344688 pages
Review
45 of 47 people found the following review helpful. Very comprehensive and informative biographyBy Steven J. BerkeI have always been interested in John Hay as a historical figure; spanning as he did much of the late 19th century; and awaited this biography with great anticipation. It did not disappoint. This book gave an exacting and readable account of Hay's activities; his personal life and his personality; as well as the times he lived in.The only flaw (the reason for four stars) is the misreporting of several historical facts--Kaiser Wilhelm II succeeded his father Friedrich III not his grandfather Wilhelm I; Charles Fairbanks; not Albert Beveridge; was TR's running mate in 1904. While these and a couple of other inaccuracies have nothing directly to do with the life of John Hay; they do cast a shadow of doubt on the overall accuracy of the book.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. One of our most under-publicized influential AmericansBy KauiI have one comment about this book: Read it. John Hay was a fascinating character - not as well known as some "first string" historical characters; but he should be. With a career spanning Brown University to President Lincoln to President Roosevelt; Mr. Hay is nothing short of impressive. A gentleman of great refinement and style; a scholar of great intellect and wit; and a socialite with vast connections and not a few catty comments; Mr. Hay is a person you should meet.34 of 37 people found the following review helpful. "The greatest prime minister that this republic has ever had."By The Ginger ManIt is virtually impossible to read history set in late nineteenth-century America without repeatedly coming across the almost Zelig-like person of John Hay. All the Great Prizes captures both the life of this fascinating American and the changing times in which he lived.Hay began his public career as private secretary to Abraham Lincoln and ended as Theodore Roosevelt's Secretary of State. He was at Lincoln's bedside as the president lay dying from an assassin's bullet and with William McKinley in the same sad circumstance. Hay grew up on the American frontier in the Midwest; but later lived in New York City; Washington and Cleveland and served American embassies in London; Paris and Vienna. He married into one of the richest families in the country and was a successful businessman. Not content with accomplishments in the public and private sector; Hay was also "editorialist; poet; lecturer; reporter and belletrist." Writer of a successful novel and co-author of a 10 volume history of Lincoln; Hay knew Henry James; Mark Twain; William Dean Howells and Bram Stoker among others.Even with this absurdly comprehensive list of accomplishments ("all the great prizes"); Hays comes across in Taliaferro's biography as a man more measured than passionate; almost drifting between extraordinary lives rather than ambitiously pursuing any one of them. Typical of one of the transitions in Hay's career is the end of Lincoln's term of office. Neither Hay nor John George Nicolay had a compelling desire to stay on for a second term; yet Hay "had no idea in which direction he might point himself." In fact; Hays most enduring obsession seems to be a 20 year pursuit of the wife of a Pennsylvania Senator. Even in that effort; Hay is more consistent in his longing than euphoric in success or pained in its absence.Unlike John Quincy Adams who served his country uninterrupted for five decades in a series of positions; Hays spends almost a quarter century after his time with Lincoln away from the siren call of public service. He returns to serve McKinley as Ambassador to the Court of St James and; later; as Secretary of State before acting in the latter capacity for Teddy Roosevelt. He was father of the Open Door policy in China and deserves credit according to Taliaferro for "saving China from spoilation at the hands of other powers." Hay also helped President Roosevelt in acquiring Panama from Columbia to allow development of the water passage through the Americas.This story of John Hay is also a portrait of the political life of America in the last half of the nineteenth century as the US grew from a country at war with itself to world power. This is a time in which a cosmopolitan from the American Midwest succeeds spectacularly in both the political and literary worlds while being both hypochondriac and philanderer. It is with a sense of wonder that the reader sees Hay play a pivotal role in world events as he almost publicly pursues his colleague's wife and takes two month vacations in Europe to recover this strength. This is a fascinating if simpler world.Hays' life as recounted by Taliaferro is extraordinary and admirable. There are few missteps and the road traveled is longer than many men walk in many lifetimes. Just as importantly; as Taliaferro suggests; is the manner in which Hay goes about his business; "with perfect taste; perfect good sense and perfect good humor." All the Great Prizes is pleasurable and instructive as both biography and history; even if it forces the reader to be a bit more critical in self-examination of his own achievements after seeing all that John Hays was able to fit into his own life.
