PDF Champion Hill: Decisive Battle for Vicksburg by Timothy B. Smith in History

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Finally; an excellent book about this most important battle in the Vicksburg Campaign.By Steven SmithThe author takes the battle of Champion's Hill and breaks it down to events that detail what happened during almost each hour of each day of this campaign. He begins very descriptively with troop positions and movements leading up to the battle; the offensive and defensive positions of troops down to the regiment levels during the battle and the withdrawal of troops after the confrontation. If you want an excellent breakdown of this critical events leading up to the siege of Vicksburg; this is a must have book for your library. I read this book prior to going to the battlefield area this summer and it proved priceless in seeing and experiencing the area and the terrain even though the actual battlefield has not yet been preserved. I cannot speak too highly about this book.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. OutstandingBy KJAGThoroughly researched; even-handed; in-depth account of the vicious battle that effectively sealed the fate of Vicksburg. The author; with convincing support material; lays bare the mistakes; incompetence; finger-pointing; and false claims of individual leaders at all levels; as well as the skill and heroics of those where it is due.Description of the action is easy to follow across the battlefield as it progresses throughout the day. Excellent maps of the action are placed appropriately; as well as the accounts of participants from letters; journals; memoirs; official reports; etc. Many sensory details of the action are provided by participants; down to the individual soldiers; and the carnage of the battlefield and the dead and wounded afterward. The author provides ample information on key leaders down to the regimental level; including their backgrounds; activities over the course of the battle; and a follow-up on their military careers and lives afterward.The author also provides adequate detail; including maps; on the Union's failed efforts to take Vicksburg prior to this campaign; as well as the battles for Port Gibson; Jackson; and Big Black River during the campaign; and a summary on the siege and fall of Vicksburg.The organization and writing style of this book is outstanding; and it is one of the best battle/campaign CW books I've read. I hope to to read other books by T.B. Smith in the future.6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Grant wins Slugfest to become Heavyweight Champ of Champion HillBy C. M MillsThe battle of Champion Hill was fought on the sweltering hot day of May 16; 1863. It was the most decisive battle in the nine month struggle by Union forces under the command of US Grant towin control of the mighty Mississippi; seize Vicksburg and defeat the army of Northern born Confederate Commander JohnPemberto. This longest and in many ways most interesting to study of Civil War campaigns pitted a genius in Grant against the inept paper pushing Pemberton. The Confederates had emerged from "The Gibralter of The West"(as Vicksburg was called) to link up with Joe Johnston's forcemoving westward from Jackson (which had already been seized bythe Yankees). The long day of battle led to overwhelming Federal victory as the blue wave beat ever closer to the Vicksburg rampart. WhenGrant won at Champion Hill he moved forward defeating Confederate forces at the Big Black River. After two assaults on Vicksburg (May 19 22) the Federals at last conquered the city after a 47 day seige. As Abraham Lincoln succincty stated "The Father of the Waters again flows unvexed to the sea." The victories at Gettysburg in the East and Vicksburg in the West turned the tide for the Union as the reality of Confederate defeat became only a matter of time. Smith has studied this battle since his Miss. childhood; hehas walked the Champion Hill battlefield with such giants of Civil War historical scholarship as Mr Civil War Ed Bearss. andVicksburg National Park Chief Historian Terry Winschel. Smith has a Ph.d in History but also knows how to write like a novelist telling an excting tale of courage and brave men fighting and dying for a cause in which they believed. A microhistory approach coupled with great situational maps of the actions by T. Savas make the battle come alive for the 21st century reader. Be warned that this is strictly a battle history with little commentary on the political and social scene surrounded the battlefield action (as Smith himself notes in his preface); For those of us who are hardcore Civil War buffs I relished the information gained on a battle for which I knew nothing! It was very helpful to have thumbnail biographies of the chief participants in the battle so the armchair warrior did nothave to hasten to the shelf for Generals in Blue and Generals in Grey by the redoubtable Ezra Warner! This book would be an outstanding resource if one was fortunate enough to trod the hallowed ground of Champion Hill in person! The conflict fought on Sid Champion's Mississippi hill was a key in advancing the career of General US Grant (victor of Henry Donelson and Shiloh) leading to his growing popularity with the northern public; his command at Chattanooga; his defeat of Lee in the overland campaign culminating in victory at Appommatox and a trip to a two term Presidency of the US. Excellent first person resources were used and many quotes are used througout the books as are photographs of the soldiers who led and those who bled. This book is for those who enjoy blow by blow battle accounts.With that caveat to the reader I strongly recommend it. Thisbook will become a classic as the years roll by and the quiet atChampion Hill speaks in quiet mourning of those who lie there in the bivouac of the dead. Great job Tim Smith!