This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War

Great collection of 16 essays by a leading Civil War historian addressing the ruthless rewriting of history and brainwashing of the Lost Cause myth, attempts to negotiate an end of the Civil War, the myths about Jesse James, habeas corpus and other legal issues facing Lincoln, the team of Grant and Sherman, opening the Mississippi, and more. This could be very dry analysis but the facts and observations make it fascinating as well as informative reading. The essay about the Lost Cause Myth spells out how Southerners recast the war to preserve slavery into a war for everything but preserving slavery, despite the written record. Even today there is a strong resistance to admitting the truth of the matter. Overall, a very thoughtful book show more and well worth reading. show less

With 'This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War' James McPherson demonstrates once again why he is America's foremost Civil War historian. McPherson serves up sixteen essays for your delectation (most of which have been previously published elsewhere).

McPherson arranges his essays around several themes: What caused the war? What were the goals of each side? What strategies did the leaders pursue? And how is the war remembered?

McPherson's genius lies in his ability to synthesize perspectives of value to any reader, but especially the general reader with some knowledge of the war. Many of the essays analyze recent scholarship with McPherson's encyclopedic knowledge and understanding gained from years of study. This reader show more especially appreciates McPherson's even-handed dispassionate scholarship in a still field laced with emotional landmines despite the passage of nearly 150 years.

Despite all that has been written, McPherson remains remarkably able to bring fresh insight. One essay ('Long-Legged Yankee Lies: The Lost Cause Textbook Crusade') examines the extraordinary efforts by Confederate loyalists to distort the war's history and its teaching, especially in Southern schools. No doubt that gets the goat of the SCV (Sons of Confederate Veterans) and the UDC (United Daughters of the Confederacy), but they don't like him anyway.

An earlier essay ('And the War Came') establishes beyond cavil that the institution of slavery and the interests behind it were the cause of the war. In other essays McPherson examines the relative merits of Grant, Lee, and Sherman and whether the South was foreordained to lose the war due to the imbalance of resources.

I am not a Civil War historian, but I can't imagine that even the most learned professor would not benefit from McPherson's wonderfully distilled insights. I've read a number of McPherson's other works and rank this book at the top. McPherson's sparkling prose and easy clarity made reading 'This Mighty Scourge: Perspectives on the Civil War' a rare pleasure. show less

This Mighty Scourge is a collection of essays by the Civil War historian James McPherson. Probably most well known for his book Battle Cry of Freedom, this collection contains both previously published articles as well as some new essays.

The collection covers a vast array of topics, broken into sections by theme, which makes it easier to pick and chose what might interest the reader. These sections include military history, Lincoln, and the home front. I especially enjoyed the section on the Lost Cause. The essay which discusses efforts by southern war organizations to influence southern history textbooks after the war is especially fascinating.

McPherson is an easy historian to read, as many of his writings are written in a more show more narrative tone, though a few readers might find some of the essays a bit dry due to their more academic prose (as some were originally published in traditional journals). While not as easy to get into as a few of his other titles, This Mighty Scourge is a good introduction to some readers who might be interested in something beyond a basic history of the Civil War. show less

An enlightening collection of essays focusing on a variety of topics, this book covers some of the most important issues of the Civil War. Including topics from the "Lost Cause" interpretation of the war to the soldiers' interest in newspapers and, of course, Abraham Lincoln. The historic research is impeccable and the essays are always readable.

The best book to read about the Civil War if you want synthesis and answers to the big questions: why did the South enter the war? Was Sherman an asshole? Was Grant a drunk? How did it start that people claimed it wasn't about slavery? How close did the South get to the masterstroke of recognition by foreign governments?

It's all incredibly interesting stuff, and thoughtfully explained by one of the premier Civil War historians out there. It's the best.

The book is a series of essays on subjects about the American civil war. Several of them are about people, including Lincoln, John Brown, Jeff Davis and Jessie James. Those were the most interesting. Some of the political discussions were down right boring. The author did provide some new insights and I generally enjoyed the book.

Another enjoyable collection of essays from McPherson. I especially liked the portion dealing with the "lost cause", but it was all insightful. Suggests for anyone from the buff to the casual reader.