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This Astounding Close: The Road to Bennett Place
Even after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, the Civil War continued to be fought, and surrenders negotiated, on different fronts. The most notable of these occurred at Bennett Place, near Durham, North Carolina, when Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston surrendered the Army of Tennessee to Union General William T. Sherman. In this first full-length examination of the end of the war in North Carolina, Mark Bradley traces the campaign leading up to Bennett Place.
Alternating between Union and Confederate points of view and drawing on his readings of primary sources, including numerous eyewitness accounts and the final muster rolls of the Army of Tennessee, Bradley depicts the action as it was experienced by the troops and the civilians in their path. He offers new information about the morale of the Army of Tennessee during its final confrontation with Sherman's much larger Union army. And he advances a fresh interpretation of Sherman's and Johnston's roles in the final negotiations for the surrender.
Even after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, the Civil War continued to be fought, and surrenders negotiated, on different fronts. The most notable of these occurred at Bennett Place, near Durham, North Carolina, when Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston surrendered the Army of Tennessee to Union General William T. Sherman. In this first full-length examination of the end of the war in North Carolina, Mark L. Bradley depicts the action as it was experienced by the troops and the civilians in their path.
Alternating between Union and Confederate points of view and drawing on his readings of primary sources, including numerous eyewitness accounts and the final muster rolls of the Army of Tennessee, Bradley depicts the action as it was experienced by the troops and the civilians in their path. He offers new information about the morale of the Army of Tennessee during its final confrontation with Sherman's much larger Union army. And he advances a fresh interpretation of Sherman's and Johnston's roles in the final negotiations for the surrender.
Even after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, the Civil War continued to be fought, and surrenders negotiated, on different fronts. The most notable of these occurred at Bennett Place, near Durham, North Carolina, when Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston surrendered the Army of Tennessee to Union General William T. Sherman. In this first full-length examination of the end of the war in North Carolina, Mark L. Bradley depicts the action as it was experienced by the troops and the civilians in their path.
432 pages, Hardcover
First published September 18, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 5, 2025
Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox is often portrayed as the end of the Civil War, with anything else that happened anywhere else treated as a mere postscript. Bradley gives book-length treatment to one of these postscripts, the ensuing surrender of Confederate Gen. Joseph Johnston to Union Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman in North Carolina. It may not have been the first, the last, or the most momentous surrender, but it was “the largest of the war,” Bradley points out, and is therefore worthy of closer examination.
As a sequel of sorts to Bradley’s The Battle Of Bentonville: Last Stand In The Carolinas, which recounts Sherman and Johnson’s final fight, this book begins without much of a buildup, immediately launching into a summary of events from the earlier book and continuing with what happened after the battle. We don’t get to the heart of the story until about a third of the way in, when Lee’s surrender occurs, word spreads to Sherman and Johnston’s troops, and the two have to decide what to do next.
The book is strongest when it goes beyond a simple chronology of events and considers how each general made decisions and why, with each acting in what they believed was the best interests of their side even when defying their superiors. Confederate President Jefferson Davis wanted to fight on, but Johnston knew the cause was lost and his best move was to try to negotiate the most advantageous surrender terms. U.S. President Abraham Lincoln urged reconciliation over retribution, but Sherman miscalculated in trying to carry out what he believed to be Lincoln’s wishes.
Word of Lincoln's assassination loomed over Sherman and Johnston's first meeting at Bennett Place in Durham, North Carolina. And it changed their calculations. Sherman broke the news gently to his troops for fear they might carry out reprisals against locals - and locals scrambled to condemn the assassination for fear of being on the receiving end of those reprisals. Roles almost reversed in that Johnston seemed to be surrendering from a position of strength, dictating terms to Sherman, who “hoped to obviate the need for extensive mopping-up operations” by recognizing the “necessity of an immediate and all-embracing surrender,” for which he was “prepared to grant generous terms to secure.”
When Washington rejected Sherman's terms and ordered him to instead pattern the surrender after the terms offered to Lee at Appomattox, Johnston was in no position to object. Word of the surrender had already made its way through the Confederate ranks, denting morale and prompting desertions, so reconstituting his forces to resume the fight was not a realistic option.
Sherman went on to lead a triumphant military review in Washington, while Johnston slunk off in defeat, his surrender causing his own president to accuse him of treason. But who really was the victor?
Bradley tracks the movements of each general and their troops, and there’s a fascinating account of the North Carolina governor’s efforts to surrender his state and save his own hide. But once again, the book is strongest when it analyzes the generals’ actions and considers who really “won” in the end. Sherman was the victor, but he’s portrayed as bitter in victory, seeking revenge against those who tarnished his reputation by rejecting his initial peace agreement. And Bradley chides him for being too cautious in not finishing off Johnston at Bentonville, which could have prompted him to be less magnanimous in negotiating peace, which would have taken place while Lincoln was still alive, and which could have precipitated Lee’s surrender instead of following it.
As for Johnston, the once-discredited and dismissed general is commended in the book for pulling together a legitimate fighting force once reinstated and holding his own against Sherman, for being a realist who recognized when defeat was inevitable, and for showing persistence at the bargaining table to extract the most favorable surrender terms for his forces.
Fully analyzing Sherman’s actions proves difficult, though. Bradley seems to sympathize with both critics and defenders, and never fully comes down on one side or the other. He gives Sherman the benefit of the doubt, in acknowledging that he “believed that he was acting in the spirit of Lincoln's conciliatory attitude toward the South.” But he also dings him for haughtily believing that “he was better qualified than most Washington politicians to decide upon what terms the South should reenter the Union.” Sherman may have been acting in a spirit of reconciliation rather than retaliation, but he should have known that political realities had changed and leniency was not going to fly in the aftermath of Lincoln’s assassination. And even had Lincoln been alive for Johnston’s surrender, the president “would never have approved an agreement that perpetuated slavery, recognized Rebel state governments while calling several Union state governments into question, and raised the possibility for paying the Confederate war debt,” Bradley concludes. Yet, at the same time, Lincoln “probably would have avoided publicly humiliating Sherman while instructing him to demand the Appomattox Court House terms.”
So even though it seems there were clear winners and losers in the war, in Bradley’s telling there were not necessarily clear winners and losers in the surrender at Bennett Place. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox makes for a nice, clean end to the Civil War story, but this book helps to show that the conclusion, in reality, was far more complicated and deserves to be told in full.
As a sequel of sorts to Bradley’s The Battle Of Bentonville: Last Stand In The Carolinas, which recounts Sherman and Johnson’s final fight, this book begins without much of a buildup, immediately launching into a summary of events from the earlier book and continuing with what happened after the battle. We don’t get to the heart of the story until about a third of the way in, when Lee’s surrender occurs, word spreads to Sherman and Johnston’s troops, and the two have to decide what to do next.
The book is strongest when it goes beyond a simple chronology of events and considers how each general made decisions and why, with each acting in what they believed was the best interests of their side even when defying their superiors. Confederate President Jefferson Davis wanted to fight on, but Johnston knew the cause was lost and his best move was to try to negotiate the most advantageous surrender terms. U.S. President Abraham Lincoln urged reconciliation over retribution, but Sherman miscalculated in trying to carry out what he believed to be Lincoln’s wishes.
Word of Lincoln's assassination loomed over Sherman and Johnston's first meeting at Bennett Place in Durham, North Carolina. And it changed their calculations. Sherman broke the news gently to his troops for fear they might carry out reprisals against locals - and locals scrambled to condemn the assassination for fear of being on the receiving end of those reprisals. Roles almost reversed in that Johnston seemed to be surrendering from a position of strength, dictating terms to Sherman, who “hoped to obviate the need for extensive mopping-up operations” by recognizing the “necessity of an immediate and all-embracing surrender,” for which he was “prepared to grant generous terms to secure.”
When Washington rejected Sherman's terms and ordered him to instead pattern the surrender after the terms offered to Lee at Appomattox, Johnston was in no position to object. Word of the surrender had already made its way through the Confederate ranks, denting morale and prompting desertions, so reconstituting his forces to resume the fight was not a realistic option.
Sherman went on to lead a triumphant military review in Washington, while Johnston slunk off in defeat, his surrender causing his own president to accuse him of treason. But who really was the victor?
Bradley tracks the movements of each general and their troops, and there’s a fascinating account of the North Carolina governor’s efforts to surrender his state and save his own hide. But once again, the book is strongest when it analyzes the generals’ actions and considers who really “won” in the end. Sherman was the victor, but he’s portrayed as bitter in victory, seeking revenge against those who tarnished his reputation by rejecting his initial peace agreement. And Bradley chides him for being too cautious in not finishing off Johnston at Bentonville, which could have prompted him to be less magnanimous in negotiating peace, which would have taken place while Lincoln was still alive, and which could have precipitated Lee’s surrender instead of following it.
As for Johnston, the once-discredited and dismissed general is commended in the book for pulling together a legitimate fighting force once reinstated and holding his own against Sherman, for being a realist who recognized when defeat was inevitable, and for showing persistence at the bargaining table to extract the most favorable surrender terms for his forces.
Fully analyzing Sherman’s actions proves difficult, though. Bradley seems to sympathize with both critics and defenders, and never fully comes down on one side or the other. He gives Sherman the benefit of the doubt, in acknowledging that he “believed that he was acting in the spirit of Lincoln's conciliatory attitude toward the South.” But he also dings him for haughtily believing that “he was better qualified than most Washington politicians to decide upon what terms the South should reenter the Union.” Sherman may have been acting in a spirit of reconciliation rather than retaliation, but he should have known that political realities had changed and leniency was not going to fly in the aftermath of Lincoln’s assassination. And even had Lincoln been alive for Johnston’s surrender, the president “would never have approved an agreement that perpetuated slavery, recognized Rebel state governments while calling several Union state governments into question, and raised the possibility for paying the Confederate war debt,” Bradley concludes. Yet, at the same time, Lincoln “probably would have avoided publicly humiliating Sherman while instructing him to demand the Appomattox Court House terms.”
So even though it seems there were clear winners and losers in the war, in Bradley’s telling there were not necessarily clear winners and losers in the surrender at Bennett Place. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox makes for a nice, clean end to the Civil War story, but this book helps to show that the conclusion, in reality, was far more complicated and deserves to be told in full.
November 17, 2025
A well balanced and well chronicled account of the final days of the war, this book really delivers. The author uses firsthand accounts to spice up the narrative. When most people think of the end of the Civil War, they focus on Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House. This book shows another perspective; that the war didn't truly end until Johnston's army surrendered to Sherman at Bennett Place. An excellent read.
February 13, 2015
I enjoyed this book, but my view is influenced by knowing and visiting people who live close to Bennett Place, providing me with an incentive to learn something about the area. Frankly, this book contains more than most of us really need to know about the weeks leading up to the largest surrender of troops of the Civil War, but layered on top of too much detail are fascinating facts about Sherman and Johnston and their respective armies, and in particular Sherman and his superiors, who ordered him to keep fighting after he went beyond his authority in reaching an agreement with Johnston. All in all, lots of good stuff in here, along with lots of other stuff.
October 2, 2018
Excellent book of the last weeks of the Civil War in North Carolina. Most general works of the war tend to pass over this period quickly, treating the surrender at Appomattox as the "real end" of the war. Mr. Bradley argues that Johnston was negotiating from a position of strength, that he still had the option of guerrilla warfare. It would be interesting to speculate how Reconstruction would have progressed if Sherman's original terms had held.
As a minor criticism, the re-organization of the Army of Tennessee was passed over quickly, described in a single paragraph. There was no explanation of why certain generals were retained but not others.
As a minor criticism, the re-organization of the Army of Tennessee was passed over quickly, described in a single paragraph. There was no explanation of why certain generals were retained but not others.
December 30, 2019
The "sequel" to Last Stand in the Carolinas: The Battle of Bentonville, Mark Bradley carries the Civil War in North Carolina to its final end - the surrender of Johnston's Army. As the armies scarcely skirmished, this is not an account of battles and action, but rather one of negotiations between Confederate army leaders and politicians with Union General Sherman. Of course, the Union held the upper hand in these negotiations but, in probably the most interesting section of the book, Sherman granted terms (post Lincoln's assassination) far more favorable than were acceptable to the Federal political leadership, notably Edwin Stanton. This led to Stanton's rebuke of Sherman, and the tearing up of the initial terms. How this all came to pass was pretty interesting to read and the outcome led to lifelong grudges.
Jefferson Davis makes an appearance that, despite fleeing Richmond, is insistent the war can still be won in the Trans-Mississippi and that Johnston should fight on. But, Johnston's Army was disintegrating through desertions, especially after his troops learned of Lee's surrender at Appomattox. All throughout the war, Confederate troop morale was good, even in spite of losses yet in April 1865, it collapsed almost entirely. This section too was interesting to me.
The book fills a niche in Civil War history and I would imagine be particularly interesting to North Carolina residents in an around the Raleigh-Durham area if for nothing than a depiction of a bygone era of small towns and farm country instead of the metropolis of today.
Jefferson Davis makes an appearance that, despite fleeing Richmond, is insistent the war can still be won in the Trans-Mississippi and that Johnston should fight on. But, Johnston's Army was disintegrating through desertions, especially after his troops learned of Lee's surrender at Appomattox. All throughout the war, Confederate troop morale was good, even in spite of losses yet in April 1865, it collapsed almost entirely. This section too was interesting to me.
The book fills a niche in Civil War history and I would imagine be particularly interesting to North Carolina residents in an around the Raleigh-Durham area if for nothing than a depiction of a bygone era of small towns and farm country instead of the metropolis of today.
March 9, 2020
An exhaustive account of the end of the civil war in North Carolina. Careful attention to detail explains how the earlier surrender of Lee at Appomattox differed from and effected Johnston’s final negotiations with Sherman. The North Carolina experience was much more fragmented and disjointed with no formal surrender of the Confederate troops. The need for approval of a peace settlement by each sides’ senior political leaders made things very complex and disjointed. Personal accounts of officers and soldiers from both sides add tremendous authenticity and realism to the account.
August 11, 2020
Very well written book on the WBTS coming up from SC into central NC and how it all ended. Learned a few things not mentioned in other texts on the same events. Worth the read if you want to know about things that happened right here in our back yards for a rather historic time period.
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