Upton and the Army

by Stephen E. Ambrose

Emory Upton (1839–1881) was “the epitome of a professional soldier,” according to Stephen E. Ambrose. Indeed, his entire adult life was devoted to the single-minded pursuit of a military career. Upton was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Fifth United States Artillery on May 6, 1861, the day of his graduation from the United States Military Academy, and by age twenty-five he had risen to the rank of major general. He distinguished himself in battles at Spotsylvania, Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg, and Charlottesville, in Sheridan’s Shenan­doah Valley campaign, and in Wilson’s celebrated cavalry raid through Alabama and Georgia at the end of the war. After the war, Upton traveled abroad as an observer for the army, an experience that resulted in his first book, The Armies of Asia and Europe. He also served as commandant of cadets at West Point and finally as commander of the Presidio in San Francisco. He was highly respected as a military tactician, and his Infantry Tactics became a widely used resource. Despite his successes, the ambitious Upton felt that his military talents were insufficiently recognized. His last book, The Military Policy of the United States, which advocated a number of sweeping changes in the organization of the American military system, went unpublished at his death by suicide in 1881. The book was finally published in 1904 at the urging of Elihu Root, Theodore Roosevelt’s secretary of war. First published in 1964, Ambrose’s thorough and well-researched study of Emory Upton’s career has proven to be an important addition to American military history as well as to the history of the Civil War.

Genres: History, Civil War, Biography, Military History, American History, Military Fiction

213 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Stephen Edward Ambrose was an American historian and biographer of U.S. Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and Richard M. Nixon. He received his Ph.D. in 1960 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In his final years he faced charges of plagiarism for his books, with subsequent concerns about his research emerging after his death.

Reviews

[Jonathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emory Upton was a prophet and a reformer of the US Army during its doldrums between the Civil and Spanish wars. After graduating from West Point in 1861, he attained a brilliant combat record and rose to the rank of Major General (brevet) during the Civil War. Most of the rest of his career, until his suicide in 1881, was spent studying foreign armies, creating new tactical manuals and theorizing about how the American Army should be organized as a national institution, without the pernicious influence of politics. Much of what he envisioned was eventually adopted - within the bounds of the possible of the American political system - after the organizational catastrophe that was the Spanish-American War, but while he lived, life in the post-bellum army was deeply frustrating for a young and brilliant officer caught in the "promotion hump" and serving in an army without a real enemy to fight or even prepare for. The late, great Professor Stephen Ambrose here has brought both the man, his ideas and his influence back to life in this fine biography. Required reading for students of the Civil War in America and the history of the US Army. First rate.

[Stephen Giannou · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written biography on a very unknown American (at least today). Upton sought to make difference when he even was seen as unneeded. I think this is a well written biography and a thoroughly enjoyed it (even as someone who isn’t really into military tactics). A phenomenal job it just drags in some places. The greatest tragedy is that Upton will never realize how influential he was.

[Akflier300 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emory Upton may be familiar to casual readers as the man who led a charge of Union troops in an innovative formation and broke the Confederate line at Spotsylvania Courthouse in May 1864. But he's overlooked for innovations he later researched and convinced the Army to adopt long after the Civil War concluded. Intellectually rigorous, personally driven and pious, Upton nonetheless carried an insatiable need for recognition. He suffered profound loss, and his story ends on a tragic note. Nonetheless, this unheralded figure in American military history receives his due under Stephen Ambrose's solid biography.

[Francis X DuFour · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite the tactical wizard

If there was ever an example of the fine line between genius and madness, Emory Upton should hold a high position near the top of the list. His heroic exploits and innovative tactics during the Civil War made him highly regarded in both the army and in civilian life. His weakness was his unfulfilled lust for promotion, and he was a harsh critic of the “political” officers who earned higher rank through their personal connections. He was convinced that the underperformance of these amateurs weakened the army and prolonged the war, probably true in some cases, but one that seriously conflicted with Upton’s moral beliefs. The rest of his career was focused on improving the organization and tactics of the infantry but his ideas slow adoption, again due to political battles, resulted in his developing a case of “impostor syndrome.” This development weakened him physically and emotionally, and he died before the efficacy of his ideas were proven correct.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read!!

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Way ahead of his time. A life cut short and a job left undone. Shame on the US Army

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big subject, little book. Better on second read.