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Dark and Bloody Ground: The Battle of Mansfield and the Forgotten Civil War in Louisiana
The story of the Union army's ill-fated Red River Campaign and its disastrous defeat at Mansfield, Dark and Bloody Ground chronicles one of the strangest and most ignoble defeats suffered by the Union forces.
- GenresCivil War
288 pages, Hardcover
First published November 25, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 6, 2026
So glad I got this book from the library and did not pay for it … First of all, this is not a scholarly work in any sense, it is a pop history type overview book that barely scratches the surface of its intended (??) topic.
Second, its title is very misleading, this book does not focus at all on the Battle of Mansfield (only glossing over it in one chapter over 200 pages in). Instead this is basically a VERY pro-southern tale that follows Dick Taylor and a handful of other Louisianan confederate figures through the entire Civil War period. And it does so through short vignettes and snippets of events and conversations that read like they were basically made up, or at the very least were anecdotes/tall tales that were handed down through generations.
And who knows what the truth is, since the book provides no footnotes at all, and only lists a very brief bibliography at the very end. Also, zero maps are provided, no orders of battle, no sense of tactics or strategy, really completely devoid of any sort of details of extensive research that the overlooked battle and various campaigns could really benefit from.
If you want a second-rate Shelby Foote knock-off that focuses on questionable narratives that could probably be easily debunked with some basic research, well … just make sure you get it from the library I guess.
Second, its title is very misleading, this book does not focus at all on the Battle of Mansfield (only glossing over it in one chapter over 200 pages in). Instead this is basically a VERY pro-southern tale that follows Dick Taylor and a handful of other Louisianan confederate figures through the entire Civil War period. And it does so through short vignettes and snippets of events and conversations that read like they were basically made up, or at the very least were anecdotes/tall tales that were handed down through generations.
And who knows what the truth is, since the book provides no footnotes at all, and only lists a very brief bibliography at the very end. Also, zero maps are provided, no orders of battle, no sense of tactics or strategy, really completely devoid of any sort of details of extensive research that the overlooked battle and various campaigns could really benefit from.
If you want a second-rate Shelby Foote knock-off that focuses on questionable narratives that could probably be easily debunked with some basic research, well … just make sure you get it from the library I guess.
May 10, 2026
Definitely more about the War in Louisiana than Mansfield or the Red River Campaign.
Suffers from a complete lack of maps, footnotes and citations and some questionable details.
Overall a good overview of the war in the state and region but wanders a bit.
Author has been described as a less polished Shelby Foote and that’s a pretty accurate description.
Suffers from a complete lack of maps, footnotes and citations and some questionable details.
Overall a good overview of the war in the state and region but wanders a bit.
Author has been described as a less polished Shelby Foote and that’s a pretty accurate description.
January 19, 2017
A truly amazing read!
February 15, 2013
Fascinating read, especially since my GGG Grandfather is mentioned several times in the book itself
July 25, 2015
Love the idea and the prose is lovely, but the lack of sources and footnotes, combined with his sweeping statements (his Confederate sympathies are evident) make this book suspect.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews