Lee Vs. McClellan: The First Campaign

by Clayton R. Newell

In 1861, when the Civil War began, few generals on either side had experience commanding troop formations larger than a single regiment. In the rugged mountains and dense forests of western Virginia Robert E. Lee and George B. McClellan received their first opportunities to command an army in combat - each against the other.
Lee vs. The First Campaign is a vivid, gripping account of this crucial - but often overlooked - campaign of the Civil War. Military historian Clayton R. Newell tells the story with a masterly grasp of strategy, a soldier's feel for the grueling realities of war, and a keen understanding of the military and political stakes.

Genres: Civil War, Nonfiction, American Civil War

325 pages, Hardcover

First published October 22, 1996

Reviews

[George Kasnic · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent book which attempts to cover tactical, operational, and strategic aspects of this obscure opening campaign of the Civil War. It does not succeed, giving some information of each but losing its coherence in the process. The tactical and operational stories suffer from a dearth of maps, a common failing in books of this type. Strategically it is shallow in analysis and evidence, offering little new and expending effort on the machinations in Richmond at the expense of details of the evolution of what would become the government of the state of West Virginia. I also get the feeling of a bit of “Lost Cause” admiration in the author. A middling read, which was disappointing.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are about a million books about the Battle of Gettysburg. Quite a few have been written about Shiloh, Vicksburg, Antietam, Bull Run, and the other well known battles and campaigns of the American Civil War. There are not very many books about the West Virginia campaign of 1861. The lack of any large battles (and accompanying casualties) and overshadowing by other events largely explain this lack of attention, but it was an important early campaign. Clayton Newell's book goes a long way toward giving the West Virginia Campaign the attention it deserves.

Newell starts off the narrative with a deft explanation of Virginia demographics, geography, and politics. The context provided by this information gives the reader a clear understanding of what made the Union occupation of western Virginia, and the eventual formation of the new state of West Virginia possible. The author also does a great job clearly explaining the military maneuvers that made up the campaign. He also highlights the various leaders on both sides and how they worked (or often didn't) together organizing and managing their respective armies.

In addition to a skillful, pleasant textual presentation of the narrative, this book is also visually pleasing. The beginning of each chapter has an attractive period etching, and there is a nice selection of portraits of the important figures in the story. Additionally, there are several attractive and informative maps to help readers follow various marches. There is also an epilogue with information on the careers of the prominent leaders on each side, following what happened to them after 1861.

If you're interested in Civil War history, Virginia, West Virginia, or the careers of Robert E. Lee or George B. McClellan, you need to check out this book! While detailed, the wealth of information is presented in a readable, concise style. Newell avoids getting too deep into the tactical details of the battles involved, and general readers as well as military history buffs should find this book accessible and informative.

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the battles of western Virginia were not as large or exciting as their counterparts near Richmond, this book makes some interesting points about the importance of these early battles, and the lessons learned by both Lee and McClellan. In fact, from this narrative it is possible that McClellan learned the wrong lessons from these early small battles, while Lee learned much more about managing troops and other generals. Oddly, he never did learn how to give a direct order, which cost the Confederates on several later occasions. As the book points out, Lee was a gentleman, even in cases where not being a gentleman would have gotten more accomplished.
If McClellan had lost these early fights, the state of West Virginia might never have come into being, for reasons both political and military, and Virginia's defenses would have been stronger throughout the war.
Of course, as the book points out, Lee wasn't really allowed to fight most of the battles, since generals Floyd and Wise spent more time fighting each other than against the Union troops of McClellan. Just as Lincoln had to deal with political generals, so did Jefferson Davis, and these two were among the worst on either side.

[Mark Harden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Does a great job not only describing the campaigns, but relating the political and military aspects of the situation in western Virginia. A quibble: on three occasions, the author describes Rooney Lee as Robert E. Lee’s “eldest son”, when of course that was actually GW Custis.

[Avis Black · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book suffers very badly from a dull prose style.