Rugged and Sublime: The Civil War in Arkansas

by Mark K. Christ

When one thinks of the American Civil War, such names as Vicksburg, Gettysburg, and Chancellorsville come immediately to mind. Few recall the battles in the Trans-Mississippi theater. Rugged and Sublime goes a long way toward filling regrettable blanks in our memory of Arkansas’s role in Civil War. It explore the major clashes and locales of the war, including the state secession convention, seizure of the Little Rock Arsenal, the Battle of Wilson’s Creek, the Pea Ridge campaign, Marmaduke’s invasion of Missouri, the Battle of Helena, and the fall of Little Rock, as well as other actions. Rounding out this new and very readable account are studies of the devolution of Arkansas society when bands of guerillas and jayhawkers menaced the state, the surrender of the Confederate armies, and an assessment of losses.

Genres: History, Civil War

192 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1994

Reviews

[Beth Cato · Rating 3 out of 5]

This nonfiction work on Arkansas during the American Civil War breaks down the conflict year by year with sections written by different expert contributors. It's not creative nonfiction, but neither is it totally dry and boring; instead, it strikes a nice middle ground and is helped by the fact that the major content is about 172 pages. The text is often accompanied by photography and basic maps of battlefield actions and regions.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent one volume history of the Civil War in Arkansas. I was concerned that having a different author cover each year from 1860 to 1865 would lead to a disjointed narrative, but the result was surprisingly cohesive. Kudos to the editor.

I've done reading on individual battles before, but only after reading this book do I feel that I have a grasp of the overall sequence of events that was the war in Arkansas.

Highly recommended to anyone interested in the history of the Trans-Mississippi theater of the war, or in Arkansas history in general.

[Cropredy · Rating 2 out of 5]

For specialists of the Civil War looking for detail on the fighting (major and minor) in Arkansas. Read this after you have read and absorbed the more significant campaigns. Written fairly dryly - no literary flair 'a la Shelby Foote or Stephen Sears