Before Antietam: The Battle for South Mountain

by John Michael Priest

Civil War buffs and scholars quickly recognize the dates of September 16-18, 1862 as the period marking the bloodiest battle of the entire campaign--Antietam. But until now, the ten days prior to that event have remained in relative obscurity. In Before Antietem , John Michael Priest offers the
first book-length, tactical exploration of the Maryland campaign and the Battles of South Mountain, describing the decisive events leading up to the famous battle and elevating them from mere footnote status to a matter of military record.
Chronicling Robert E. Lee's turnabout from defensive maneuvres to full scale Confederate invasion into Maryland, Priest demonstrates how this tactical change brought about a series of engagements near Sharpsburg, Maryland that came to be known as "The Battle of South Mountain" in which the
Federal and Confederate forces struggled fiercely over Union territory. It was here that George B. McClellan, the new Northern commander, led his Army of the Potomac to its first victory over Lee in a furious action that produced one of the war's few successful bayonet charges. Written from the
perspective of the front line combatants (and civilian observers), the book recounts the Confederate invasion and the Federal pursuit into Sharpsburg that set the stage for Antietam. From September 5-15, a total of twenty-five skirmishes and three pitched battles were fought.
Priest provides graphic descriptions of the terrible conditions surrounding these events and so thoroughly enters into the common soldier's viewpoint that military history quickly gives way to gritty realism. He vividly shows that, had Robert E. Lee not been bested at the gaps along South
Mountain, there would have been no Antietam. Lee's decision to make a stand along Antietam Creek was a point of pride--he had never been "whipped" before and would not return to Virginia defeated. That decision was a fateful one, since the sparring and fighting drove him into an untenable position
that became his downfall. Priest's revealing narrative establishes that, at this stage of the Civil War, the Federal cavalry was better equipped and just as well trained as the Confederate cavalry thereby settling a point of debate among historians.
Scholars and Civil War buffs alike will applaud the efforts of John Michael Priest in bringing us the means to view those devastating encounters from a true military perspective.

Genres: American Civil War, Civil War, History, Civil War Eastern Theater, Military History, Antietam Campaign

433 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1992

Reviews

[Francis X DuFour · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve never before seen such a complete description of the Battle for South Mountain. There must have been a mountain of primary sources used for the book. It seems that at least half the participants dead, wounded, or captured on both sides are mentioned in the book. The detail is overwhelming and every significant dwelling, road, fence, bush, stone, etc. is referenced. Unfortunately, the generous number of maps in the book are barely usable due the poor terrain quality and almost invisible labeling of units/locations. It’s a good test of eyesight and power of observation to make sense of the maps. But if want to know the details of the battles for Fox, Crampton and Turner’s gaps, this the book for you.

[Katherine Addison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an incredibly detailed account, using a host of primary sources (letters and diaries and memoirs and basically anything any of the people who were there ever wrote or said about it), of the ten days leading up to the battle of Antietam. Priest gives roughly equal time to both sides and as much attention to the enlisted men as to the officers. We see much less of the upper echelons (except J.E.B. Stuart being J.E.B. Stuart)---certainly much less than you would get in a more conventional historiography of South Mountain---so this is very much the worm's eye view. It is so detailed it's actually a little hard to follow what's going on, which is a very dim reflection of what it was like to be there.

The maps are equally detailed; I honestly found them all but impossible to read.

[Brian Miracle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great account of the Battle of South Mountain and the events in Lee’s Maryland Campaign that preceded it. Although not as well known as the Battle of Antietam, South Mountain was a savage precursor to that battle.

The author, John Michael Priest, does a good job telling the events of the battle, describing unit movements down to regimental level. The maps are good and plentiful, but I would still suggest having other maps available that show the bigger picture. He also mixes in personal stories from soldiers on both sides, as well as civilians.

A fine book on an often overlooked battle.

[Greg Lowe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before Antietam: The Battle for South Mountain

I really wanted to like this book, but I must say that it was a slog to get through it. It is meticulously researched and carefully documented almost to the point of overkill. The author’s use of primary documents makes the narration rather uneven as it jerks and sputters along. Nonetheless, in its exactitude it reminds us of the wasteful horror that is war. Despite the unwieldy nature of the presentation overall, there are some moments that make it worthwhile. I could see that it could be of greater value to the academic historian than to the casual reader.

['Aussie Rick' · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first book of John Michael Priest that I had ever read and I found it to be a well researched and well presented account of the 'Battle for South Mountain'. I enjoyed it so much that I ordered his other book "Antietam: The soldiers Battle' as soon as I finished this book. He presents the fighting through the eyes of the Northern and Southern soldiers and it is done is such an easy manner that the narrative flows along quite well. The only criticism I have of the book itself is the standard of the maps. There is quite a number of maps that assist the reader to follow the accounts of the fighting but I believe that he could have done a better job in their presentation. Overall this book offers the reader a very good account of this forgotten battle. Well worth the money.

[John E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent and moving study of the prelude to the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg) in September of 1862. Because it is based almost exclusely on the letters, memories, and diaries of participants in the actions one get a detail that is almost always lacking in more narrative histories. Fully one-fifth of the text pages are maps and thus one can follow in exacting detail the movements of the units involved; however, the maps, while comprehensive, are not the most professionally done. I found that I had to use a pink and blue markers to mark on the maps to follow what was happening. Because of the detail and the constant referral to the maps this is a slow read.

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is certainly better than the author's Wilderness set. Before Antietam does a far better job covering the role of brigade and division commanders during the battle, although it was still sketchy concerning the activities and decisions of the Union corps commanders. The author also extensively covers the nine days leading up to the battle, starting with the Confederates' crossing of the Potomac, and describes the decisions made by the two army comamnders. However, the maps in this section were not that good in quality, showing only the movement of units and location of skirmishes, usually each chapter had just a single general map of the entire central Maryland region.

[Joe Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read about Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North with the Army of Northern Virginia. This battle would set up immediately afterwards the Battle of Antietam in September 1862.

[David Brown]

signed by the author