The Battle of Ball's Bluff: All the Drowned Soldiers

by Bill Howard

What began as a simple scouting mission evolved into a full-scale battle when a regiment of Union soldiers unexpectedly encountered a detachment of Confederate cavalry.
Three months after the Civil War's first important battle at Manassas in 1861, Union and Confederate armies met again near the sleepy town of Leesburg. The Confederates pushed forward and scattered the Union line. Soldiers drowned trying to escape back to Union lines on the other side of the Potomac River. A congressional investigation of the battle had long-lasting effects on the war's political and military administration. Bill Howard narrates the history of the battle as well as its thorny aftermath.

192 pages, Paperback

Published October 15, 2018

Reviews

[Mark Harden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written, concise (192 pages) story of the early battle in 1861. Howard does a good job in setting the tactics and issues of the battle itself. Maps on Kindle version were illegible due to small size. The scapegoating of Stone is covered well, but the interesting thing is that, in summary, Howard points out that the injustice done to Stone has led many historians to completely let him off for his conduct in the battle. He then goes on to show many areas where Stone should have done better (none deserving of imprisonment, of course!)