Shades of Blue and Gray: An Introductory Military History of the Civil War

by Herman Hattaway

An introductory military history of the American Civil War, Shades of Blue and Gray places the 1861-1865 conflict within the broad context of evolving warfare. Emphasizing technology and its significant impact, Hattaway includes valuable material on land and sea mines, minesweepers, hand grenades, automatic weapons, the Confederate submarine, and balloons. The evolution of professionalism in the American military serves as an important connective theme throughout. Hattaway extrapolates from recent works by revisionists William Skelton and Roy Roberts to illustrate convincingly that the development of military professionalism is not entirely a post-Civil War phenomenon.

The author also incorporates into his work important new findings of recent scholars such as Albert Castel (on the Atlanta Campaign), Reid Mitchell (on soldiers' motivation), Mark Grimsley (on "hard war"), Brooks D. Simpson (on Ulysses S. Grant), and Lauren Cook Burgess (on women who served as soldiers, disguised as men). In addition, Hattaway comments on some of the best fiction and nonfiction available in his recommended reading lists, which will both enlighten and motivate readers.

Informative and clearly written, enhanced by graceful prose and colorful anecdotes, Shades of Blue and Gray will appeal to all general readers.

Genres: History, American History, Civil War, Nonfiction, American Civil War

296 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Herman Hattaway is a professor emeritus of history and religion studies at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Reviews

[The Bear · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent overview of the American Civil War.

[HF]

Audiobook by Libby app

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is good book for those looking for an introduction to the military history of the Civil War, with a brief overview of how the war fits into both American and European military development. The author covers all the major battles, campaigns, and generals, and the book is well-written. However, those with a more detailed interest in the various military campaigns of the war should not expect much from this other than a broad overview, as there are other more detailed and in-depth books out there. Recommended for those who don't know much about the numerous Civil War battles and personalities and who wish to learn more.

[Maureen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Audiobook. The thesis put out in the introduction is that the US Civil War was when the US military shifted to the professionals. But the information presented in the following chapters didn't really support that thesis. It didn't seem that the West Point grads were any more successful than the civilian soldiers.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

The publisher advertises it as "clear and concise" which is accurate. It does touch on most of the campaigns and many significant battles of the Civil War, along with generals from both sides who led the forces. It is not inspiring, but surely more than adequate.

[Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Civil War is an immense subject and it's hard to know which books to read. This one was good although it wasn't quite what I expected as it covered other wars as well.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it. A concise and fun-to-read (for serious) military history of the American Civil War.

[Cws]

973.7Hat

[Scott Archer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well done.