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Ends of War: The Unfinished Fight of Lee's Army after Appomattox
The Army of Northern Virginia's chaotic dispersal began even before Lee and Grant met at Appomattox Court House. As the Confederates had pushed west at a relentless pace for nearly a week, thousands of wounded and exhausted men fell out of the ranks. When word spread that Lee planned to surrender, most remaining troops stacked their arms and accepted paroles allowing them to return home, even as they lamented the loss of their country and cause. But others broke south and west, hoping to continue the fight. Fearing a guerrilla war, Grant extended the generous Appomattox terms to every rebel who would surrender himself. Provost marshals fanned out across Virginia and beyond, seeking nearly 18,000 of Lee's men who had yet to surrender. But the shock of Lincoln's assassination led Northern authorities to see threats of new rebellion in every rail depot and harbor where Confederates gathered for transport, even among those already paroled. While Federal troops struggled to keep order and sustain a fragile peace, their newly surrendered adversaries seethed with anger and confusion at the sight of Union troops occupying their towns and former slaves celebrating freedom.
In this dramatic new history of the weeks and months after Appomattox, Caroline E. Janney reveals that Lee's surrender was less an ending than the start of an interregnum marked by military and political uncertainty, legal and logistical confusion, and continued outbursts of violence. Janney takes readers from the deliberations of government and military authorities to the ground-level experiences of common soldiers. Ultimately, what unfolds is the messy birth narrative of the Lost Cause, laying the groundwork for the defiant resilience of rebellion in the years that followed.
In this dramatic new history of the weeks and months after Appomattox, Caroline E. Janney reveals that Lee's surrender was less an ending than the start of an interregnum marked by military and political uncertainty, legal and logistical confusion, and continued outbursts of violence. Janney takes readers from the deliberations of government and military authorities to the ground-level experiences of common soldiers. Ultimately, what unfolds is the messy birth narrative of the Lost Cause, laying the groundwork for the defiant resilience of rebellion in the years that followed.
342 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 21, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
February 20, 2023
While it is common to believe that the Civil War ended at Appomattox Courthouse with Lee's surrender, the truth is far more complex. As Caroline E. Janney's book proves, it was, in Churchill's words, not the beginning of the end but the end of the beginning. Many of the army of Northern Virginia were not present at Appomattox to receive a parole either because they chose not to believe that the war was over and committed themselves to traveling south to join Johnston's army to continue the fight, or that they had fallen off the pace because they needed sustenance, or some simply wanted to go home.
Although Lee surrendered himself and his army, his words helped to fuel the "lost cause" ideas that are still used to justify allegiance to the Confederacy. Moreover, Grant's words granting parole were ambiguous enough that people on both sides of the conflict were uncertain what they meant and there were tens of thousands of soldiers roaming the countryside who needed to understand their status and return home or be imprisoned. It was a logistical nightmare with Union generals in different parts of the South issuing paroles or arrest warrants without knowing whether what they were doing was lawful. The debate raged as to who should be pardoned and who should not.
While it was clear that it was impossible to charge every Confederate with treason, there was a sizable number who believed that the leaders should be held accountable. Curiously, it was Grant who seemed to have ultimately decided that no one should be held accountable. Therefore, those whose treason was most easily proven: Lee, Davis, Stephens, Beauregard, and many others, were left off the hook. There is no question that Grant's highest priority was for peace in the country with the end of slavery. Unfortunately, it became clear with the election of Hayes in 1876 that would not happen.
This is an exhaustively well researched book on an aspect of the war that is not usually dealt with. As Janney makes clear, it was not possible for soldiers to simply lay down their arms and head home.
Although Lee surrendered himself and his army, his words helped to fuel the "lost cause" ideas that are still used to justify allegiance to the Confederacy. Moreover, Grant's words granting parole were ambiguous enough that people on both sides of the conflict were uncertain what they meant and there were tens of thousands of soldiers roaming the countryside who needed to understand their status and return home or be imprisoned. It was a logistical nightmare with Union generals in different parts of the South issuing paroles or arrest warrants without knowing whether what they were doing was lawful. The debate raged as to who should be pardoned and who should not.
While it was clear that it was impossible to charge every Confederate with treason, there was a sizable number who believed that the leaders should be held accountable. Curiously, it was Grant who seemed to have ultimately decided that no one should be held accountable. Therefore, those whose treason was most easily proven: Lee, Davis, Stephens, Beauregard, and many others, were left off the hook. There is no question that Grant's highest priority was for peace in the country with the end of slavery. Unfortunately, it became clear with the election of Hayes in 1876 that would not happen.
This is an exhaustively well researched book on an aspect of the war that is not usually dealt with. As Janney makes clear, it was not possible for soldiers to simply lay down their arms and head home.
April 13, 2023
This is one of those books I feel bad for not liking more. The subject matter is compelling, the research is admirable, the writing is very good (minus several distracting typos in my edition), but it ended up reading to me like a collection of anecdotes in search of a larger narrative. About halfway through, I thought, this would be much tighter and stronger as a journal article or a chapter in a Civil War compilation, but it feels kind of padded as a book - only to later read, tucked away in the notes before the title page, that parts of this book did indeed originally appear as a journal article and a chapter in a Civil War compilation. So perhaps it should have stayed that way?
Janney aims to dispel any notion that Lee’s surrender at Appomattox represented a clean ending to the Civil War, or that Reconstruction immediately followed. Instead, as many as 20,000 Confederate soldiers refused to admit defeat, fled, slipped away or tried to continue the fight. Their captured or capitulated comrades, meanwhile, were faced with the complications of parole, as they made their way home and tried to resume their prewar lives amid uncertainty about their legal and citizenship status. Even among these former soldiers, though, "surrendering to U.S. forces did not mean admitting that their cause was wrong," Janney notes.
The book explores all the complexities of transitioning from a time of war to a time of peace and reconciliation, complicated by the fact that the war didn’t end with a peace treaty that clearly declared the conflict over and laid out the terms of surrender. After Lincoln’s assassination, leaders like President Johnson and General Grant had to make a lot of things up as they went along, such as the terms of parole, the right of passage through Union lines, whether paroled Confederates regained all the rights and privileges of citizens or were guilty of treason, and how and to whom to ultimately offer amnesty or pardons.
Through various stories of individual soldiers and the cities they traveled to and through, Janney shows how parolees who were given passes and expected to make their own way home, quickly came to constitute a mass movement of refugees. Should they be offered rations, transportation, or just left to their own devices, clogging cities and overwhelming Union forces? Other complications included how to deal with Confederates returning to their homes in border states and allowing them to coexist with loyalists, many of whom tried to keep them out.
The problem I had while reading the book was that the numerous stories of individual soldiers that Janney tells seemed to overwhelm the larger stakes. Instead of using these individual stories to illuminate the bigger issues, the bigger issues mostly play out in the background behind the individual stories. It gets repetitive after a while, with chapter after chapter of anecdotes about individual Confederate soldiers returning home and the problems they faced. It turns out to be something of a forest for the trees problem, as this collection of anecdotes doesn’t add up to a clear narrative or propel the larger story forward. A great deal of research was involved in digging up these stories and bringing them to light - and some are quite compelling, such as a chance meeting between a paroled Confederate soldier and his former slave, now in a Union uniform, that didn’t go as the soldier might have expected. But reading these stories one after another after another comes at the expense of the bigger story these smaller stories are presumably meant to illustrate.
In the end, Janney concludes that the lack of a clearly-defined end to the war, and the relative lack of punishment or consequences that Confederate soldiers and leaders faced, allowed the Lost Cause mythology to take root and flourish. "A deep and abiding commitment to the Confederacy had not ended with the surrender,” she writes. “In some ways, it had only begun."
There’s a great story hidden within this book. I just thought it would have been much better had that story been more front and center, and not buried beneath the details.
Janney aims to dispel any notion that Lee’s surrender at Appomattox represented a clean ending to the Civil War, or that Reconstruction immediately followed. Instead, as many as 20,000 Confederate soldiers refused to admit defeat, fled, slipped away or tried to continue the fight. Their captured or capitulated comrades, meanwhile, were faced with the complications of parole, as they made their way home and tried to resume their prewar lives amid uncertainty about their legal and citizenship status. Even among these former soldiers, though, "surrendering to U.S. forces did not mean admitting that their cause was wrong," Janney notes.
The book explores all the complexities of transitioning from a time of war to a time of peace and reconciliation, complicated by the fact that the war didn’t end with a peace treaty that clearly declared the conflict over and laid out the terms of surrender. After Lincoln’s assassination, leaders like President Johnson and General Grant had to make a lot of things up as they went along, such as the terms of parole, the right of passage through Union lines, whether paroled Confederates regained all the rights and privileges of citizens or were guilty of treason, and how and to whom to ultimately offer amnesty or pardons.
Through various stories of individual soldiers and the cities they traveled to and through, Janney shows how parolees who were given passes and expected to make their own way home, quickly came to constitute a mass movement of refugees. Should they be offered rations, transportation, or just left to their own devices, clogging cities and overwhelming Union forces? Other complications included how to deal with Confederates returning to their homes in border states and allowing them to coexist with loyalists, many of whom tried to keep them out.
The problem I had while reading the book was that the numerous stories of individual soldiers that Janney tells seemed to overwhelm the larger stakes. Instead of using these individual stories to illuminate the bigger issues, the bigger issues mostly play out in the background behind the individual stories. It gets repetitive after a while, with chapter after chapter of anecdotes about individual Confederate soldiers returning home and the problems they faced. It turns out to be something of a forest for the trees problem, as this collection of anecdotes doesn’t add up to a clear narrative or propel the larger story forward. A great deal of research was involved in digging up these stories and bringing them to light - and some are quite compelling, such as a chance meeting between a paroled Confederate soldier and his former slave, now in a Union uniform, that didn’t go as the soldier might have expected. But reading these stories one after another after another comes at the expense of the bigger story these smaller stories are presumably meant to illustrate.
In the end, Janney concludes that the lack of a clearly-defined end to the war, and the relative lack of punishment or consequences that Confederate soldiers and leaders faced, allowed the Lost Cause mythology to take root and flourish. "A deep and abiding commitment to the Confederacy had not ended with the surrender,” she writes. “In some ways, it had only begun."
There’s a great story hidden within this book. I just thought it would have been much better had that story been more front and center, and not buried beneath the details.
July 19, 2022
This volume addresses an important but unstudied question: what happened to the soldiers of the Army of Northern Virginia after Appomattox?? The author chronicles their struggles as they attempted to make their way home. Technically still prisoners of war waiting to be exchanged, they eventually submitted to the authorities and lived quietly for the most part, but the vexing issue of their status lingered. This was probably the best study I've seen to date dealing with this important issue. A great read.
February 16, 2022
A fascinating look into the surrender at Appomattox and the confusion that came afterward. Professor Janney looks at the problems that emerged with the paroling and amnesty of Confederate soldiers and leaders, the journey home for the paroled men, and most importantly, shows how Appomattox was in many ways, only the beginning.
October 4, 2021
A most interesting history discussing the legalities of parole, amnesty and pardon for Confederates surrendered or captured after Appomattox, to include Jospeh Johnson’s surrender in Greensboro. Accounts of soldiers’ travels to their homes adds some clarity to oral history in my family rmembrances. Of note is the practical efforts of soldiers, like Grant, to ease the way to reunion. Sadly, there are accounts where the animosity of the war, especially racial, continued and shed light on the emergence of Jim Crow in years to follow. As one raised with the mythos of the Lost Cause in the background, this book helps to challenge that myth as viable.
April 2, 2023
This book does a deep dive into the post-Appomattox weeks and months to see how the surrender terms offered by Grant and other Union generals played out. Janney writes well and the book is well researched. The low rating reflects more on my inadequacy than anything to do with the book. The minutiae of military history is not really my forte. But a few overall points emerge that I think are important: Because of the piecemeal nature of the end of the War as different armies surrendered at different times and even portions of different armies held out longer than others. The chaos surrounding Lincoln's assassination played a role as well. Trying to wrap up the war and figure out whether to treat the rebels as traitors or as prisoners of war (which would require recognizing the Confederacy as a sovereign nation) made for a confusing approach to the end of the war. This confusion was taken advantage of by the rebels and helped to spawn the Lost Cause mythology. This book wasn't my cup of tea, but more talented military historians will find it useful.
January 24, 2022
This book includes little-told stories of resistance after Lee's surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. Rebellions continued by thousands of Confederate soldiers, for weeks in some cases. Many Southern soldiers and civilians remained convinced their cause was still worth fighting for, aiding by Lee's farewell address a day after surrendering to Grant. Lee declared that the South had lost primarily because they had fewer resources than the North, giving rise to the Lost Cause theory that plagued the South for generations.
Matters were complicated by Northern generals trying to make political, not just military, decisions. The Civil War end lacked a clearly worded document to end hostilities or bring about peace. Janney contends that the generous amnesty terms offered by the North emboldened Confederates to restore as much of antebellum society as possible, subjecting former slaves to segregated inferior facilities and services for the next century.
On the down side, the book is repetitious in spots, contains too much minutia, and has too many characters and details to remember.
Matters were complicated by Northern generals trying to make political, not just military, decisions. The Civil War end lacked a clearly worded document to end hostilities or bring about peace. Janney contends that the generous amnesty terms offered by the North emboldened Confederates to restore as much of antebellum society as possible, subjecting former slaves to segregated inferior facilities and services for the next century.
On the down side, the book is repetitious in spots, contains too much minutia, and has too many characters and details to remember.
September 28, 2022
An enthralling historical account! Professor Janney crystalizes all of the fine print associated with the conclusion of the American Civil War. Even for history scholars, this work will open eyes to new facts and lesser known narratives. Highly recommended for fans of fine writing, nonfiction historical prose and war buffs.
April 18, 2022
4.5 stars. An outstanding effort, and rightful winner of the Lincoln Prize.
February 27, 2023
An interesting time in American History that deserves more exploration and conversation, but unfortunately, this book is at times repetitive and tedious. Even at only 257 pages, it feels like a overly- padded dissertation.
December 7, 2022
Caroline E. Janney’s book Ends of War: The Unfinished Fight of Lee’s Army after Appomattox is a well-documented history examining the final few weeks of the Confederate Army. This is an important work and I recommend it to military professionals, as the author superbly navigates the nuance and subtly when attempting to end a conflict. Especially a conflict that was as bloody and devastating as the American Civil War was. The author lays out very clearly the military problem facing Grant in April 1865, which was how to force Lee’s Field Army to surrender. In Grant’s view, he was working to remove a piece from the chessboard (a Military Problem) that would allow for the eventual surrender of the Confederate States (a Political Problem).
Where things become more contentious is when Sherman uses Grant’s terms as a template when attempting to force the surrender of Johnston’s Army (the last Field Army “in-being”) that also was moving with the majority of the Confederate government after its departure from Richmond. This is a different problem then what Grant faced, since as the last field army, Johnston’s surrender would mean the end of the Confederacy. This was more of a political problem and a responsibility for civilian decision makers. When coupled with the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, so a new Commander-in-Chief, this becomes a very wicked problem.
Additionally, the author focuses on the Confederate soldiers from border states (Maryland, Kentucky) that stayed in the Union. This created an interesting problem since the terms Grant issued to Lee’s Army was for them to return home on parole, but these individuals had a home that did not want them to return. This book expertly highlights the tensions with the Federal Government, the local and State Governments, and the individuals as the war is coming to a close.
I highly recommend this work to military professionals and to historians. This provides an excellent source to discuss the topic of how wars end, while highlighting the impact decisions have on individuals caught in the middle.
Where things become more contentious is when Sherman uses Grant’s terms as a template when attempting to force the surrender of Johnston’s Army (the last Field Army “in-being”) that also was moving with the majority of the Confederate government after its departure from Richmond. This is a different problem then what Grant faced, since as the last field army, Johnston’s surrender would mean the end of the Confederacy. This was more of a political problem and a responsibility for civilian decision makers. When coupled with the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, so a new Commander-in-Chief, this becomes a very wicked problem.
Additionally, the author focuses on the Confederate soldiers from border states (Maryland, Kentucky) that stayed in the Union. This created an interesting problem since the terms Grant issued to Lee’s Army was for them to return home on parole, but these individuals had a home that did not want them to return. This book expertly highlights the tensions with the Federal Government, the local and State Governments, and the individuals as the war is coming to a close.
I highly recommend this work to military professionals and to historians. This provides an excellent source to discuss the topic of how wars end, while highlighting the impact decisions have on individuals caught in the middle.
June 5, 2023
This is a well-written, informative book about an issue concerning the end of the Civil War that even a lifelong history teacher like me did not really think about: what, exactly, happened to the individual soldiers in Lee's army after the surrender at Appomattox? In our classes and in our minds, we often jump from that day in April, 1865, to the beginning of Reconstruction, but the events of the spring and summer of that year helped to lay the groundwork for the subsequent issues that lay at the heart of the struggles in truly rehabilitating the Confederate states, as well as the groundwork for the "Lost Cause" mythology that led to generations of racial strife that even informs our current political climate (for instance, Charlottesville, 2017). The biggest thing that led to the ability of so many former Confederates to emerge from the war, if not triumphant, then not actually defeated, was the confusion that came from an end to the war that had no "official" ending because a national surrender ceremony would have acknowledged Confederate sovereignty. Part of the confusion (and this extends to the way that these things were presented in the book) was the dispute over that actual definitions and repercussions of "parole," "amnesty," and "pardon." There were so many disputes, so many legalities, so much uncertainty about where former Confederate soldiers who had been paroled could travel to (home, if that were a Confederate state, but not home if that were a state that had not seceded), that many former soldiers slipped through the cracks unrepentant. And as I read about the fact that former Confederates were prohibited from wearing their old uniforms, I thought to myself that many former devotees of "the Lost Cause" solved that problem by donning white sheets. In short, this book is about a very tiny slice of the history of the Civil War, but one with huge repercussions for the subsequent history of the nation.
June 29, 2023
In most histories, the Civil War "ends" with Lee's surrender at Appomattox. The reality was much more complicated, as explained by Janney in this fascinating "untold story" of the aftermath of Appomattox. The military surrender merely ended the fighting, but did not end the War politically, which was further complicated by the fact that the Confederacy was never recognized as a nation by the United States and so the rules of war did not clearly apply. Soldiers who were from non-seceding states could not return home without a loyalty oath. Some soldiers escaped Appomattox and attempted to continue the fight. Some were captured or had deserted before Appomattox and did not get the paroles issued that allowed them to return home in peace. Lee's surrender did not protect him from civil punishment and he and other Confederate leaders were indicted after the surrender before eventually receiving amnesty.
Janney also discusses the interesting possibility that Grant, who (reasonably) feared thar harsh surrender demands could lead to an endless guerrilla war, was too lenient. The Confederates treated the surrender as more like an armistice, leading them to believe they weren't truly defeated and maintaining a "Lost Cause" mindset that led to resistance of civil rights for the freed slaves. Janney leaves open the possibility that more severe terms that forced the Confederates to acknowledge their utter defeat may have prevented what followed, but recognizes that it wasn't possible to know this at the time and that Grant's surrender philosophy was reasonable at that time.
Janney has researched this story incredibly thoroughly, going through diaries and letters and newspapers from 1865, and is a bit too eager to share how thorough her research was. Rather than summarize the issues faced by Confederates returning home, she relates many individual stories in great detail, providing more information than is interesting, and following more individual soldiers than I could track. Overall, the book explored an interesting aspect of the Civil War with which I was completely unfamiliar, and plausibly links the details of the surrender to issues that persisted for another century.
Janney also discusses the interesting possibility that Grant, who (reasonably) feared thar harsh surrender demands could lead to an endless guerrilla war, was too lenient. The Confederates treated the surrender as more like an armistice, leading them to believe they weren't truly defeated and maintaining a "Lost Cause" mindset that led to resistance of civil rights for the freed slaves. Janney leaves open the possibility that more severe terms that forced the Confederates to acknowledge their utter defeat may have prevented what followed, but recognizes that it wasn't possible to know this at the time and that Grant's surrender philosophy was reasonable at that time.
Janney has researched this story incredibly thoroughly, going through diaries and letters and newspapers from 1865, and is a bit too eager to share how thorough her research was. Rather than summarize the issues faced by Confederates returning home, she relates many individual stories in great detail, providing more information than is interesting, and following more individual soldiers than I could track. Overall, the book explored an interesting aspect of the Civil War with which I was completely unfamiliar, and plausibly links the details of the surrender to issues that persisted for another century.
June 21, 2022
I thought I know a lot about the American Civil War. Janney’s book, Ends of War, is a good reminder that there’s lots more to learn.
Lee surrendered his army to Grant on April 9, 1865. Of course it’s pretty well known that other Confederate Army units were still fighting for several months after that event.
Janney confirms this stark point: for tens of thousands of Confederate soldiers, the war didn’t end then. They just stopped actively fighting the Union forces.
Lee had a bit less than 50,000 men under his command when he signed the surrender document in Wilmer McLean’s house. Less than 30,000 of Lee’s men were officially but very haphazardly “paroled” in the days following the surrender.
At least 20,000 men in dirty gray uniforms walked away from Appomattox without officially surrendering, most of them hoping to head for home. Many of them remained devoted to “the cause.”
It seems that Grant and Lincoln and the Union forces desperately wanted to end the fighting, but there was no real Northern plan to end the war, and to end the Southern insurrection, and to realistically bring the rebel states back into the Union.
For my taste, the book is too long. Janney could have established her argument, made her case, and proved her point in fewer pages.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com
Lee surrendered his army to Grant on April 9, 1865. Of course it’s pretty well known that other Confederate Army units were still fighting for several months after that event.
Janney confirms this stark point: for tens of thousands of Confederate soldiers, the war didn’t end then. They just stopped actively fighting the Union forces.
Lee had a bit less than 50,000 men under his command when he signed the surrender document in Wilmer McLean’s house. Less than 30,000 of Lee’s men were officially but very haphazardly “paroled” in the days following the surrender.
At least 20,000 men in dirty gray uniforms walked away from Appomattox without officially surrendering, most of them hoping to head for home. Many of them remained devoted to “the cause.”
It seems that Grant and Lincoln and the Union forces desperately wanted to end the fighting, but there was no real Northern plan to end the war, and to end the Southern insurrection, and to realistically bring the rebel states back into the Union.
For my taste, the book is too long. Janney could have established her argument, made her case, and proved her point in fewer pages.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com
March 13, 2023
An excellent book which I would highly recommend to anyone interested in the end of the American Civil War. Janney covers the days, weeks, and months following Lee's surrender at Appomattox both topically and chronologically, analyzing how Lee's surrender was far from a guaranteed end to the war and how the broad top-down policies of figures like Ulysses Grant and Andrew Johnson as well as local commanders, judges, and ordinary citizens or rebels played into an incredibly complex period of surrender, parole, pardon, and reconstruction which would have profound effects on the nation going forward. As such, Ends of War is a very unique book and helps to provide a tremendous amount of nuance to a subject and time period which is often oversimplified and characterized in broad terms. In reality, through examining scores of letters, newspapers, personal writings, etc. Janney shows the vast variety of situations surrendered and unsurrendered rebels, Union soldiers, freedmen, as well as pro-Union and pro-Confederate civilians, and political and military leaders encountered and became embroiled in. Despite this incredible variety, Janney makes useful observations and allows the reader to understand the period much better. A thoroughly fascinating read for anyone interested in unique military history.
July 27, 2024
A good book, providing a focused history on the chaotic demobilization of the Confederate armies in the spring and summer of 1865. The author, Civil War historian Caroline Janney, gives a deep legal, political, and societal exploration of the means by which the tens of thousands of Confederate soldiers went from active rebellion back to peacetime lives. In this chronological history, Janney relies heavily on primary source material, with plentiful quotations from journals, letters, and official correspondence. The author clearly explains the broad debate amongst government authorities in the wake of Appomattox: were the surrendered Confederates under military parole, and thus prisoners of war protected from civil legal actions, or were they now rebel civilians, subject to charges of treason. Janney shows how, contrary to myth, Grant’s favorable terms of parole with Lee were not the finalization of this debate, but instead its point of origin. The lack of a clear surrender by the Confederate’s political leadership and the absence of accepted policy from Washington meant that military, federal, judicial, and state officials were in a state of confusion in the many months it took the Confederate soldiery to disband to their homes. A great book for understanding how wars end. Highly recommended for any military professional engaged in the transition from war to peace.
August 30, 2023
Caroline Janney's book tackles an interesting topic - what happened to Robert E. Lee's army after Appomattox? I think the traditional Civil War narrative ends with Appomattox and Lincoln's assassination, perhaps followed by the rise and fall of Reconstruction. But it omits the very complicated lived experience of the men whose army had just lost the war, and the men whose army defended a country that now wanted to win a peace.
Running throughout the book (because it was underlying all of the Union's decisions) is the philosophical question of whether the Confederacy was to be treated as a separate country or not. Were Confederates traitors or enemy combatants? The decisions made, often spontaneously, or with some specific short-term goals in mind, had long-lasting implications that shaped the way our country still thinks about the Civil War, the soldiers who fought on either side, and their supporters 150 years later.
I do think Janney could have spent a little more time on the long-term effects of these decisions; she references them glancingly at a couple moments in the book, but I think it would've helped make the research she did (which was quite extensive) more meaningful.
Running throughout the book (because it was underlying all of the Union's decisions) is the philosophical question of whether the Confederacy was to be treated as a separate country or not. Were Confederates traitors or enemy combatants? The decisions made, often spontaneously, or with some specific short-term goals in mind, had long-lasting implications that shaped the way our country still thinks about the Civil War, the soldiers who fought on either side, and their supporters 150 years later.
I do think Janney could have spent a little more time on the long-term effects of these decisions; she references them glancingly at a couple moments in the book, but I think it would've helped make the research she did (which was quite extensive) more meaningful.
July 22, 2023
Learned a lot about the tumultuous, divisive, unprecedented, disjointed, sometimes arbitrary and often conflicting efforts made by Grant, LLearned a lot about the tumultuous, divisive, unprecedented, disjointed, sometimes arbitrary and often conflicting efforts made by Grant, Lincoln, and a slew of other Union Military and Political leaders after Lee surrendered The Northern Army of Virginia at Appomattox.
In an attempt to resolve the tensions between opposing sides, to discourage Confederate soliders from splintering away from the Rebel army to form smaller units whose mission would to cause havoc in the countryside by engaging in Guerrilla warfare, Grant offered lenient terms of surrender to the Confederate's most intimidating army. Good intentions, but we know how useful those are.
Everything went sideways. Days after the surrender, Lincoln was assisinated. Paroled Rebel soldiers flocked to nearby cities and transportation hubs in an effort to return home. The U.S. infrastructure was unprepared to carry out the beuracraric functions of abiding by the shifting and often time conflicting orders from the political leaders....In all, it was a solid read.
In an attempt to resolve the tensions between opposing sides, to discourage Confederate soliders from splintering away from the Rebel army to form smaller units whose mission would to cause havoc in the countryside by engaging in Guerrilla warfare, Grant offered lenient terms of surrender to the Confederate's most intimidating army. Good intentions, but we know how useful those are.
Everything went sideways. Days after the surrender, Lincoln was assisinated. Paroled Rebel soldiers flocked to nearby cities and transportation hubs in an effort to return home. The U.S. infrastructure was unprepared to carry out the beuracraric functions of abiding by the shifting and often time conflicting orders from the political leaders....In all, it was a solid read.
March 18, 2023
The end of the Civil War was confusing and certainly not well planned. What is that old saying,"it's easier to start a war than end one." The book is well researched and Janney shows the differing orders or pardons and the interpretations of those orders and pardons. At the same times Janney shows how different Confederate soldiers responded to those pardons or orders. If it sounds confusing, apparently it was, especially if you throw in the idea that many Confederate soldiers didn't think they had been defeated.
Some of this confusion creeps into the book as Janney follows many of these different threads to show that the Civil War did not end at Appamattox. At times the narrative seems repetitive and sometimes a bit tedious.
As I read this I wondered if it might have been better for Janney to focus on 3-4, maybe 5 Confederate soldiers who responded in different ways to the confusing end of the war. Still Janney does an excellent job of creating the data base of paroled Confederate soldiers that will aid future writers.
Some of this confusion creeps into the book as Janney follows many of these different threads to show that the Civil War did not end at Appamattox. At times the narrative seems repetitive and sometimes a bit tedious.
As I read this I wondered if it might have been better for Janney to focus on 3-4, maybe 5 Confederate soldiers who responded in different ways to the confusing end of the war. Still Janney does an excellent job of creating the data base of paroled Confederate soldiers that will aid future writers.
March 1, 2023
Turns out the Union could not have been any less prepared for the end of the Civil War ... Uncharted waters for sure but, just like the concept of reconstruction in general, the still-young country would have benefited from the instincts and soulfulness of Abraham Lincoln. ... Without him the leadership void was a chasm ... I very much like the topic of this book but found it dry, repetitive and a bit confusing with all the "before Appomattox, after Appomattox" storyline ... The author introduces some interesting characters and my thoughts are that the overall story would have benefited from following those characters from beginning to end to tell the story ... A short read and I learned some stuff, still overall I think it's a miss
April 18, 2022
Well written and thoroughly researched. Tedious with repetitive anecdotes and digressions into “oath of allegiance “versus “parole” etc; tendentious with the usual woke claims of Confederate massacres of black troops, which are provided with no context whatsoever. Worst of all of the currently faddish claims that the supposed lost cause myth began with the farewell address of Lee and Mosby. As if the final address to soldiers who had bled and died and starved for four years yet remained true to the end, were supposed to be treated to a final address that said basically the Yankees beat us fair and Square, and we were wrong, and we need to go home and beg for their mercy. What a crock
February 26, 2023
This is one of those books where I limited myself to reading a chapter a night to prolong it. A well written in depth look at a period of the war that I've never really studied very well, never mind in this detail. The complexities of ending the war and what to do with the paroled soldiers, as well as those who refused to surrender and those who wanted to go home in the border states is a fascinating account of the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia and beyond and the Union Army and US and state government's confusion on what steps to take told from all perspectives. This book is very much worth reading.
July 3, 2022
In-depth study of how the "Lost Cause" narrative of the Confederacy had its start and why is perpetuates to this day.
Janney uses exhaustive research to illustrate how the Confederacy's refusal to declare their cause was unjust and their refusal to state they committed treason against the United States Government, to bolster their claims they they were only defeated because the United States Military had a much larger force which made them capitulate in the end.
Janney uses exhaustive research to illustrate how the Confederacy's refusal to declare their cause was unjust and their refusal to state they committed treason against the United States Government, to bolster their claims they they were only defeated because the United States Military had a much larger force which made them capitulate in the end.
April 16, 2023
Really wanted to love this, but a bit granular for my tastes. Very important connections between the post-Appomattox chaos and the perpetuation of the Lost Cause myth, but the dozens (perhaps hundreds) of anecdotes about traitorous Sgt. So-and-So receiving or not receiving parole based on his specific location at the time of Grant’s offer overshadowed the salient messages about reconciliation and nation-building.
September 29, 2023
An untold story
The fate of the confederate soldiers after Appomattox was an uphill battle. Successive policies and differing local and federal attempts to avoid a resurgence of the Southern military proved confusing, and sometimes fatal results, for veterans. The government’s infighting and lack of clear guidelines made reassimilation for both white and newly freed slaves a slipshod process with mixed results.
The fate of the confederate soldiers after Appomattox was an uphill battle. Successive policies and differing local and federal attempts to avoid a resurgence of the Southern military proved confusing, and sometimes fatal results, for veterans. The government’s infighting and lack of clear guidelines made reassimilation for both white and newly freed slaves a slipshod process with mixed results.
March 2, 2022
Stunning book for Civil War readers - and not. Janney has written a page turner about what happened after Appomattox. Pardons? Paroles? Don't know the difference, Caroline Janney explains and why the difference was important.
For any history lover, this is a book you'll want to read.
For any history lover, this is a book you'll want to read.
March 6, 2022
A great read. It covers ground that has basically been ignored over the years and helps explain in a clear way some of the origins of the Southern belief in the "Lost Cause!" It puts southern intransigence in a new and much clearer light.
March 2, 2023
Although I did not enjoy this book as much, I can see why others did. It represents a well-researched, well-argued presentation. However, it dragged in some parts, which keeps me from giving it a five-star rating. Besides the dragging, the author offers compelling evidence to her thesis.
March 13, 2025
Very well researched but so disjointed due to it being several articles basically copy and pasted into a book. Could only read book in small chunks. Author focused on certain and people either too much or not enough. I very knowledgeable trudge through the mud.
March 2, 2022
Outstanding. As I expected.
War is messy. The Ends are always messier, it seems. I think every war should have a volume regarding its ending as written well as this book has been.
War is messy. The Ends are always messier, it seems. I think every war should have a volume regarding its ending as written well as this book has been.
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