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They Came Only to Die: The Battle of Nashville, December 15-16, 1864
The November 1864 battle of Franklin left the Army of Tennessee stunned. In only a few hours, the army lost 6,000 men and a score of generals. Rather than pause, John Bell Hood marched his army north to Nashville. He had risked everything on a successful campaign and saw his offensive as the Confederacy's last hope. There was no time to mourn.
There was no question of attacking Nashville. Too many Federals occupied too many strong positions. But Hood knew he could force them to attack him and, in doing so, he could win a defensive victory that might rescue the Confederacy from the chasm of collapse.
Unfortunately for Hood, he faced George Thomas. He was one of the Union's best commanders, and he had planned and prepared his forces. But with battle imminent, the ground iced over, Thomas had to wait. An impatient Ulysses S. Grant nearly sacked him, but on December 15-16, Thomas struck and routed Hood's army. He then chased him out of Tennessee and into Mississippi in a grueling winter campaign.
After Nashville, the Army of Tennessee was never again a major fighting force. Combined with William Tecumseh Sherman's march through Georgia and the Carolinas and Grant's capture of Petersburg and Richmond, Nashville was the first peal in the long death knell of the Confederate States of America.
In They Came Only to Die: The Battle of Nashville, historian Sean Michael Chick offers a fast-paced, well analyzed narrative of John Bell Hood's final campaign, complete with the most accurate maps yet made of this crucial battle.
There was no question of attacking Nashville. Too many Federals occupied too many strong positions. But Hood knew he could force them to attack him and, in doing so, he could win a defensive victory that might rescue the Confederacy from the chasm of collapse.
Unfortunately for Hood, he faced George Thomas. He was one of the Union's best commanders, and he had planned and prepared his forces. But with battle imminent, the ground iced over, Thomas had to wait. An impatient Ulysses S. Grant nearly sacked him, but on December 15-16, Thomas struck and routed Hood's army. He then chased him out of Tennessee and into Mississippi in a grueling winter campaign.
After Nashville, the Army of Tennessee was never again a major fighting force. Combined with William Tecumseh Sherman's march through Georgia and the Carolinas and Grant's capture of Petersburg and Richmond, Nashville was the first peal in the long death knell of the Confederate States of America.
In They Came Only to Die: The Battle of Nashville, historian Sean Michael Chick offers a fast-paced, well analyzed narrative of John Bell Hood's final campaign, complete with the most accurate maps yet made of this crucial battle.
192 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2022
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About the author
Sean Michael Chick
9 books1,105 followersSean Michael Chick graduated from University of New Orleans with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Communications and from Southeastern Louisiana University with a Master of Arts in History. He currently works in New Orleans, leading historic tours of his hometown and helping residents and visitors appreciate the city’s past. He is also a boardgame designer, concentrating on the period of Western warfare from 1685-1866. His main American Civil War research interests include Shiloh, the Army of Tennessee, New Orleans during the Civil War, P.G.T. Beauregard, the Petersburg Campaign, and Civil War tactics in relation to linear tactics from 1685-1866.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 29, 2024
“They Came Only to Die” is the offering from the Emerging Civil War Series collection on the Battle of Nashville. A book of this size can’t truly do justice to such a major western battle, but I do believe author, Sean Michael Chick, does an admirable job of retelling the story of Nashville.
The Confederate loss at Franklin sets the stage for the rout of The Army of Tennessee at Nashville. The confederates were decimated at Franklin, and really in no shape to fight another major battle. Whether deserving, or not, General John Bell Hood takes the brunt of the responsibility for the poor showing, and both losses at Franklin and Nashville.
For me, the really interesting part of this book was surrounding the retreat of the Army of Tennessee from Nashville to Alabama/Mississippi, and the pursuit by Union General George Thomas of the confederates. Lots of great information I had never read before on the retreat, and the many skirmishes that occurred with Union forces and the confederate rear guard during that retreat.
The impact of this loss on the Confederate war effort was huge and the Army of Tennessee would never recover. Ultimately, the army was broken up and moved to help with different theaters of battle. With the Army of Northern Virginia basically left, the war would not go on much longer.
I would recommend anyone with an interest in the Civil War read this book; however, I would definitely suggest reading “Let Us Die Like Men: The Battle of Franklin” before reading “They Came Only to Die”.
The Confederate loss at Franklin sets the stage for the rout of The Army of Tennessee at Nashville. The confederates were decimated at Franklin, and really in no shape to fight another major battle. Whether deserving, or not, General John Bell Hood takes the brunt of the responsibility for the poor showing, and both losses at Franklin and Nashville.
For me, the really interesting part of this book was surrounding the retreat of the Army of Tennessee from Nashville to Alabama/Mississippi, and the pursuit by Union General George Thomas of the confederates. Lots of great information I had never read before on the retreat, and the many skirmishes that occurred with Union forces and the confederate rear guard during that retreat.
The impact of this loss on the Confederate war effort was huge and the Army of Tennessee would never recover. Ultimately, the army was broken up and moved to help with different theaters of battle. With the Army of Northern Virginia basically left, the war would not go on much longer.
I would recommend anyone with an interest in the Civil War read this book; however, I would definitely suggest reading “Let Us Die Like Men: The Battle of Franklin” before reading “They Came Only to Die”.
November 18, 2023
It's very good to see a recent treatment of the Battle of Nashville. There are a number of factors that push the Battle of Nashville out of the Civil War popular history limelight - it's in the Western Theater; it happens as the war is in its end stage; and it's overshadowed by the Battle of Franklin that occurred a few weeks prior.
There's a lot to like about the book, but it does have some limitations as well. It covers the Battle of Nashville and the pursuit afterwards but is a slim volume at just 95 pages before the appendices. So for instance, the discussion of Wood at Chickamauga lists his controversial move but can only devote a sentence to that pretty remarkable situation that shaped that battle. The book is full of illustrations - most pages have 2-4 pictures - but the large number of illustrations mean that many of them are a small size. This is not such an issue with some of the portraits, but unfortunately many of the battlefield scenes are small. The writing is at times uneven.
I really enjoyed the appendices. There are 7 appendices that cover topics ranging from Hood's time after the war in New Orleans to efforts to preserve the battlefield.
A nice addition to the scholarship of the Battle of Nashville.
There's a lot to like about the book, but it does have some limitations as well. It covers the Battle of Nashville and the pursuit afterwards but is a slim volume at just 95 pages before the appendices. So for instance, the discussion of Wood at Chickamauga lists his controversial move but can only devote a sentence to that pretty remarkable situation that shaped that battle. The book is full of illustrations - most pages have 2-4 pictures - but the large number of illustrations mean that many of them are a small size. This is not such an issue with some of the portraits, but unfortunately many of the battlefield scenes are small. The writing is at times uneven.
I really enjoyed the appendices. There are 7 appendices that cover topics ranging from Hood's time after the war in New Orleans to efforts to preserve the battlefield.
A nice addition to the scholarship of the Battle of Nashville.
July 11, 2023
This was a fantastic simple read on the Battle of Nashville that is truly forgotten and overlooked. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking to understand the Battle of Nashville. And this is a great book to read after visiting or studying the Battle of Franklin.
Very fair and unbiased look at George H. Thomas, John Bell Hood, and U.S. Grant
Very fair and unbiased look at George H. Thomas, John Bell Hood, and U.S. Grant
February 11, 2025
Another excellent starter book from Emerging Civil War on the Battle of Nashville. It includes all of the standard features of this series. I found the appendices in this book particularly interesting. As with all the books in this series, this is an entry point.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews