Civil War Memoirs

by Philip Henry Sheridan

While on his meteoric rise in the Union army, Philip H. Sheridan earned the enmity of many Virginians for laying waste to the Shenandoah Valley. His date and place of birth is uncertain, but he himself claimed to have been born in New York in 1831. Although he was destined to come out of the Civil War with the third greatest reputation among the victors, his military career did not begin auspiciously. It took him five years to graduate from West Point (1853) because of an altercation with fellow cadet and future Union General, William R. Terrill.

After serving in a staff position during the early part of the war he was recommended for the command of a cavalry regiment by Gordon Granger. Within days of taking command he was in charge of the brigade with which he earned his first star at Booneville in northern Mississippi. He fought well at Perryville and Murfreesboro and was given a second star in the volunteers.

When Grant went to the East, he placed Sheridan in command of the Army of the Potomac's mounted arm. Following Early's threat to Washington, Grant tapped Sheridan to command a new military division, comprised of three departments, and charged him with clearing out the Shenandoah Valley. For this campaign he was named brigadier and major general in the regular army and received the Thanks of Congress.

The next March he destroyed Early's remaining forces at Waynesboro and then went on a raid, threatening Lynchburg. Rejoining Grant, he smashed through the Confederate lines at Five Forks, necessitating the evacuation of both Petersburg and Richmond. It was his cavalry command, backed by infantry, which finally blocked Lee's escape at Appomattox.

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

352 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1888

About the author

Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, who transferred Sheridan from command of an infantry division in the Western Theater to lead the Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac in the East. In 1864, he defeated Confederate forces in the Shenandoah Valley and his destruction of the economic infrastructure of the Valley, called "The Burning" by residents, was one of the first uses of scorched earth tactics in the war. In 1865, his cavalry pursued Gen. Robert E. Lee and was instrumental in forcing his surrender at Appomattox.

Sheridan prosecuted the later years of the Indian Wars of the Great Plains. Both as a soldier and private citizen, he was instrumental in the development and protection of Yellowstone National Park. In 1883 Sheridan was appointed general-in-chief of the U.S. Army, and in 1888 he was promoted to the rank of General of the Army during the term of President Grover Cleveland.

Reviews

[NDH · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought and read this Memoire a number of years ago and only decided to re-read parts of it on account of my just having finished “The Franco-Prussian War” by Michael Howard, which, as my review thereof says, is a really fine and admirable work of history written by a proper professional Historian. In any case, that reading reminded me that General Sheridan had been a ‘guest-observer’ with the German army during the major battles of 1870, and thus my curiosity to partially re-read Sheridan’s work. I was particularly interested to learn whether or not Sheridan had the slightest inkling that he and the not insubstantial number of minor German princes and curious foreign dignitaries (with their own staffs and followers) surrounding Bismarck and the King of Prussia were anything but a nuisance to those actually responsible for conducting military operations.
He did not, apparently, and his observations and adventures were most interesting; almost being shot (twice) after German soldiers mistook him for the Enemy, (he had to be rescued); his difficulties finding adequate food and shelter on several occasions (he slept on the floor, leaving the bedbugs to a traveling companion); his impressions of the Krupp artillery (it didn’t seem to kill any better than what he’d had experience with a few years earlier). He was, however, very highly impressed with Germany’s ability to mobilize 800,000 men and put them in the field in a very short time, quite unlike the way the US Civil War evolved.

Sheridan departed his German hosts when peace negotiations (likely to take some time) commenced and he continued his travels into Eastern Europe, ending up in “Stamboul” during Ramadan, where unfortunately he could not meet with the Sultan (on account of the holidays) but had the truly unique pleasure of watching the Sultan’s harem parade (multiple passes) past his reviewing stand. His comments on them are … interesting.

In short, for a student of history, these memoirs are priceless.

My only complaint is that this particular edition is very unsatisfactory. My guess is that it’s just volume 1, but there’s no easy way for me to tell (I only just learned that there are in fact two volumes to Sheridan’s memoirs), and the font size almost makes a magnifying glass necessary. Reprints of older works really dominate the market these days, but they’re total rubbish quality-wise.

[Roberto D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 46 out of 200 books
"Personal Memoirs of Philip Sheridan: Civil War Memoirs" by Philip Sheridan

Philip Sheridan's Memoirs explores the military campaigns of the American civil war, particularly those in Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia etc. This memoir also includes the maps of the said military campaigns.

MY THOUGHTS:
I didn't exactly read the illustrated version of the memoirs but the actual memoirs because that's what available. Anyway, this book, as of June 2022, is one of the few American civil war-related books I've ever read, the other being Stephen Crane's "The Red Badge of Courage".

Anyway, the book's over 300 pages (I can't remember if it stretches up to 400 pages) and it was worth the time and three days to read. Well, the book must probably be read by future war logisticians and tacticians because this book has a lot of information on war tactics and logistics which can't be found in other sources.

[Phillip Mclaughlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

war by Sheridan, up to the end of the Franco-Prussian war

A good memoir, Sheridan wrote well and clearly.
Not a great deal of personal antagonism save for Gouveneur Warren.
His story is quite remarkable.
Recommend.

[Tim Armstrong · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fine, quite dry at points. Sheridan gives us his perspectives and recollections of his time during the Civil War. Nothing to revelatory here, but a decent account from someone who saw the war from the Western and Eastern Theatres.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars for little phil !

[Adhoc · Rating 4 out of 5]

A worthwhile read if you skip the post civil war chapters.

[Rolf Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has some interesting parallels with Sherman's memoirs. Both were young officers in the west before the Civil War. Sheridan saw more fighting, against Indians in Oregon and Washington. Like Sherman and Grant, Sheridan is a clear writer, though following his accounts battles is aided greatly by referencing other sources like wikipedia. After whipping the rebels in the Shenandoah Valley in late 1864 he was instrumental in Grant's final defeat of Lee in April 1865.
In some ways the chapters covering post Civil War are the most interesting. His accounts of southeners trying hard to defeat reconstruction resonate with my reading of The Bloody Shirt: Terror After Appomatox by Stephen Budiansky. Sheridan wanted to deal fairly with the freedmen, and clashed with resurgent locals who wanted to surpress the newly freed black people.
President Andrew Johnson transferred him to Kansas due to his fairness towards the freedmen, right when bands of Arapahoe Cheyenne and Kiowa began bloody raids on settlers in Kansas. Sheridan carried the fight to the Indian tribes, with George Custer as one of his subordinates.
The final section of his memoris details his tour of Europe in 1870, which was mainly his observation of the Franco Prussian War from the Prussian side as a respresentative of the US. I found his first hand accounts of this vanished era across the Atlantic to be very interesting.

[Steven Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

These pages represent General Phil Sheridan's autobiography. It covers his life from birth to late in his career. However, the major part of the book features his recollections from the Civil War. Not as lucid as Grant's biography, nonetheless this has value. His spare description of Five Forks is powerful for its lean treatment. Just so, other summaries of battles of which he was part. One of the better Civil War autobiographies. . . .

[Lee Thackston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a good memoir equal in quality to Grant or Sherman's. I do appreciate the detail given for activities prior to the War and especially afterwards, which others (especially Grant) lack. My biggest complaint is that there is no definite conclusion. The memoir simply ends abruptly at the conclusion of Sheridan's European trip. There is no summary or well formed conclusion other than 'Europe makes me love America more'. I was hoping for more.

[Tom]

His war memoirs are spare and I'm not sure they add a lot to what I've read before but his post-war life is much more interesting than I knew. His immediate post-war work in Texas and Louisiana is fascinating and his adventures as an observer on the Prussian side of the Franco-Prussian war leave a surprisingly view of Bismarck

[Lance Mertz · Rating 5 out of 5]

great memoir of a great soldier

There are a number of very interesting parts of this book. The battles in the Shenandoah valley and subsequent battle of Five Forks are not seen as important in popular history. They were, however, key to the surrender of Lee and defeat of the confederate forces.

[Monte Lamb · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent memoir. It is direct, clear, and informative. The sections on the Civil War battles are very good and are an excellent source.

[Kendrick Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great autobiography by a great general. I only gave it 4 stars as it bogs down in parts, especially at the end. Definitely worth your time.

[Richard Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sheridan does a good job of presenting himself. Those biographies written and published before the days of political correctness are fantastic to read.