The Forgotten Stonewall of the West: General John Stevens Bowen (Garland Reference Library of the) - Hardcover

Phillip Thomas Tucker (author)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0865545308 ISBN 13: 9780865545304

Publisher: Mercer University Press, 1997

Synopsis

Parallels the lives of Bowen and Grant, and argues that Bowen was one of the best commanders of the Confederacy. For Civil War buffs. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

About this title

From the Publisher:

The definitive book on the "forgotten" John Stevens Bowen.
While Bowen was alive, he was hailed as a great soldier, both among troops and in published reports. That he died off the battlefield led to his being forgotten. Tucker reminds us of Bowen's brilliance, skill, and humanity. From Shiloh to Vicksburg, Bowen repeatedly demonstrated his ability to lead soldiers against insurmountable odds. His tactical abilities were surpassed only by his loyalty to the well-being of his soldiers. At the surrender of Vicksburg, e.g., he "negotiated" terms of surrender with U. S. Grant (US being understood by many to mean "unconditional surrender"), who rarely negotiated anything in the war. This is the definitive account of John Stevens Bowen, a Savannah native, a graduate of West Point, and a major-general, CSA.

From the Back Cover:

The Forgotten "Stonewall of the West" for the first time rightly places Major General John Stevens Bowen into top ranking as one of the best division commanders who fought for the Confederacy. The case is made repeatedly throughout this book that Bowen, even more than General Pat Cleburne, was entitled to a lofty reputation - more indeed than any other Confederate general in the West. This book parallels the lives of Bowen and General Ulysses S. Grant. Bowen and Grant were West Pointers and St. Louis neighbors who faced each other both before the war and on some of the great battlefields during the war. Because General Bowen died of disease in July 1863 immediately after the fall of Vicksburg, his story, until now, has been almost forgotten. From Shiloh to Vicksburg, General Bowen was the type of bold commander - whether commanding a regiment, brigade, or division - who led his men at the head of the charge. In his first battle, for example, Bowen's closest brush with death came when he led his brigade's charge at Shiloh. And, like General Grant, Bowen's aggressive, hard-hitting style continued as he rose in rank, reaching a climax during the decisive Vicksburg campaign. While the legend of General Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson made the Stonewall Brigade famous, Bowen played a key role in molding the First Missouri Confederate Brigade into a lethal fighting machine, which had a better combat record than the immortalized Virginians. But because the Missouri Brigade has for so long been ignored by historians, Bowen's reputation has likewise suffered in the historical memory.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mercer University Press
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0865545308
• ISBN 13: 9780865545304
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 320