Alexander B. Rossino

"Engagingly written and persuasively argued, this daringly revisionist book is an essential addition to the Antietam bibliography." —Brian Matthew Jordan, Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of Marching Home

 

What if the histories previously written about Robert E. Lee's 1862 Maryland Campaign, the first major Confederate operation north of the Potomac River, missed key sources, proceeded from mistaken readings of the evidence, or were influenced by Lost Cause ideology? As Alexander B. Rossino, author of the acclaimed Six Days in September, demonstrates in Their Maryland: The Army of Northern Virginia from the Potomac Crossing to Sharpsburg in September 1862, these types of distortions indeed continue to shape modern understanding of the campaign.

 

Rossino reassesses the history of the Confederate operation in seven comprehensive chapters, each tackling a specific major issue. He addresses many important questions: Did supply problems in Virginia force Lee north to press the advantage he'd won after the Battle of Second Manassas? What did Rebel troops believe about the strength of secessionist sentiment in Maryland, and why? Did the entire Army of Northern Virginia really camp at Best's Farm near Frederick, Maryland? Did D.H. Hill lose Special Orders No. 191, or is there more to the story? How did Maryland civilians respond to the Rebel army in their midst, and what part did women play? Finally, why did Robert E. Lee choose to fight at Sharpsburg, and how personally was he involved in directing the fighting?

 

Rossino makes extensive use of primary sources to explore these and other questions. In doing so, he reveals that many long-held assumptions about the Confederate experience in Maryland do not hold up under close scrutiny. The result is a well-documented reassessment that sheds new light on old subjects and reinvigorates the debate on several fronts.

 

"The reader will come away with a greater understanding of this crucial campaign and battle." —James M. McPherson, Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times–bestselling author of Battle Cry of Freedom

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