Clashes of Cavalry

By Thom Hatch

Book Overview

Author Thom Hatch (Custer and the Battle of the Little Bighorn, 1997) acquaints readers with the well-known lives and military accomplishments of his colorful protagonists: Custer, the fun-loving West Point cadet who graduated at the bottom of his class with 726 demerits; and Stuart, a fellow classmate and self-styled Virginia aristocrat who shunned the "hireling professions" of law and commerce for the battlefield. The author skillfully interweaves the extraordinary wartime exploits of both men from First Manassas until Stuart's death at Yellow Tavern on May 11, 1864. He offers Stuart as a foppish master showman whose meteoric rise as the "Beau Sabreur" declines after Brandy Station and Gettysburg, largely owing to his willfulness and bad judgment. By comparison, the late-blooming Custer is seen to eclipse Stuart's reputation through his daring generalship, ability to survive lackluster superiors, and substantial contribution to Lincoln's 1864 reelection by driving Confederate troops from the Shenandoah Valley.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1684424569
• ISBN13: 9781684424566
• Release Date: January 2020
• Publisher: Turner
• Length: 293 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 8.9"