Mountains Touched with Fire: Chattanooga Besieged, 1863

by Wiley Sword

Book Overview

An Award-Winning Historian Dramatically Re-Creates a Turning Point of the Civil WarIt was one of the most startling events of the civil war, the "hour of destiny" for the Union. Faced with the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312118597
• ISBN13: 9780312118594
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 430 Pages
• Weight: 1.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Lookout Mountain Wasn't Always A Tourist Trap!

This book concerns itself with the siege of Chattanooga in the fall of 1863 by the Confederates and the unexpected breakout by Union forces just when it seemed that they on the verge of suffering a major defeat. Historian Willey Sword weaves a brilliant narrative that reveals the behind-the-scenes infighting of the Confederate generals and the ineptness of many of the northern generals as well as the rise of Ulysses S. Grant (this battle helped to cement his reputation). But what I found most compelling about this book was the detailed descriptions of the incredible suffering that was sustained by the common soldiers. Many people have a romantic image of the Civil War. But the reality is that the average soldier suffered hardships that cannot even be imagined today. For example, so starved were the troops on both sides during the siege that many were driven to such desperate acts as eating bark off trees or picking undigested corn from animal feces. For in those days, supplies to the battlefield often had to travel hundreds of miles on rail which were often sabotaged by the enemy. Even if the supplies made it to the nearest depot safely, they still had to travel dozens of miles by horse-driven wagons over muddy and often impassable roads. The sad truth is that most supplies ended up rotting or otherwise were destroyed before they even got to the troops, ensuring a constant lack of vital supplies and rampant starvation and illnesses.By this stage of the Civil War, it was apparent that many of the rank-and-file soldiers were sick of the war and just wanted it to end. In fact, soldiers on opposing sides of the picket lines would often banter playfully with each other and trade such items as pocket knives and tobacco back and forth across enemy lines. But they would soon enough be engaged in bloody battle once again. The climactic battle makes for gripping reading and many unexpected (and unheralded) heros turn disaster into victory (for the Union). The battle described in this book is typical of many Civil War battles. Lots of people were slaughtered and maimed. Many of them senselessly on account of ill-advised orders from their own officers. It is amazing how the United States was able to reunite at all after such a bloody conflict (over 520,000 Americans were killed), but that is a story for other books to tell. This book only concerns itself with the action at Chattanooga in late 1863 and the narrow focus of the book is an advantage as it does not bore the reader with a confusing tangle of battles and generals - the pitfall of many of the other Civil War books.The only disappointment with this book (and keeping it from getting five stars) is that there are only a few maps and they are horrid and almost useless. This extremely well-written text deserves better situation maps and more of them so that the reader can better picture the action in his/her mind.

Better storyteller than most

Wiley Sword has a richly deserved reputation as a Civil War historian and a writer. Although the title indicates the book is about the battle of Chattanooga, the book is half gone before you start the fighting that occurred in Nov. 1864.Sword starts with the Tullahoma Campaign, touches on the events preceding Chickamauga, and with the fires still glowing 12 miles south of Chattanooga, Sword begins to weave the tale of America's Scenic City late in 1863. The Union Army is stranded with little food and little hope of increasing its supply, Rosecrans is arrogently refusing to admit to his problem and General Grant is put in charge of a potentially disasterous situation.Grant's first concern are the men trapped in this valley between two mountains. He is willing to overlook his distaste for George Thomas, who is, well, a Virginian in the Union Army. Once a supply route is secure and the rations begin to pour into the besieged city, Grant turns his attention to the problem at hand -- lifting the seige and driving the Rebels back. This he does in a series of four battles, Orchard Knob, the "Battle Above the Clouds," Missionary Ridge and Ringgold Gap.The Confederates are being torn apart by the hatred of most of the generals for their commanding officer, Braxton Bragg. And as much a the book is a big hurrah for General Grant and Thomas, its an indictment of the beleaguered commander of the Army of Tennessee. Sword's strength is his ability to tell a story without sacrificing historical accuracy. I suppose he could have gone into more detail, but I like it just the way it is. We don't need another Cozzens epic.

Frustrating maps

For the most part this was an entertaining and useful book. I did not enjoy it as much as Sword's other works, for two reasons. First, the maps were poor and not well situated throughout the text. Often events were described and the locations were not on any of the overall regional maps. It was also difficult to find the relevant map so an index would have been helpful. Considering the main audience for this work is composed of Civil War buffs, detailed and covenient maps should have been a top priority. Second, I think there was some mild hyperbole used throughout, with verbs chosen to unnecessarily sharpen the conflict between fueding generals. Other than these points I thought this book was a wonderful exposition of the siege of Chattanooga. After reading it I will have to visit Missionary Ridge all over again. I highly recommend Sword's other books to the Civil War enthusiast.

This is an excellent and detailed account of this battle

Sword's book presents a detailed and gripping account of the Union's struggle to break through tough Confederate forces holding on to the gateway of Georgia. He takes us from the Union's loss at Chicamauga to the final conquest of Missionary Ridge while providing a clear picture of the human misery and tragedy of this seige. Sword also provides an objective narration of the principal players, including Grant, Sherman, and Bragg. A great book from beginning to end.