Fields of Blood: The Prairie Grove Campaign
The Civil War in the Trans-Mississippi Theater receives scant attention when compared to the fighting east of the Mississippi River despite the importance of the engagements and the fascinating cast of characters who operated there. One of the consistently overlooked campaigns is the subject of William Shea’s outstanding new battle history. Readers of Civil War battle history are almost certainly familiar with Shea, who, with co-author Earl Hess, crafted a template for how to research and write tactical history with their earlier well-received Pea Ridge: Civil War Campaign in the West (1997). If you liked Pea Ridge, you will enjoy this offering as well. The fighting at Prairie Grove occurred in northwestern Arkansas on Dec. 7, 1862, at a time when the strategic balance west of the river was still in doubt. The campaign witnessed a sizeable (for that theater) Confederate offensive under the aggressive Thomas Hindman, whose First Corps of the Army of the Trans-Mississippi marched rapidly to catch one of the separated Union wings of the Army of the Frontier and destroy it. Unfortunately for Southern arms, Hindman’s effort ended in disaster at Prairie Grove when the other wing of the Union army made a surprise appearance and turned the tide of battle. Shea’s overall treatment of the men at all levels of rank, terrain, the stakes involved, and the civilians impacted by the fighting is thorough, deeply researched, clearly presented and colorfully written. The number of firsthand accounts he has found is impressive, and his use of newspapers laudable. His in-depth presentation of the relationship (and abilities) of theater commander Theophilus Holmes and Hindman is the best in print, as is the intricate lead-up to the Dec. 7 fighting, which was preceded by complicated marches, political maneuvering, raids, skirmishes and fascinating cavalry operations. The meat of the book, of course, is the day-long battle during which the normally aggressive Hindman assumed a defensive position and received the attacks of a Union wing led by Francis Herron. Unbeknownst to Hindman, however, the remaining enemy wing under James Blunt made a forced cross-country march to reach the field and it fell upon the outnumbered Southern army. The fighting continued until that evening. The Union army was much better supplied and equipped than their Confederate counterparts, and had reserves to call upon. Hindman, however, had no reserves, was low on food and ammunition, and fielded a now-crippled artillery command. He could not remain in place even had he been victorious. The abandonment of the field and disastrous withdrawal that followed effectively destroyed Hindman’s 11,000-man army. The battle ended serious Southern strategic offensives in the Trans-Mississippi Theater. The Dec. 7 action receives detailed, and in some cases, minute, coverage that will leave battle purists completely satisfied. If the book has any weakness it is its campaign and battle maps. Although they are numerous, they are relatively small — about one-half page — with even smaller print. The lack of a scale and some terrain features, especially wood lines, makes them less useful than they should have been for a detailed battle-book. That small caveat aside, I highly recommend this book. Reviewer: Theodore P. Savas Theodore P. Savas is an attorney by training. He is a partner and managing director of Savas Beatie LLC, a publisher of military and general history titles. He teaches law and business-related evening classes and is the author or editor of 15 books on a wide variety of historical topics.
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Illustrated, maps, notes, appendices, bibliography, index, 368 pp., 2009, University of North Carolina Press,