The Battle of the Crater: A Complete History
In the American Civil War, known as our bloodiest war, the battle of the Crater was especially inhuman and gory. The author, in his preface, noted, “The Battle of the Crater is one off the lesser known and understood battles … The battle itself, and the machinations leading up to it, present a plot worthy of the most creative piece of fiction …” The Battle of the Crater, subtitled A Complete History, is just that, far exceeding in scope the H.E. Howard study of the Crater by Michael Cavanaugh and William Marvel (1989). This book will probably remain the definitive study of this action for years to come. The Battle of the Crater commences its narrative two months prior to the actual battle, placing it in context of the military operation known as The Overland Campaign. The political and military background cumulating in the siege of Petersburg and mining operation by Lt. Col. Henry Pleasants and the 48th Pennsylvania Volunteers are presented in great detail. The events immediately leading up to the actual 10-hour attack are narrated and analyzed in meticulous depth. A series of 11 well-drawn maps help the reader better understand the tragic consequences resulting from a succession of poor command decisions and inept leadership at most command levels from Grant and Meade down to divisional command on the Union side. Each is given his share of blame for the disintegration of a promising operation into a costly fiasco. Schmutz compares and contrasts the various plans of attack as they evolved, furnishing a thoughtful analysis of the various changes and how they contributed to the breakdown and eventual failure of the attack. He explores the role played by the participants and the part each played in the muddled affair on the Union side. On the Confederate side, although they were initially stunned by the mine explosion, the author relates how a handful of Confederates were able to react and through luck and skill counter the Union commanders’ mismanagement. The chronicle of the horrors of the actual attack itself is related from the perspectives of the officers and enlisted men on both sides giving, as close as possible, an accurate account of this chaotic and deadly affair. The author relates the Confederate attempts to countermine, and he details the role of racism in the slaughter of Colored Troops by Confederate and Union soldiers. The battle of the Crater was a harbinger of the static and bloody trench warfare of the future World War I. John F. Schmutz, a resident of San Antonio, Texas, is a corporate attorney and Army veteran. This book resulted from his research of two ancestors who served in the ranks of the 14th New York Heavy Artillery, which participated in the Crater attack. He successfully combines his use of collections of unpublished first-hand accounts with the reading of contemporary newspapers and dozens of regimental histories. His work as a lawyer contributed to his analytical skills and his ability to write so clearly. The Battle of the Crater is a well-written and tightly constructed history, published in a 7-inch by 10-½ inch format, that must be read by those especially fascinated by the final campaigns of the Civil War. Schmutz has set the standard for a study of this period of Civil War history. His account includes not only military but also political implications previously not related in other histories of the battle. The author’s preface states, as previously quoted, that this battle was ‘one of the lesser known and understood battles…” This is no longer true, for The Battle of the Crater certainly brings clarity and understanding to this battle and how it relates to the military, cultural and political aspects of the last year of the Civil War. Revewer: Michael Russert, a member of the North Shore Round Table of Long Island and the Company of Military Historians, has a MALS plus 60 hours in American Studies. He is Coordinator of The New York State Veteran Oral History Program.
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Illustrated, maps, appendix, endnotes, bibliography, index, 418 pp., 2009. McFarland, Box 611, Jefferson, NC 28640, $75 plus shipping.