The Civil War Trilogy - Shelby Foote

Well, I've finally finished Shelby Foote's three volume history of the American Civil War.  This is a wonderful narrative history of almost 3,000 pages which I was first introduced to while studying the ACW at university more years ago than I care to remember.  I'd previously read much of the first two volumes researching my dissertation on the Army of Northern Virginia but had concentrated on the Eastern Theatre and never really touched on the third volume.

This oversight has now been rectified and I've now, slowly, worked my way through it over the past year with the aid of an atlas to assist my somewhat sketchy knowledge of US geography although it should be said that plenty of maps are included.

I have to say that I'm very pleased to have made the effort. Foote's writing is magnificent and really makes the conflict come alive with colourful portraits of many of the participants both great and small.  He's not afraid to say that a general was not up to the task and rightly castigates many for their incompetence while praising the efforts of the more successful.  

I'm aware of many of the criticisms of his work, including deriding abolitionists and downplaying the role of ex slaves, together with a complete absence of footnotes, however, as a work of narrative, military history it has to be among the most enjoyable series of books I've ever read, comparable with Gibbon or Oman.

All in, a serious commitment but one that more than repays the effort.  Maybe it's time to revive the slumbering ACW project...