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Hello, I’m writing a paper on Trench Warfare in the American Civil War and I was wondering if anyone is familiar with any good sources on the subject. I am putting a special focus on the role played by Robert E. Lee in the initial construction of the Petersburg trenches in 1861, so any direct accounts of his role (first or second hand) would be greatly appreciated.
Check the unabridged version of Douglas S. Freeman's biography of Lee.
An afterthought: check The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, available online by clicking here. Known as the Official Records or OR for short, it's the U.S. Army's official history of the war. It's considered to be a primary source. You'll have to do some complex searches to find Lee at Petersburg in 1861-62.
Thanks guys, your help is really appreciated.
It would be a mistake to conclude that Lee was the only Civil War general to see the value of entrenchments. George McClellan did it during his Peninsula campaign and Henry Halleck did it out West. Field engineering goes way way back, but it's only something armies do when maneuver wafare isn't or doesn't seem to be an option. There was lots of this stuff going on during earlier centuries. The Swiss engineer Vauban comes to mind.
Pete,
I am a bit of a fan of Vauban, a engineer in royal French service, and often wander about his works.:cool: If interested try this website:http://www.sites-vauban.org/?lang=en
Quote:
From 1653 to 1703, Vauban took part in 48 sieges, restructured 130 strongholds, built about thirty strongholds from scratch and left behind him about thirty plans which were used after his death.
The Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site in Alexandria, Virginia in the Washington DC area is worth visiting. The defenses of Washington during the Civil War were Vauban-type earthworks located on the high ground outside the city -- the engineer officer who designed the fortifications also had to incorporate some of the hasty positions dug in 1861 before a proper terrain analysis had been done. My Dad took my brother and I to Fort Ward in 1959 when archeologists employed by Alexandria were excavating the site in preparation for turning it into a park. At about the same time a few hundred yards from the fort where I then lived a girl found a .69-caliber spherical musket ball while we kids were playing with toy cars in the dirt.
Those interested in Civil War fortifications should read Mr. Lincoln's Forts by Benjamin Cooling and Wally Owen. It describes the defensive perimeter built around Washington. I've met both of the authors.
Those bearing a grudge against the U.S. Army's personnel system might be gratified to know that Fort Ellsworth and Fort Lyon in the Civil War defenses of Washington DC had the current location of the Hoffman Building, Stovall Street, Alexandria, Virginia within their arcs of fire where they overlapped with each other. Were those forts still garrisoned by the Field Artillery the Hoffman Building could be blasted to pieces within a few hours. Alas, all change is not progress. ;)