Destruction and Reconstruction: Personal Experiences from the Civil War (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Civil War Memories SeriesBy Richard Taylor
Length10h 37m
About this audiobook
Destruction and Reconstruction: Personal Experiences from the Civil War is one of the sharpest memoirs produced by the defeated Confederacy. Richard Taylor recounts campaigns in Louisiana, the Red River Valley, and the wider Trans-Mississippi theater, combining battlefield narrative with political judgment and social observation. His prose is urbane, ironic, and often caustic, shaped by classical learning and the postwar culture of military vindication, yet enlivened by tactical detail and memorable portraits of commanders. Taylor was unusually placed to write such a work. The son of President Zachary Taylor and brother-in-law of Jefferson Davis, he moved easily among the political and military elite, while his life as a Louisiana planter tied him directly to the slaveholding order the war destroyed. Rising to lieutenant general despite limited formal military training, he witnessed both Confederate improvisation and collapse, experiences that inform the memoir's blend of pride, grievance, and analytical clarity. This book is recommended to readers seeking a firsthand Civil War account that is literary as well as historical. Though marked by Confederate assumptions, it remains indispensable for understanding memory, command, and defeat.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.9 (108)
Includes Goodreads
GenreBiography and Memoir
Length10 hrs 37 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 20, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2PREFACE.
3CHAPTER I. SECESSION.
4CHAPTER II. FIRST SCENES OF THE WAR.
5CHAPTER III. AFTER MANASSAS.
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6CHAPTER IV. OPENING OF THE PENINSULAR CAMPAIGN.
7CHAPTER V. THE VALLEY CAMPAIGN.
8CHAPTER VI. "THE SEVEN DAYS AROUND RICHMOND."
9CHAPTER VII. THE DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA.
10CHAPTER VIII. OPERATIONS IN LOUISIANA AND ON THE MISSISSIPPI.
11CHAPTER IX. ATTACKED BY THE FEDERALS—ATTEMPT TO RELIEVE VICKSBURG—CAPTURE OF BERWICK'S BAY.
12CHAPTER X. MOVEMENT TO THE RED RIVER—CAMPAIGN AGAINST BANKS.
13CHAPTER XI. ESCAPE OF BANKS AND PORTER.
14CHAPTER XII. EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI.
15CHAPTER XIII. CLOSING OPERATIONS OF THE WAR—SURRENDER.
16CHAPTER XIV. CRITICISMS AND REFLECTIONS.
17CHAPTER XV. RECONSTRUCTION UNDER JOHNSON.
18CHAPTER XVI. RECONSTRUCTION UNDER GRANT.
19CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.
20Memorable Quotes
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