The Finishing Stroke: Texans in the 1864 Tennessee Campaign

by LUNDBERG JOHN

• ISBN13: 9781893114333
• ISBN10: 1893114333
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-04-01
• Publisher: Texas A & M Univ Pr

Summary

The annals of Texan bravery hold few better examples of bold determination and sheer audacity under impossible circumstances than the Battle of Franklin, Tennessee, on November 30, 1864. On this one afternoon, a few thousand sons of the Lone Star State stood shoulder to shoulder and stepped off neatly in line of battle, their bands playing while Hardee Pattern blue battle flags filled out in a crisp autumn breeze. Within a few minutes, hundreds would be dead and dying, as would their beloved leaders, Hiram Granbury and Pat Cleburne. Virginians have Pickett's Charge as an example of unflinching nerve; for Texans, the field at Franklin became an immortal monument to courage in the face of long odds.

The opening volley of the eagerly anticipated Military History of Texas Series is The Finishing Stroke. The book chronicles the actions of Texas troops in the Army of Tennessee from September 1, 1864, the Fall of Atlanta; until January 1, 1865, when the last of the Army of Tennessee recrossed the Tennessee River following the defeat at Nashville. It follows them thr

Author Biography

John Lundberg is active in the Austin Civil War Round Table. He has developed living history demonstrations, representing the life of a Confederate soldier, for middle and elementary schools throughout the Austin area

Table of Contents

Foreword	11	(2)
Acknowledgments	13	(4)
Introduction	17	(6)
The Lull	23	(24)
Cutting Off Sherman	47	(24)
Desperate Courage	71	(34)
One Last Gamble	105	(16)
Epilogue	121	(8)
Appendix 1. Order of Battle for Texas Troops in Hood's Tennessee Campaign	129	(2)
Appendix 2. Casualties in Granbury's Texas Brigade at Franklin	131	(18)
Notes	149	(15)
Bibliography	164	(6)
Index	170