The War of the Aeronauts

by Evans, Charles M.

• ISBN13: 9780811713955
• ISBN10: 0811713954
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-07-01
• Publisher: Stackpole Books

Summary

The Union Army Balloon Corps holds a significant place in the annals of Civil War and military history. From 1861 to 1863 the corps contributed invaluable surveillance and reconnaissance information to the Union Army's war effort during the Virginia campaign. It also accomplished such significant military feats as the initial air-to-ground communication by telegraph, the first use of the "aircraft carrier" for launch of the balloon, and the first artillery barrage directed by an aerial observer where gun batteries were unable to see their targets from the ground. This book traces the history of the intrepid airborne force, from its creation by pioneer balloonist Thaddeus Lowe to its unceremonious disbanding in 1863.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
A Yankee Aeronaut Behind Confederate Lines	1	(19)
Brief History of Early Ballooning	20	(13)
The Great Transatlantic Quest	33	(27)
Creating an Army in the Air	60	(28)
Early Operations	88	(16)
The Union Army Balloon Corps	104	(20)
The Battle of Egos	124	(23)
Disillusioned Aeronauts	147	(18)
The Balloons Corps and the Peninsular Campaign	165	(24)
The First Confederate Air Force	189	(14)
The Origins of the ``Silk Dress Balloon''	203	(6)
The Air War over Virginia	209	(36)
The Winter of Disappointment	245	(18)
Thaddeus Lowe's Last Battle	263	(25)
The Last Days of the Corps	288	(8)
After the Balloon Corps	296	(15)
Notes	311	(27)
Bibliography	338	(6)
Index	344