The tarnished cavalier : Major General Earl Van Dorn, C.S.A. / Arthur B. Carter.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Carter, Arthur B.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Van Dorn, Earl, 1820-1863.

Van Dorn, Earl.

Generals--Confederate States of America--Biography.

Generals.

Confederate States of America. Army--Biography.

Confederate States of America.

Confederate States of America. Army.

United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Campaigns.

United States.

History.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xiv, 247 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Knoxville : University of Tennessee Press, [1999]

Summary:

Dashing, bold, and fearless in command, Major General Earl Van Dorn was a soldier whose star shone brightly during the early days of the Confederacy. A veteran of the Mexican War and Indian campaigns, he is remembered for suffering devastating defeats while leading armies at Pea Ridge and Corinth and then redeeming himself as a cavalry commander at Holly Springs and Thompson Station. Yet he was perhaps best known for his reputation as a womanizer killed by an irate husband at the height of his career.

Arthur B. Carter's biography of Van Dom, the first in three decades, draws on previously unpublished sources regarding the general's affair with Martha Goodbread -- which resulted in three children -- and his liaison with Jessica Peters, which resulted in his death. This new material, unknown to previous biographers, includes the revelation that the true circumstances of Van Dorn's death were kept secret by friends and comrades in order to protect his family. Carter reveals that the general was probably mortally wounded on the Peters plantation but was carried back to his Spring Hill headquarters. He reconstructs the details of Van Dorn's murder in a brisk narrative that draws on accounts of Van Dorn's confidantes, capturing both the danger and passion of those events.

The Tarnished Cavalier is more than a story of scandal. Carter sheds new light on Confederate conduct of the war in the western theater during 1861 and 1862, revisits the pivotal battles of Pea Ridge and Corinth -- both of which are important to understanding the loss of the upper South -- and introduces new perspectives on the defense of Vicksburg and the Middle Tennessee operations of early 1863.

Carter's narrativejuxtaposes Van Dorn's flamboyance with his failings as a commander: although he was a soldier with heroic aspirations, he was also impulsive, reckless, and unable to delegate authority. Perhaps more telling, it shows how Van Dorn's character flaws extended to his personal life, cutting short a promising career.

Contents:

Preface

Acknowledgments

The way of the warrior

A splendid little war

The long road to Pea Ridge

Mississippi's defender

The Battle of Corinth

The dark days of fall

The Van Dorn Raid

A game of fox and hounds

Springtime in Tennessee

A murder most foul

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [229]-239) and index.

ISBN:

1572330473

OCLC:

40150527