Shameless self-promotion

Today, I’d like to engage in a bit of shameless self-promotion….

I’m pleased to announce the release date of my new book, which is the first detailed tactical study of the March 10, 1865 Battle of Monroe’s Crossroads, fought on the grounds of what is today Fort Bragg, near Fayetteville, NC. In this important action, Lt. Gen. Wade Hampton, commanding Wheeler’s Cavalry Corps and Maj. Gen. Matthew C. Butler’s cavalry division from the Army of Northern Virginia, launched a stunning dawn surprise attack on Brig. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick’s sleeping camp. Kilpatrick was nearly captured, and had to beat feet to safety in swamp, clad in only his nightshirt in what has become known as “Kilpatrick’s Shirt-Tail Skedaddle”. Kilpatrick rallied his troops and eventually recaptured his camp. After four hours of brutal fighting and heavy losses on both sides, Hampton broke off and withdrew.

However, the importance of this battle does not end there. As a result of the near catastrophic drubbing that he took, Kilpatrick’s advance was halted for an entire day. This extra day permitted Lt. Gen. William J. Hardee to evacuate his infantry corps from Fayetteville unmolested and to burn the important Clarendon Bridge over the Cape Fear River. That act, in turn, halted Sherman’s army in Fayetteville for several days until pontoons could be brought up and the river spanned.

Hardee then conducted a brilliant defense at depth at Averasboro on March 16, again halting Sherman, and then slipped away. These events gave Joseph E. Johnston just enough time to cobble together an army at Smithfield. Implementing a terrific battle plan by Hampton, Johnston attacked Sherman at Bentonville on March 19, and nearly defeated half of Sherman’s army in detail.

The importance of Monroe’s Crossroads has never really been placed in its proper context before. Given that the battlefield itself is nestled squarely in the middle of the 82nd Airborne’s drop zones at Fort Bragg, only a handful of folks get to see this pristine little gem per year. I spent about 3 years pulling the research together, stomping the ground, and developing my interpretation of these events. There are four appendices, including a listing of all identified casualties of the battle.

The book is titled _The Battle of Monroe’s Crossroads and the Civil War’s Last Campaign_. The book features about 50 illustrations, including several that have never been published before, and about 25 excellent maps. The book also includes a foreword by Mark L. Bradley, the foremost scholar of Sherman’s Carolinas Campaign. It’s being published by Savas-Beatie, LLC and should be available on January 31, 2006. The book will be approximately 325 pages long, and will retail for $32.95.

Those interested in reserving a signed copy can do so on the Savas-Beatie web site.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming….