LDST 390 FALL 2008 CIVIL WAR LEADERSHIP Professors: Dr. George R. Goethals Jepson Hall 235; [email protected]; 287-6354 Gen. John W. Mountcastle Jepson Hall 243; [email protected]; 484-1435 Introduction This course explores the military and political leadership of the American Civil War of 1861-1865. It examines the war’s political and social context, its military history, the evolving aims of the fighting, and the central actors and events that shape our understanding of leadership. The instructors, one a social psychologist and the other a Brigadier General and military historian, lecture or present material on occasion. For the most part, however, our class sessions are devoted to discussion of each day’s reading. A highlight of the semester will be a trip to Gettysburg leaving mid-afternoon on Sunday October 19 and returning after dinner on Monday October 20. This trip is required for all students. Below is a calendar listing topics and readings for each day the class meets. The assigned books are: What Caused the Civil War by Edward Ayers; Grant Moves South by Bruce Catton; Partners in Command by Joseph Glatthaar; Battle Cry of Freedom by James McPherson; The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara; and April 1865 by Jay Winik. Assigned articles or chapters are posted on e-reserve (ER), as indicated below. Course Requirements 1. All students are expected to attend class and to come fully prepared to participate in discussion. 2. Each week you should email both instructors brief—about 150 words—questions or comments on either Monday’s or Wednesday’s reading. We will coordinate the email assignments in class. The comments are due 1:00 PM on the day of the class. We will respond to them, ordinarily within a day or two. 3. There will be an exam on the material from the first part of the course on Wednesday, October 8. 4. A paper of approximately 15 pages is due before Thanksgiving, on Wednesday November 19, at 5:00 PM. You may write the paper by yourself2or team up with one other person. The paper should discuss a single leader, or the relationship between or the comparison of two leaders based on reading that we will plan together. Those who do the paper in pairs must submit assessments of the relative contributions of each member of the pair. 5. During the last two weeks of classes you will present, either individually or in pairs, your assessments of the leader or leaders discussed in your paper. Your course grade will be based on the five requirements above. The first four will be weighted equally, and twice as much as the last. Class Schedule and Readings Monday, August 25 Introduction Wednesday, August 27 Beginnings James McPherson (1988) Battle Cry of Freedom (Oxford: Oxford University Press). Chapters 1 and 2. Monday, September 1 (Odd numbers email) Lurching Toward War McPherson, Chapters 3 – 5. Wednesday, September 3 (Even numbers email) Davis and Lincoln McPherson, Chapter 6; Shelby Foote (1958) The Civil War: A Narrative (New York: Random House), pp. 1-353Monday, September 8 (Odd numbers email) Secession McPherson, Chapters 7 - 9 Wednesday, September 10 (Even numbers email) What Caused the Civil War: A Visit with President Ayers Edward L. Ayers (2005) What Caused the Civil War (New York: Norton), pp. 103-144; McPherson, Chapter 10. Monday, September 15 (Odd numbers email) The Early Stages McPherson, Chapters 11 and 12 Wednesday, September 17 (Even numbers email) “The River War in 1862” McPherson, Chapter 13 Monday, September 22 (Odd numbers email) Grant Moves South, Part 1 Bruce Catton (1960) Grant Moves South (Boston: Little, Brown ) Chapters 1 - 5 Wednesday, September 24 (Even numbers email) Grant Moves South, Part 2 Catton, Chapters 6 - 84Monday, September 29 (Odd numbers email) Jackson, Lee, and McClellan McPherson, Chapters 14 and 15 Wednesday, October 1 (Even numbers email) The Emancipation Proclamation and Antietam McPherson, Chapters 16 and 17 Monday, October 6 (Odd numbers email) Vicksburg and Gettysburg McPherson, Chapters 18 – 20 Wednesday, October 8 Midterm Exam Fall Break Wednesday, October 15 (Even numbers email) The Killer Angels, Day 1 Michael Shaara (1974) The Killer Angels: A Novel (New York: Random House) To the Reader; Forward; Monday, June 29, 1863; Wednesday, July 1, 1863: The First Day Monday, October 20 (Odd numbers email) GETTYSBURG TRIP The Killer Angels, Day 2 Shaara, Thursday, July 2, 1863: The Second Day5Wednesday, October 22 (Even numbers email) The Killer Angels, Day 3 Shaara, Friday, July 3, 1863: The Third Day; Afterword Monday, October 27 (Odd numbers email) Partners in Command Joseph Glatthaar (1994) Partners in Command (New York: Free Press) Chapters 6 and 7; McPherson, Chapter 22 Wednesday, October 29 (Even numbers email) If It Takes All Summer McPherson, Chapters 23 – 25 Monday, November 3 (Odd numbers email) April 1865, I Jay Winik (2001) April 1865: The Month That Saved America (New York: Harper Collins) Introduction, Prelude, Chapters 1 and 2 Wednesday, November 5 (Even numbers email) April 1865, II Winik, Chapters 3 and 4 Monday, November 10 (Odd numbers email) April 1865, III Winik, Chapters 5 and 66Wednesday, November 12 (Even numbers email) April 1865, IV Winik, Chapters 7 and 8, Epilogue Monday, November 17 (Even numbers email) The End McPherson, Chapters 26 – 28, Epilogue, Afterword Wednesday, November 19 and Monday, November 24 Student Presentations Thanksgiving Vacation Monday, December 1 Student Presentations Wednesday, December 3